The plane has landed, the preconditioned air (PCA) unit is chugging along, ready to keep all onboard comfortable as they wait, but how’s that PCA going to get onto the plane? A hose, of course. Yet, it can’t just be any hose. A ground crew needs to know its hoses are repair free and sturdy enough to stay that way – something made by the kind of folks who know the ins and outs of PCA hose manufacturing.
With more than 19 years of experience, AmCraft Manufacturing has gone from repairing PCA hoses to making their own.
“The airlines kept bringing in PCA hoses, which needed repair. The ground crew would bring in these hoses and tell us all about their complaints with them and if we could do this or that to improve the product. Since we already made products out of the same material, it just became natural for us to not just repair the hoses, but also manufacture new product. A couple of years later, 80 percent of our business was PCA hoses, in all possible configurations and for several different applications,” says Nelly Kuster, Director of Operations at AmCraft Manufacturing.
AmCraft Manufacturing offers two main variations of hoses, wire-supported hoses and lay flat hoses. Both product lines offer various insulation levels and hose sections, building a wide range of hose configuration options, says Kuster.
AmCraft Manufacturing’s Air Insulated Lay Flat hoses were born in 2015, Kuster says, out of customer requests for a lightweight and well-insulated hose.
“Over the years, the weight and effectiveness of the insulation always came up as a subject repeatedly. We set the goal to create a lightweight, durable hose,” says Kuster. “Air is the best insulation and has no weight. We decided to use top-notch materials to make the hose as durable as possible. The air insulated hose units continue to be deployed at locations with extreme climates because of its ability to self-purge accumulated water.”
Since the launch of their own PCA hoses 19 years ago, Kuster says that AmCraft Manufacturing has been making steady upgrades to their products. Insulation materials have been changed three times and the hoses’ exterior material options have been expanded twice. What’s more, zipper and Velcro configuration options have grown three times.
Hoses range in length from 1 foot to 50 feet and come in diameters of 4 inches and 18 inches – and a wide selection of adapters, elbows and diameter reducers are available in any inner diameter combination.
AmCraft Manufacturing also produces smaller diameter hoses of 4 inches, designed for military aircraft.
“The two main products are the Wire-supported PCA hose and the Lay Flat PCA hose. Both product lines offer various insulation levels and hose sections to build a wide range of hose configuration options,” adds Kuster.
The PCA hoses are composed of four main parts: The inner liner, the outer liner (or skin), the insulation between the two liners, and the coupling system, also known as the cuffs.
“The inner liner, the insulation and the outer skin form a tube and there is a cuff on each end of the tube to couple them to other tubes,” Kuster explains.
Operating temperatures of the hose are between -40 degrees F up to 165 degrees F.
Kuster says the most important factor to consider before buying a PCA hose is the climate they are going to be used in. Kuster recommends the hoses not be left in direct sunlight for extended periods of time and explains the inside of hoses need to be kept dry, adding that hoses should be used regularly in warm, humid climates to purge water build-up from the interior.
The weight of the hose sections and how the hose sections will be stowed should also be considered by ground handling crews to make sure the hoses remain free of tears and punctures.
