Pratt & Whitney Expands PurePower Geared Turbofan Engine MRO Network

Pratt & Whitney, a division of United Technologies Corp., announced that it will widen its global network of providers that maintain the company’s revolutionary PurePower® Geared TurbofanTM (GTF) engines to include Pratt & Whitney’s Eagle Services Asia Pte Ltd (Pratt & Whitney Singapore Engine Center).

The Singapore Engine Center will become one of Pratt & Whitney’s industry leading maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) providers located around the world that deliver high quality maintenance support to GTF engine operators including Pratt & Whitney, MTU Aero Engines, Japanese Aero Engines Corporation and Lufthansa Technik.

“Asia is home to a large base of carriers that will fly GTF-powered A320neo aircraft,” said Kevin Kirkpatrick, executive director, Aftermarket Operations – Asia Pacific. “Expanding the MRO network to support customers in this region is a strategic decision for us.”

“We welcome Pratt & Whitney’s investment in Singapore to perform maintenance of its advanced GTF engines,” said Tan Kong Hwee, director, Transport Engineering, Singapore Economic Development Board. “This addition underscores Singapore’s competitiveness and attractiveness as a location for aerospace MRO activities, and our strong partnership with OEMs such as Pratt & Whitney. The new capabilities that our engineers will acquire will strengthen our leadership position in MRO within the region.”

The Pratt & Whitney Singapore Engine Center will provide engine maintenance for the PW1100G-JM. An estimated capital investment of nearly US$85 million will outfit the facility with advanced capabilities such as an environment control system and an engine flow line system. Pratt & Whitney expects modifications to the facility to start in 2018, and GTF engine service to commence in 2019.

“The addition of GTF engine capability into our Singapore engine overhaul center complements our current ability to support the existing PW4000 engine fleet,” Kirkpatrick said. “For example, we will be upgrading the test cell, which will in turn improve productivity, reduce set up time and boost efficiency across operations. Our current customers of PW4000 engines will benefit from these enhanced technologies.”

Wong Yue Jeen, senior vice president, Partnership Management and Business Development at SIA Engineering Company Ltd (SIAEC) said, “The investment in the GTF engine capability is another milestone in our partnership with Pratt & Whitney, and will position the engine center strongly to tap on growth opportunities arising from the large orders of A320neo aircraft powered by GTF engines in the region.”

The Singapore Engine Center is a joint venture with SIA Engineering Company Ltd (SIAEC). It currently performs heavy maintenance for PW4000 and GP7200 engines and will be ready for disassembly, assembly and testing of GTF engines by 2019.

The GTF engine family is setting new standards in the aerospace industry. The GTF engine improves fuel efficiency by 16 percent, reduces regulated emissions by 50 percent and cuts the noise footprint by 75 percent.