KUALA LUMPUR: United States-based Honeywell Aerospace, the largest manufacturer of aircraft engines and avionics, is set to play a key role to support Malaysia’s plan to become an aerospace hub in Southeast Asia by 2030.
Its Asia Pacific president, Steven Lien, said Honeywell Aerospace sees opportunities in the maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) market in Malaysia due to an expected increase in the number of new aircraft in the Asia Pacific.
He said the MRO market would also be driven by the Asean Open Skies policy that would see an increase in air traffic.
“With greater potential for growth in the Asian aviation market, especially as Asia’s share of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP) is set to expand from 27 to 35 per cent by 2030, we believe in Malaysia’s potential to become an aerospace hub in Southeast Asia,” Lien told Business Times in an interview in Arizona recently.
Other global aviation companies that have pledged to play a bigger role to support the aerospace industry supply chain in Malaysia include Spirit AeroSystems, Airbus SAS and Rolls-Royce.
According to the Malaysian Investment Development Authority, Asia Pacific has been expected to buy 13,460 new aircraft between 2014 and 2033, with the region boasting 39 per cent of the total market value amounting to US$2.02 trillion (RM8.4 trillion).
Asia Pacific is also expected to be the largest travel market in the world, growing at 6.1 per cent annually, according to Boeing’s Current Market Outlook for 2015-2034.
Lien said Honeywell Aerospace’s current activities in Malaysia highlighted its role in the development of the country’s aviation market.
Honeywell Aerospace manufactures avionics parts for the Airbus jumbo jet A380 in its facility in Penang and provides satellite communications (satcom) systems to national carrier Malaysia Airlines Bhd, among others.
The satcom systems offer passengers and airline crews an instant digital voice and data communications, and flight deck connectivity with air traffic control.
“Through our technology, Honeywell Aerospace is well positioned to support the region’s equipment modernisation efforts and advance the aviation industry,” Lien said.
Honeywell Aerospace plans to tap local talents and resources to develop a unique understanding of its customers’ operational requirements.
The company also plans to respond quickly and efficiently with aerospace products and services to meet airlines’ needs.
Lien said Honeywell Aerospace would offer airlines in Asia Pacific time and cost savings from reduced aircraft downtime and a quicker turnaround with its global network of MRO facilities in the region.
Within Asia Pacific, the aerospace company has MRO and manufacturing facilities in China, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore for various avionics systems, auxiliary power units, wheels and brakes as well as engines.
According to Cavok Group, a strategic and operational aviation consulting firm, the MRO market in Asia Pacific is forecast to be worth US$34.8 billion in 2025, compared with US$21.3 billion in North America and US$24.9 billion in Europe.
Lien said growth in the region’s MRO segment as well as the continuous increase in total passenger traffic in Malaysian airports bodes well for the country.
Under the Malaysian Aerospace Industry Blueprint 2030, the country has identified three segments in the aerospace sector in its drive to become the hub of aerospace in Southeast Asia.
The three segments are MRO, aero-manufacturing and aircraft engineering and design services.
In March, International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said the country’s aerospace sector is projected to contribute a total revenue of RM55.2 billion to the economy by 2030.
The total revenue generated by the aerospace industry currently is RM11.8 billion and the sector has been identified as a high-value industry in Malaysia’s diversified economy.