State of AMTSociety Address
The address this month will once again cover many issues.
In the January/February issue of AMT magazine, the 2010 recurrent training exam was published. There are 186 questions in this year’s exam. The new requirement for the Bronze award is 12 hours. The other two awards are Silver which is 40 hours, and Gold which requires 80 hours. For all the information pertaining to the program, read the new AC 65-25E. You have until Dec. 31, 2010 to complete the exam, plan on a four- to six-week period to receive the certificate from AMT.
IA consortium program
The AMTSociety IA roadshow consortium program is doing very well and as of this writing there are only three programs left to complete: Kansas City, MO; Las Vegas, NV; and Denver, CO. In case you have missed an opportunity to attend a program, we have had very interesting presentations from Honeywell, Dassault Falcon, Bell Helicopter/Textron, Dayton-Granger, Tdata, Safety-Net Inc., FAA FAASTeam, StandardAero, Global Jet Services, Emteq, CAMP Systems, Pacific Oil Cooler Services Inc., and others.
Passing the Wrench
The board of directors unanimously adapted a new program that will be a great service to the aviation industry. AMTSociety will accept the toolboxes from retired and/or deceased airframe and powerplant mechanics and see that they are given to a deserving individual at an A&P school, which will ultimately benefit the industry.
Scholarship toolbox raffle
The board of directors is selling raffle tickets for additional money for our scholarship program. The donation is $2 per ticket, or three tickets for $5. This is a great way to help young people get assistance with tuition costs. The toolbox is a Kennedy combination toolbox.
In closing, I hope to see you at the Aviation Industry Expo in Las Vegas, NV. The golf outing and Maintenance Skills Competition will be the biggest events ever. There are 25 teams competing in the Maintenance Skills Competition. One team is from China, another from Australia in addition to the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, American Airlines, Continental Airlines, AIM, Crimson Tech, Redstone College (Denver), and numerous MROs.
Be safe.
— Tom Hendershot
2010 IA renewal program
March 16-17, 2010, Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, NV, Aviation Industry Expo
March 24, 2010, The Summit Conference & Event Center, 411 Sable Blvd., Aurora, CO
Corporate sponsors: Avtrak
Fourteen years have passed since Avtrak entered the industry. Founded in 1996 by Joe and Glenn Hertzler, the company began as a maintenance management firm tracking individual aircraft maintenance compliance. Consulting services were added to provide customers with a complete solution to their maintenance and operational needs. Avtrak’s dramatic growth has been fueled by a loyal and enthusiastic customer base. It is proud of the fact that its satisfied customers are its best salespeople.
At the heart of Avtrak is Avtrak GlobalNet. Internet-based Avtrak GlobalNet is the industry standard for tracking turbine aircraft maintenance and regulatory compliance. An ideal system for tracking any mixed fleet, Avtrak currently supports more than 4,000 aircraft representing 170 different fixed wing and rotor wing makes and models.
Avtrak partnered with Advanced Solutions Inc. (ASI) in 2000 to develop Avtrak GlobalNet, which was released in 2001.
Another milestone in Avtrak’s success timeline came in 2004 when Gulfstream selected Avtrak to replace its aging, mainframe based, factory maintenance tracking service — CMP.
The resulting Avtrak “emPowered,” Gulfstream CMP.net service has been a success and was recently voted the No. 1 OEM Maintenance Tracking Service in the 2009 Aviation International News Product Support Survey.
The company has grown to provide full maintenance and regulatory compliance management services to Part 91, Part 135 flight operations as well as Part 145 repair stations. Avtrak combines core competencies in FAA regulations, aircraft maintenance, and electronic database management to provide the aviation industry with cutting edge technology for continuous regulatory compliance.
Avtrak announced last month at the 2010 Heli-Expo that Evergreen Helicopters has signed an agreement to have Avtrak support its fleet of 47 helicopters with the full suite of Avtrak services.
Avtrak currently has offices in Littleton, CO (HDQ); Wichita, KS; and Lowell, MA. Avtrak’s business in Mexico, Latin America, South America, and Europe is rapidly growing and several international offices are in the works. For more information visit www.avtrak.com, email [email protected], or call (303) 745-5588.
Snap-on Industrial
Snap-on Industrial has a strong commitment and proven track record in the aerospace industry. For years, its tools have helped keep aircraft flying and ground support equipment operational. Its research and development has led to innovations in new products, such as Flank Drive and the Level 5™ Tool Control System, both of which improve efficiencies, reduce FOD, and raise the standards of quality and safety to levels never seen before in the industry.
But Snap-on Industrial isn’t resting on past accomplishments as it takes tool accountability and control to new heights. The company has developed specialized curriculum for certification and training programs that will ensure technicians meet the standards required by the aerospace industry.
An example of the Snap-on Industrial training offering is torque certification, a program designed to properly train technicians on the applications, uses, and principals of torque and torque tools. The company’s torque program certifies that a technician can apply the fundamentals of proper fastener tensioning. The curriculum, which is divided into three segments, includes 24 hours of instruction that focuses on torque theory, application of torque and corresponding safety measures, and proper use of hydraulic torque tools with large fasteners.
The program is taught at technical schools across the United States.
The Snap-on story dates to 1920 and the founding of the Snap-on Wrench Company by Joseph Johnson and William Seidemann, who pioneered the idea of interchangeable sockets and wrench handles. The company manufactured and marketed 10 sockets that would “snap on” to five interchangeable handles, a concept that revolutionized the hand-tool industry.
Snap-on Industrial is a division of Snap-on Incorporated. Headquartered in Kenosha, WI, Snap-on’s sales, distribution, and manufacturing network reaches across 130 countries on every continent. Today, the Snap-on organization boasts 35 manufacturing facilities around the world with nearly 12,000 employees.
For more information on Snap-on Industrial, visit www.snapon.com/industrial, or call (877) 740-1900.
