Designed for fleets of 100 aircraft or more, the service aims to reduce unnecessary repainting and lower operational costs.
AkzoNobel
Aerospace Coatings is set to unveil the next phase of its Aerofleet Coatings Management service at MRO Americas, featuring cutting-edge drone technology designed to revolutionise aircraft maintenance. By providing faster and more consistent data, the service helps airlines move away from rigid schedules and towards precise, predictive maintenance.
The latest upgrade introduces the Iris CMX (Coatings Management eXpert), a drone developed in partnership with Donecle. Unlike standard visual tools, the Iris CMX utilises a "3-in-1" contact-based sensor to measure dry film thickness, colour, and gloss. This allows for quantitative, repeatable data that was previously difficult to capture manually.
Aerofleet now integrates three distinct data streams to assess a fleet's health:
- Environmental Analytics: Tracking flight routes, UV exposure, and humidity.
- Visual Overviews: Full-surface analysis via the Iris GVI drone.
- Precision Metrics: Targeted measurements from the new Iris CMX.
By operating these drones simultaneously, a trained team can complete a full inspection of a narrowbody aircraft in roughly 30 minutes. Beyond maintenance, the Iris CMX serves as a quality control tool during the manufacturing and repainting stages, ensuring coatings meet exact specifications from day one and reducing costly rework.
“The addition of the Iris CMX "strengthens the data underpinning our predictive models, offering airlines greater confidence in their maintenance decisions while improving environmental impact through reduced material waste,” has stated Michael Green, Segment Business Services Manager at AkzoNobel.