INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE
Many manufacturers have moved their customer support call centers outside their own countries (especially U.S. companies) not to provide better service or support, but because it’s cheaper. That’s not to say all off shore support is bad. How many times has your call gone overseas and not been resolved, possibly because of a language barrier or the lack of knowledge at the foreign call center? Regarding lack of knowledge, don’t throw stones if you live in a glass house. (See “We don’t have time.”) Do you even still have a tech rep? Assuming that a manufacturer still provides a tech rep, chances are they are so overworked (due to down-sizing or customer population growth) you’ll be lucky if you get a response, much less an on-site visit, in a reasonable time. Some manufacturers have started charging for tech support. Manufacturers don’t see a measurable return by providing free customer support, especially on aircraft and equipment that are decades old and out of production. Forget the idea that the return on training is measurable in future sales to “loyal” customers or that “good will” attracts new customers. Such customer support is extremely costly and that cost is covered by what you pay for exchanges, repairs, extended warranty plans or hidden in the price tag of a new aircraft. It’s about the bottom line these days, for the customers and the manufacturers. Ultimately, you are responsible for the
proper maintenance of your aircraft, not a tech rep. A properly-trained technician is an asset to the tech rep as well as your operation. He or she becomes even more of an asset if you don’t have a tech rep.
To Train or Not? Whether you embrace it, tolerate it, deny it or avoid it, training is a necessity in aviation. It always has been and always will be. Aircraft and their systems have grown in sophistication and complexity well beyond the knowledge required to obtain an FAA A&P certifi cate. The safe and reliable operation of any aircraft is a direct result of the competency of the people who fl y it and maintain it. Training breeds competent professionals. Competence
improves performance. Lack of training breeds mediocre workers. Mediocrity supports stagnation. All excuses listed here relate to
money and time. Of course, time is money, so all of these excuses relate to money. It’s been said that “money is power” and “knowledge is power.” Training imparts knowledge. Logically, knowledge equals power which equals money. Therefore, training yields money. That is money saved, not money wasted! If you’re a member of the group that believes training is a waste of time and money, I hope I’ve taught you otherwise.
Paul J. Magno has more than 30 years of international service in the rotorcraft fi eld. He is the founder of Worldwide Helicopter Solutions, a company dedicated to providing a full range of strategic and tactical solutions to help helicopter operations run at peak effi ciency. For more information visit www.
worldwidehelicoptersolutions.com.
“Training breeds
competent professionals. Competence improves performance. Lack of
training breeds mediocre workers. Mediocrity supports stagnation.”
THINK INSIDE THE BOX
ACESSYSTEMS.COM ACES Systems/TEC Aviation 865.671.2003 | ISO 9001 October | November 2015
HelicopterMaintenanceMagazine.com 23
ELIMINATE HUMAN ERROR WITH TRANSIENT BALANCE Providing Simple Solutions to Complex Problems
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44