For almost a decade, SPAES has operated in the aviation industry. What makes SPAES stand out from its competitors?

Working with SPAES means direct communication with the Design Engineer of the project. Our customers have direct access to our know-how, so critical design and project issues can be addressed early on without any detours. This has proven to be the secret to our success because it enables us to respond quickly and effectively to customer needs. The determining factor for our quality is, ultimately, our customers. Due to our flexible structure and decision-making processes, we can swiftly address even urgent needs.

SPAES is a stand-alone Part 21J Design Organization and Part 21G Manufacturing Organization with access to many maintenance organizations across Europe. How does this help leverage your position in the global market to assist your customers with their various complex project requirements?

Having both, a Part 21J Design and 21G Production Organization, enables us to be able to serve our customers across the entire value creation process from the initial idea through to the development and approval to the final product – providing everything under one roof. The relationship with many experts from different organizations combined with the close cooperation with Part 145 Advertorial Maintenance Organizations, both nationally and internationally, helps us merge know-how and experience into one package and meet the needs of our customers in the best way possible.

Your specialists are versatile in their work. How do you manage to accomplish services that incorporate mission equipment, medical systems, engineering and manufacturing?

The versatility of our team is reflected in the versatility of our portfolio. Because each member of the team has a particular field of expertise and is involved in aviation in some way or another, such as our Head of Production Organization (Part 21G), Nikolas Kares, who builds his own lightweight aircraft, or Andreas Henrich, one of our design engineers, who holds a commercial pilot’s license and enjoys flying as a hobby. We use the synergies of all team members to create this unique package and incorporate that across our divisions: Mission Equipment, Medical Systems, Engineering and Manufacturing.

Your recent completion of a Minor Change in a H125/AS350 Airbus helicopter – including the installation of an iPad mount, a USB-charger and the refurbishment of the complete cabin interior – shows the diversity of your capabilities, from essential avionics improving pilot situational awareness to the comfort and style of the seats and upholstery. How did you become market leaders in Minor Change work, and what benefits do your customers receive from this expertise?

After almost a decade of operating in the aviation industry, we can draw from a large pool of experience from more than 550 Minor Changes, enabling us to complete Minor Change projects more quickly for the customer. Because we have significantly broadened our knowledge and experience in the past years, we can now offer our clients specific recommendations. Our reference list includes anything from the installation of Air Traffic or Tactical Radios in AS350s, the installation of various Garmin systems in BO105s to the installation of a medical storage cabinet in a Learjet 35. Being able to accomplish this has meant walking the extra mile in the beginning, but we think that professionalism has no shortcuts.

As technology advances rapidly and operational needs are adapting, more aircraft operators will need to upgrade their fleets, such as glass cockpits replacing analogue instrumentation. How is SPAES preparing to accommodate the future needs of the industry going forward.

Our passion for aviation motivates us to keep a pulse on the industry trends and we are aware that the glass cockpit market is propelled to grow at a significant pace with new regulations making it all but necessary to upgrade aircraft.

In order to better equip our avionics division for the rising demand we are going to provide and expand on the software and resources necessary to complete any kind of glass cockpit project – no matter the size. When it comes to upgrading the cockpit, the sky is truly the limit.

We recently finished a full glass cockpit retrofit in a BO105 for the Indonesian police from advising to planning, up to certification and training. Six more glass cockpit upgrades will be completed in 2023.