The aviation industry’s growth might have been slightly halted by the global pandemic, but it hasn’t changed the fact that airplanes, both old and new models, need repair and maintenance. These airplanes vary in the components that make them up — from single shaft to geared turbofan engines, and from traditional aero-structure to innovative carbon fiber reinforced polymers. As such, Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) providers must keep up with these multiple variations and optimize the use of diverse technologies. This is where digitization comes into play. In 2020, airline companies reduced their budget for IT to $20 billion, a 60 percent decrease from the previous year. In spite of this cutback, however, airline and MRO digitalization will likely progress as companies turn toward digital platforms to improve functions, such as fleet management and maintenance planning. MRO service providers must leverage mobile innovations that give access to technical documentation — and having access to the right information at the right time. With general electric aviation being expected to account for over 30 percent of the aircraft engine maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) market between 2020 and 2029, MRO must implement further optimization measures for their services, from assessment to renovation and modification, as well as supply chain management for spare parts and accessories. Enable your transformation today with this brief guide. Enable quick access to information. Quick access to information can help MROs achieve a short and consistent turnaround time (TAT) for MRO services. Mechanics and personnel in airline and MRO companies spend more time doing non-productive work, or non-value-adding tasks. These include paperwork and documentation processing, conducting rework and workarounds to make up for the lack of enough spare parts, looking for tooling, searching for engineering blueprints, moving back and forth to the office for materials, and endlessly waiting for instructions. All of these can be ascribed to the lack of quick access to information, which in turn significantly slows down the turnaround time of MRO services. This is why MRO and airline companies alike need to come up with a solution that enables every person to have instant but secure access to the information — be it documentation or the whereabouts of parts — they need by leveraging advanced analytics to improve planning and processes that increase productivity. Improve maintenance planning. Even the best MRO solution cannot fix disparate and complex information systems; enterprises need to improve the design and planning of maintenance. Process reengineering and integrating the MRO solution with the MRO system are important steps in improving maintenance planning. To do this, the MRO management should understand which processes are routine and which are non-routine, and then create a database of which processes and procedures worked well and which ones fell short in their objective. Performance data is a fundamental factor in getting all of this gathered, organized, and analyzed, which leads us back to the need for advanced analytics. Select the right MRO solution that brings value. The replacement or upgrade, or even introduction, of an MRO IT solution can be daunting — from its cost to its complexity to the need for extreme change management in place to involve all stakeholders. But the lack of one poses many more risks for the enterprise, as legacy systems are getting increasingly expensive to support in terms of maintenance and mobility. Choose the right MRO solution that can easily be adapted for mobile devices, wireless connections, etc. Prior to making this move, your enterprise decision-makers should ask these questions: Are we prepared? How can we maximize the value of the MRO solution investment? Who is accountable for the investment and who can help us? If the answer to the first question is yes, then the answers to the next two must be clear, particularly the last one. Maximizing the value of any IT investment requires years of expertise and experience working with the best of breed in the industry. Optimize MRO with EMX By partnering with an industry expert like EMX, you will not only get a technology solution but also a deeper and wider industry perspective to better understand proactive maintenance. Buying a technology solution from industry experts is a competitive advantage because they have worked with other companies similar to yours. You can also tailor solutions based on industry trends and your unique needs. Invest in proactive digital solutions — such as MRO Software and Maintenance Planning — that can help you perform proactive maintenance. EmpowerMX provides you with proven solutions and industry expertise to help you “fly to digital” without friction. Based in Frisco, TX, EmpowerMX is a leading cloud-based software platform that is designed to accelerate digital adoption in the Airline, MRO, and Defense establishments. Our product suite helps engineering and compliance, heavy and line maintenance, and shop and materials management. For more information, contact EmpowerMX.