How To Maintain and Source Aircraft Ground Support Equipment
Whether an aircraft is being turned over between flights or simply needs to be refueled before its next operation, a majority of servicing and flight preparation is carried out through the use of ground support equipment (GSE). There are many types of GSE, including equipment that aids in repair, overhaul, refueling, parking, towing, baggage transportation, and much more. As critical resources for basic aircraft management and preparation, it is very important that operators maintain the functionality and reliability of their arsenal. In this blog, we will discuss GSE in more detail, allowing you to better understand how to best manage and source such equipment for your operational needs.
To best ensure that GSE always remains operable and dependable, it must be properly maintained on a regular basis. When it comes time to begin maintenance, one of the first considerations that one should make is whether the job should be conducted in house or by a third-party provider. This choice will vary in accordance with a few factors, one being cost. Labor costs, overhead, and other costs will all have to be considered, as well as the price of the GSE parts themselves. For smaller operators that lack a maintenance team or facility, third-party options are generally the only choice. While these services can be costly, one must also consider the alternative.
To conduct repairs and maintenance in-house, one would require a real estate investment for space, budget and time allocations for a maintenance team, and more. For big operators with a large fleet, this could potentially be the best way to go to ensure timely addressal of all issues. Nevertheless, there are many other potential costs that are associated with such an endeavor, including the cost of insurance, contract management, training, digitalization of maintenance management systems, etc.
Whether one decides to rely on a third-party option or hires for in-house operations, repairs should always be conducted by the most qualified mechanics. When searching for services, it can be very beneficial to ask around to see who others may recommend, as seasoned personnel in the industry will often have ample experience with various companies. Additionally, it is very important to consider the qualifications and certifications that facilities have to find one that is either highly skilled or specialized in a particular process.
With in-house hires, on the other hand, one will need to find skilled technicians that are currently in high-demand as a result of labor shifts. While less experienced technicians can save one money on costs, it is not recommended as there is a chance that mistakes may occur in critical decisions, potentially leading to other unforeseen costs. Additionally, technicians should regularly be trained in basic and specialty procedures that are tailored to your fleet and GSE, ensuring that they can address any typical problem or issue that may come about.
Regardless of whether you choose to go in-house or to a third-party, repairs will need to be conducted with the use of spare and replacement parts. To guarantee a quick turnaround time to get ground support equipment back in operation as soon as possible, you should have a resource ready to go for sourcing all you require. While OEMs and other similar entities are useful for getting the exact parts required, they can easily have very long lead-times, low availability, and may require one to shop at multiple sources to get everything they need. Instead, using a trusted distributor can save time and money, as well as open the opportunity to procure alternatives, used components, PMAs, and much more. If you are looking for a highly reliable source for all the aircraft parts and components that you require, there is no better solution than NSN Purchasing.
NSN Purchasing is a premier distribution platform belonging to the ASAP Semiconductor family of websites, and we have over 2 billion new, used, obsolete, and hard-to-find items ready for purchase from our database at any time. We are your solution for sourcing aviation GSE, offering parts from leading global manufacturers we trust with competitive pricing. Take the time to explore our ever-expanding part catalogs, and you may request quotes on items of interest for your comparisons with ease through the submission of a completed RFQ form as provided on our website.
At NSN Purchasing, quality is the cornerstone of our operations, and we explore every possible avenue we can to ensure high-quality items with every purchase. With a strict NO CHINA SOURCING pledge, we guarantee that every part ships out alongside all applicable qualifying certifications and manufacturing trace documentation. Furthermore, countless offerings are subjected to rigorous quality assurance tests and inspections. As a result, we proudly operate with AS9120B, ISO 9001:2015, and FAA AC 00-56B accreditation. See why customers choose to steadily rely on NSN Purchasing for all their needs time and time again when you give us a call or email today!
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