AGENDA
EAMRO 2023 PROGRAMME
Final Program
09:00 – 10:30
Registration & High Tea
10:30 – 11:00
Opening Ceremony
Chief Guest:
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Lt. Gen. Ajay Kumar Suri, Director General & Colonel Commandant, Army Aviation, Indian Army
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Guest of Honor:
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Dr. Sudhir Kumar Mishra, Former Director General, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)
Invitees:
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Air Marshal Sukhchain Singh (Retd.), Former Air Officer-in-charge Maintenance, Indian Air Force
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Shri. R. P. Kashyap, Director Operations Training DGCA & Indian Aviation Academy
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Shri. Vaibhav Varun, Managing Director, Aviakul Group of Companies
11:00 – 12:00
[PA-01] Panel Discussion
Convergence of Civil & Defence Applications in MRO Industry
Historically, the civil aviation and defence sectors have operated separately, having different regulations, certifications, and requirements, though there are several MRO operations and processes that are similar for both defence and civil aviation. Building domestic MRO capabilities requires a significant investment in infrastructure and technology, efficient allocation of resources, for which collaboration between public and private sector is needed and if the processes and resources are streamlined through the convergence of defence and civil aviation sectors, it has the potential to transform the industry significantly by creating a huge value chain. However, Challenges in convergence relates to the existence of different set of regulations and certifications and to converge Civil and Military MRO it is important for the three regulatory agencies DGCA, CEMILAC and DGAQA to have the similar standards for checking airworthiness as is the process followed globally because currently there are substantial gaps in the methodology of approving and certifying organizations.
What are the skills & qualifications that can be rationalised across domains? Is it possible to bring DGCA and CEMILAC regulations in harmony with common MRO process and certification? What role public & private sector can play in achieving this convergence and building a robust MRO ecosystem?
Special Invitee:
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Lt. Gen. Ajay Kumar Suri, Director General & Colonel Commandant, Army Aviation, Indian Army
Moderator:
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Col. Kandadai V Kuber (Retd.), Director - Aerospace and Defence, Ernst & Young LLP
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Panelists:
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Shri. Anirrban Batacharrya, Director, Vector Technorum
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Lt. Gen. Dharam Vir Kalra (Retd.), Former Director General – Ordinance Services, Indian Army
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Shri. Mangalam Pandey, Lead - Technical Services, Air India Limited
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Rear Admiral Mukul Asthana (Retd.), Former Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Air), Indian Navy
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Air Marshal Sukhchain Singh (Retd.), Former Air Officer-in-charge Maintenance, Indian Air Force
12:00 – 12:10
Keynote Lecture
Women in Aviation
The contribution of women in aviation sector have been significant right from the very beginning and there are many shining examples across the globe. But the sad truth is that these examples are very few. While airlines do have women in customer facing jobs on board or on ground, the lack of gender diversity is particularly apparent in technical roles like engineers, air traffic controllers & pilots which also extends to the boardroom because the general sentiment is that women skills and capabilities don’t align with the job roles which are majorly technical in nature. Though India leads globally in terms of having the highest number of female pilots that is at 15%, it is still a very meagre number as women continue to face multiple challenges that hinder their optimum growth in the industry. Although various solutions have been promoted to increase the percentage of female pilots in aviation, for example many flight training organisations are encouraging female student pilots though scholarship and other means, still a spectrum of questions and issues remain evident.
What are the main barriers - economic, social, cultural to women’s advancement in the industry? How can those challenges be overcome and what role can executive search firms play in assisting companies who are actively looking to improve diversity? What role can government and other stakeholders play in making aviation sector a truly gender diverse?
Speaker:
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Dr. Harpreet A De Singh, Executive Director, Air India Limited
12:10 – 12:20
Keynote Lecture
Preparing Future MRO Workforce
Skilled workforce is the critical asset for the growth of any industry. In MRO industry particularly, while India does have a large pool of engineering talent, particularly useful in the labour-intensive MRO industry with its high-skill requirements which is also comparatively less expensive than in other Asian MRO hubs, the sector still faces issues like brain drain of engineers and technical experts. The fluctuating demand and instability in the industry proves to be a challenge in retaining the country’s skilled professionals and therefore, they look to other industries for work. However, the trends suggested by aviation industry’s expansion show that it is expected that over 100,000 prime jobs will be created in the MRO build. Preparing future workers requires investing in training programs that incorporate these new technologies. Also, to make MRO jobs more appealing, educators and industry leaders need to increase outreach and get the word out about the great opportunities available in MRO.
​How traditional educational institutions can transform themselves to accommodate this growing need? What kind of method that one must adapt to transform the existing theory-oriented curriculum? How the better opportunities can be provided at home to retain the brain drain of skilled labour?
Speaker:
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Dr. Sundararaj, Professor & Head, Department of Aeronautical & Aerospace Engineering, Bharath Institute of Higher Education and Research (BIHER)
12:20 – 13:20
[PA-02] Panel Discussion
Digital MRO: Are we ready?
