Willis Lease Finance Corporation and Key Industry Partners Launch MRO Blockchain Alliance
February 04 2020 - 9:20AM
Key industry partners have come together to launch the MRO
Blockchain Alliance, the air transport sector’s first industry-wide
investigation into the use of blockchain to trace, track and record
aircraft parts.
The new alliance is made up of leading
organizations covering every aspect of the commercial aviation
maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) chain, from parts
manufacturing and repairs to logistics and smart contracts.
The alliance members so far include Bolloré Logistics, Cathay
Pacific, FLYdocs, HAECO Group, Ramco Systems, SAFRAN, SITA and
Willis Lease Finance Corporation, all supported by Clyde &
Co.
“In order to build a valuable product utilizing
blockchain technology, we will need the industry leaders,
represented in this alliance, to lend their respective expertise
and to build upon the work already completed by Willis Lease
Finance Corporation and FLYdocs in this field,” explained Austin
Willis, Senior Vice President, Business Development, Willis Lease
Finance Corporation.”
In the coming months, the alliance will launch a
proof of concept to explore how they can use blockchain to
digitally track and record the movement and maintenance history of
parts across a wide number of players. These include airlines,
lessors, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), logistics
suppliers and maintenance providers.
This tracking information is vital in managing a
complex logistics value chain that can span several stakeholders
over the lifetime of each individual part. Today there is no
global database, incomplete data sharing and only partial
digitalization for commercial aviation parts. The MRO Blockchain
Alliance believes that the use of blockchain will simplify and
speed up the process of tracking parts and securely sharing
information across the industry. PwC estimates that the use of
blockchain could increase aerospace industry revenues by as much as
4% or US$40 billion, while cutting MRO costs globally by around 5%
or US$3.5 billion. The savings will be derived from secure
document storage, ensuring confidentiality and data privacy,
improved insights for repair time and inventory, automated
workflows and more efficient record reconciliation.
The MRO Blockchain Alliance will use blockchain
technology to record and track two separate strands of information
for each aircraft part: a digital thread and a digital passport.
The digital thread provides the real-time status, chain of custody
and back-to-birth tracing of the part over time. The digital
passport – like a human passport – provides the indisputable
identity of a part and contains other vital data to prove
ownership.
SITA’s role, as a principal air transport community
IT provider, will provide governance for the global alliance,
support its working groups, deliver all required blockchain
technology components compliant with international standards and
ensure proper alignment and validation with applicable
regulators.
Matthys Serfontein, President of Air Transport
Solutions for SITA noted: “This initiative is part of SITA’s
ongoing exploration of blockchain, a technology that we believe
promises tremendous opportunity for streamlining the sharing and
recording of information across the air transport industry.
In an industry as interconnected as ours, the ability to
share and record common data in a secure way without giving up
control of that data is fundamental to driving new efficiencies in
air travel. This is particularly true for the MRO sector.”
The MRO industry processes 25 billion parts every
year, while adding three billion new parts each year. There are
20,000 suppliers, covering 144,000 flights every day for an overall
industry market representing around $100 billion per year.
The alliance will spend the next six months in a
continued planning phase, with the aim of going live with the first
proof of concept in the third quarter of 2020.
Willis Lease Finance
Corporation
Willis Lease Finance Corporation leases large and
regional spare commercial aircraft engines, auxiliary power units
and aircraft to airlines, aircraft engine manufacturers and
maintenance, repair and overhaul providers in 120 countries. These
leasing activities are integrated with engine and aircraft trading,
engine lease pools and asset management services supported by
cutting edge technology through its subsidiary, Willis Asset
Management Limited, as well as various end-of-life solutions for
engines and aviation materials provided through its subsidiary,
Willis Aeronautical Services, Inc.
Except for historical information, the matters
discussed in this press release contain forward-looking statements
that involve risks and uncertainties. Do not unduly rely on
forward-looking statements, which give only expectations about the
future and are not guarantees. Forward-looking statements
speak only as of the date they are made, and we undertake no
obligation to update them. Our actual results may differ materially
from the results discussed in forward-looking statements. Factors
that might cause such a difference include, but are not limited to:
the effects on the airline industry and the global economy of
events such as terrorist activity; changes in oil prices and other
disruptions to the world markets; trends in the airline industry
and our ability to capitalize on those trends, including growth
rates of markets and other economic factors; risks associated with
owning and leasing jet engines and aircraft; our ability to
successfully negotiate equipment purchases, sales and leases, to
collect outstanding amounts due and to control costs and expenses;
changes in interest rates and availability of capital, both to us
and our customers; our ability to continue to meet changing
customer demands; regulatory changes affecting airline operations,
aircraft maintenance, accounting standards and taxes; the market
value of engines and other assets in our portfolio; and risks
detailed in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K and other
continuing reports filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
CONTACT: |
Scott B. Flaherty |
|
Chief Financial Officer |
|
(561) 349-9989 |
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