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Auckland-based MRO Oceania Aviation has signed a new deal to manufacture and market the products developed by fellow Kiwi firms Aero Composites and Aero Design.
Aero Composites builds composite airframes and aircraft parts, while sister company Aero Composites handles the former’s design and certification.
The partnership and acquisition agreement also means Oceania can now set up its own composites production facility at its Ardmore base, after also buying Aero Composites’ manufacturing equipment.
Oceania Aviation chief executive Greg Edmonds said the partnership is a “significant opportunity” for all three businesses involved and will provide Oceania with “the means to significantly expand” on its composite capabilities.
Edmonds added that the partnership will “complement the growth” of Oceania’s blade repair and overhaul division, which provides repair schemes for composite helicopter blades as well as other composite structure repairs.
All three businesses will continue to work in partnership to develop and manufacture new composite products for the global aerospace industry, according to the company.
Meanwhile, Oceania will welcome Aero Design’s chief design engineer Dan Retief to its team as its new composites production lead, in order to facilitate the transfer of technology, capability and assets from Aero Composites to Oceania, and monitor the rollout of Oceania’s new production capabilities.
Retief said the partnership is good news for customers, as Aero Design will “continue to provide the most cost-effective design, certification and mod development services while leveraging Oceania Aviation’s manufacturing capabilities for efficient production.”
Last month, Australian Aviation sat down with Edmonds to discuss the challenges presented by COVID-19 for the rotary and MRO sectors, as well as the future possibilities for growth in these industries.