Today’s world is characterized by social and technological change at all levels. Today, digital transformation is not an option but a necessity, which provides a way through which any disruption or future uncertainties could be navigated. And therefore, after pandemic led downturn, digitization of operations, focusing more on achieving efficiency gains and process automation, will be one of the key drivers for MRO industry’s return to profitable growth as it will make maintenance and repair processes more effective and cost saving to the industry which is already reeling with many challenges in managing the operating costs. Combining maintenance with logistics and operational data will provide new services that increase safety and availability of the aircraft. Technologies such as digital twins, real-time monitoring of aircraft condition, drone usage and predictive maintenance, could be leveraged by service providers to increase efficiency and cope with the reduced MRO budget of airlines to maintain the companies’ competitive ability for the next decades.
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And by realizing the significant opportunities and value creation by digitization, as companies rapidly move towards digitization of processes, some key concerns that need to be addressed at all levels are: how can the digitally skilled workforce be prepared? What are the different challenges faced by the industry for adopting fully digital transformation? What are the new age solutions to use data analytic tools, the challenges in modern systems to fully protect data integrity effectively and efficiently within and across organizations? How much of the value can be realized by individual manufacturers, airlines, MROs or lessor at the enterprise level or aircraft level?
Moderator:
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Shri. Ashwani Sharma, Aviation Consultant at Edgevarsity Learning Systems Private Limited
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Panelists:
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Shri. Arun Kumar Bansal, Accountable Manager, Pradhaan Air Express
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Shri. Mangalam Pandey, Lead - Technical Services, Air India Limited
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Shri. Prashant Gupta, Manager Boeing Fleet, SpiceJet
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Shri. Saurav Gupta, Director, Vandana Aircraft Services Private Limited
13:20 – 14:20
LUNCH
14:20 – 14:30
Keynote Lecture
MRO 2030: Indian Roadmap
Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul plays a critical role in aviation industry and an airline’s second highest expenditure goes on MRO which accounts for nearly 15 per cent of total revenues. Along with the expansion of aviation sector, both civil and military, the Indian MRO industry is also growing rapidly, and it is anticipated to more than triple in size over the next 3-5 years to reach roughly USD 4 billion from the current USD 900 million because of several political actions and greater private participation.
Seeing this significant opportunity, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India has come up with an Indian Roadmap to achieve the feat of making India a global MRO hub by 2030 and has brought up MRO Policy 2021. The Indian MRO Industry is faced with multiple issues and challenges like lack of infrastructure, licensing issues, brain drain of engineers, delayed paperwork and so on and the MRO policy seeks to address these issues to some extent.
However, the key themes that remain pertinent in making India MRO hub are: With Indian Airline Carriers increasing their Aircraft fleet, whether MROs in India can cope up to the challenge in the next five years? How can India reduce its dependency on Foreign MROs for critical maintenance? How can MROs be made a low capital investment industry to entertain new age entrepreneurs? How can the growth of MRO industry complement and echo the ambitious UDAN and Make in India plans that can complement the growth of aviation sector as a whole ecosystem?
Speaker:
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Shri. Pulak Sen, Founder & Secretary General, MRO Association of India
14:30 – 14:40
Keynote Lecture
Safety Challenges in MRO
In aircraft maintenance industry, Safety is of paramount importance in ensuring the continuing airworthiness of the aircrafts and safety of the human lives. Safety challenges in the industry include human error, compliance with regulations, fatigue induced by long hours of duty, inherent risks carried by equipment and tools. In ensuring the safety standards, new technological innovations can go a long way. Safety challenges in the industry require a comprehensive approach that includes appropriate training, compliance with regulations, equipment and tool safety, environmental hazard mitigation etc.,
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In this context, how can the regulatory authorities ensure appropriate monitoring of the aircraft equipment with the increased fleet size? Can regulatory compliances cope up with the technological advancements to ensure an effective day-to-day operation? What role can MRO Professionals better play in ensuring Safety? what are the new technological innovations that can ensure and further enhance the safety standards?
Speaker:
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Shri. Manoj Kumar Paidisetty, Experienced Government Professional and Aerospace Engineering Doctoral Candidate
14:40 – 15:40
[PA-03] Panel Discussion
Challenges in implementing New Age MRO Solutions
In the face of several challenges posed by uncertainties, for every industry technology is now a must have. Particularly, The MRO industry which has been facing many challenges in terms of supply chain disruption, delayed paperwork and so on must align itself with Industry 4.0. The three big forces in technology are enterprise asset management, supply chain management, and engineering document management. These three are now merging and will create a new convergence in MRO. But new age solutions presented by rapid technological innovations in the industry has itself presented several challenges. for instance, the tech know- how can often be complicated at times for the aging workforce and professionals are not equipped with proper training programs to leverage the advantage of technology. The cost of technical and digital transition is huge, creating another obstacle for the industry, which is already facing huge operating costs.
How far companies must go with building out integrated MRO systems full of valuable information? How can the employees on board be equipped with training up to date with technology? Why and how companies need to shift thinking about MRO in the bigger corporate picture? How do MRO efficiencies and investment affect overall company performance?
Moderator:
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Shri. Ajay Kumar, Managing Partner, KLA Legal
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Panelists:
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Shri. Maniraj Rajagopalan, Associate Director – Lease Management (AAF), Indigo
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Gp. Capt. Sanjay Shah, Director - Govt. & Public Sector Advisory, Nangia Anderson India Private Limited
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Shri. Vinod Kumar Shukla, Director Training, Go Airlines (India) Limited
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Shri. Vijay Kumar Jha, Chief Operating Officer, Drone Van Private Limited