- A Deep Dive into Malaysia’s Leading MRO Provider
By Sangeet Saxena
Kuala Lumpur/New Delhi. 27 May 2024. BHIC Aeroservices, a subsidiary of Boustead Heavy Industries Corporation (BHIC), has been a cornerstone of the Malaysian aerospace sector, providing top-notch MRO services to both military and civilian aircraft. With its state-of-the-art facilities and a team of highly skilled professionals, BHIC Aeroservices is at the forefront of ensuring the operational readiness and safety of aircraft across the region. Mohammad Faiza bin Hamid , Head of Supply Chain and Kelvin Irwin Shepherdson, Senior Maintenance Manager for BHIC Aeroservices, in an exclusive interview with Aviation & Defence Universe (ADU) at DSA 2024 , stated, “in this interview, we will delve into the various facets of MRO services provided by BHIC Aeroservices, exploring their capabilities, technological advancements, and the strategic vision that drives our operations. We will also discuss the challenges and opportunities in the MRO industry, and how BHIC Aeroservices is positioning itself to meet the growing demands of the aerospace market.”
ADU. Is BHIC an MRO provider for military and civil and both?
Team BHIC. BHIC Aeroservices is a subsidiary of the BHIC Group. We are specialised in helicopter maintenance which deals with the government services. Currently we are supporting the Malaysian Air Force with 12 helicopters of the EC725 which is based in Kuantan and in Lakuan. And wherever their operations are, we support their logistics for them. So in particular, the MRO system, we do the MRO for the second line. Their line maintenance is done at our facility in Subang.
ADU. Where is the MRO located?
Team BHIC. Our integrated aviation centre, BHIC AeroServices Sdn Bhd (BHICAS), is situated at Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang, Selangor Darul Ehsan, within the Malaysian International Aerospace Centre. Its Parts By Hour (PBH), Repair By Hour (RBH), and Consumables By Hour (CBH) programmes offer MRO services to fixed wing and rotary aircraft.
ADU. Where do these choppers go for the first line maintenance?
Team BHIC. It’s done by the customer at their various locations. Whichever Air Force stations they are based at, they do their maintenance. Below the majors are done at their own facility. When it comes to the major inspections, it’s done at our facility. Vice versa, we also do have some transfer of technology whereby their personnel are attached to us also. Currently we are supporting the Air Force. In the past, we had a few more other contracts.
But as of today, we are supporting the Air Force in particular. We used to have the Coast Guard, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency. We used to be supporting the Dauphins. But unfortunately, the contract is not with us now. But in the future, we hope to continue to support them.
ADU. What is the MRO market like here? Is it a big market in Malaysia?
Team BHIC. It is a huge market. There are around five MROs including civilians. Like us, we are a JV company with Airbus. So we are more focused on Airbus helicopters. And we have the Navy, for the Fenex. So both, we have, we tried to get it back, the contract. Because we didn’t have it at this moment. We only have the Royal Malaysian Air Force. Which is, they have 12 fleets, 46 of them. For us, we are totally military.
ADU. What is the time span which you normally take to do the MRO?
Team BHIC. Our target is within 60 days. We have to retain it. Because we have a PBC contract with the government. It depends. Sometimes it is longer than that. Because there are other activities. But sometimes we have the findings and the unscheduled maintenance. Many a times we need to go back to the OEM , to get certain raw materials and parts.
ADU. What is your supply chain like?
Team BHIC. We have a very robust supply chain. It are not only all Malaysian but is worldwide. We source from everywhere. Our major and biggest chunk comes from the OEM . For the consumables and non-proprietary to OEM, we resource from other countries too.
ADU. And has the war between Russia and Ukraine affected the supply chain?
Team BHIC. Yes there has been an impact on the raw material supply, especially on the titanium which is very hard to get. China can supply but China product is not recognized by the FAA, EASA. For civilians, there’s no issue. But for military, it’s quite difficult. It has impacted us. There is an alternative market and we are trying to develop it. And this is not China.
ADU. Is you MRO work restricted to Malaysia or you have an export market too?
Team BHIC. So far, we have been focusing and concentrating in Malaysia. But we have had a few requests recently to do some work overseas. We have sent our manpower to support Airbus Japan. And there have been a few requests to do certain maintenance from outside but haven’t materialized yet. It’s still in discussion. We are looking to explore some prospective ventures. When it’s military to military, there are bilateral agreements.
ADU. Has tie ups with Indian MROs and contracts with Indian OEMs been on your expansion plan?
Team BHIC. India is important for us and we hope to get more contracts from there. We have had in the past work with HAL. We have Russian as well as French aircraft and HAL has expert in both. Also Indian private military MROs can be our partners in work. We hope to get the talks going. India is also a prospective supply chain market and needs to be discovered.
ADU. BHIC also does MRO for Malaysian Navy. Can you tell us about it?
Team BHIC. The Royal Malaysian Navy’s (RMN) fleet of Prime Minister Class submarines receives in-service support and maintenance for their submarine facilities from our subsidiary, BHIC Submarine Engineering Services Sdn Bhd.
As told to Sangeeta Saxena
