IPTN moves to produce engine in grand aviation designs
PARIS (JP): If building airplanes is like doing a giant jigsaw puzzle, then putting together the engine has got to be one of the largest and most important pieces. PT IPTN, the Indonesian state aircraft manufacturer, has disclosed its intention of filling in that missing piece: moving into engine production soon.
What seems to outsiders like a mammoth and ambitious undertaking, especially since IPTN's N-2130 jet project has barely taken off, is simply a natural extension of operations for company insiders.
The announcement was first made, somewhat casually, by IPTN President B.J. Habibie during a seminar held on the sidelines of the Paris Air Show this month. "This step proves that Indonesia is consistent with its commitment to developing its aircraft industry," Habibie said.
A new company will be established in January, with President Soeharto as its patron, Habibie as chief commissioner and a number of IPTN top officials serving as commissioners.
IPTN General Manager and Senior Vice President Hari Laksono, who is expected to serve on the new board of commissioners, said Indonesia already has the two chief factors to support an aircraft engine industry: A strong domestic market and a large pool of skilled workers.
The domestic market has always been cited as the prime factor why Indonesia needed to develop its own aviation industry, hence IPTN's raison d'etre, in the first place: There is always a need for a strong fleet of aircraft to link the people spread out across the wide archipelago.
Since IPTN has launched the N-250, the first wholly Indonesian-designed plane, various other opportunities have opened up, including the N-2130, and now, the engine plant.
"The N-250 charts the course for where our aviation industry is heading," Hari told reporters at IPTN's chalet at Le Bourget airport, where the Paris Air Show was held.
"We have the demands and we have the capability," he said.
"If we can sell enough N-235s, N-250s and N-2130s, then there should be sufficient demand to support the development of an engine industry," he reasoned.
The N-250 is powered by the twin Allison AE-2100C turboprop engine. IPTN has not decided on an engine for the N-2130.
But if the engine-making project materializes, IPTN will no longer need to shop around for engines, Hari said. IPTN also has its eyes on the burgeoning Asian market, he added.
IPTN has already developed the "embryo" for its engine plant: the eight-year old Universal Maintenance Center (UMC) has not only run a highly profitable operation by servicing aircraft, it has also been used as a pivotal training center to prepare young Indonesians to meet the future challenge.
The UMC has been expected to become a separate corporate entity as part of IPTN's restructuring plan, but news that it would be upgraded into a propulsion and turbine-making company was only disclosed publicly for the first time in Paris.
Hari, who spent a long time running the UMC, has full confidence in its ability, pointing out the various recognitions, either from international bodies or engine companies, that the center has won for its standard of services and facilities. They include the ISO 9002 from Det Norske Veritas of the Netherlands in November 1996, and more recently, from the Civil Aviation Authority of China.
The engines that UMC has handled include Rolls Royce's RR Dart7 and Pratt & Whitney's JT8D and JT9D, as well as smaller engines such as the Allison A-250, Garret TPE 331, General Electric GE CT7 and PW PT6. This is in addition to industrial engines.
The UMC has the capacity to overhaul up to 25 various engines monthly. Its clients include Garuda Indonesia, Merpati Nusantara, Sempati, Pelita Air Service and the Indonesian Armed Forces.
Just exactly what kind of engine IPTN hopes to develop has not been determined, but the company is looking for partners to help the project get off the ground.
A team led by Eddi Susilo has been visiting engine-makers in Europe this month and will travel to the United States on a similar mission next month. (emb)