On the Record with
Steven Heath, President & Ceo, International Aero Engines

New Logo, New CEO, New Vision

Twelve months after taking the helm at International Aero Engines, Steven Heath has set the company on a new course to consolidate its long-term position and a producer and maintainer of turbofans. Since its last Singapore appearance, two years ago, the company has a new logo which downplays its V2500 turbofan (employed in the Airbus A320 family) in favor of presenting IAE as a broader-based concern offering more than just one product.

"IAE is now an eighteen-year-old company," Heath told Show News. "It is in its teenage years and starting to mature into adulthood." To assist this process, the CEO has launched VISTA, an appropriately named long-term plan for the whole company. "VISTA tells you what you want to be when you grow up," Heath says.

"It contains all the usual things like making the V2500 more efficient and quieter, while being cheaper and giving off less emissions, but VISTA also asks what kind of business partners we should have and what types of customer services we ought to be offering."

One initiative already identified is real-time web-based data for customers' fleet management on the company's recently upgraded site. Presently, this is compiled and disseminated in a traditional, labor-intensive manner inherited from founding partners Rolls-Royce and Pratt & Whitney. Under new plans, V2500 operators will be able to see instantly the fleet reliability figures of other users for comparison against their own from the same source.

IAE has delivered more than 1,750 engines rated at between 22,000 and 33,000 pounds of thrust, according to sub-variant, to more then 80 customers in 35 countries. The A319, 320 and 321 are the main users, but the V2500 also finds applications in the A319 Airbus Corporate Jet and out-of-production MD-90. More than 65% of A320 series airliners in Asia have V2500 power.

Despite IAE's recording a good year in 2001, with record production of 281 engines, 72% market share, and $2.5 billion in revenues, Heath says he regards it as "disappointing in some respects" as a consequence of the airline industry downturn. Consequently, the planned 2002 production of 350 engines has been cut back by almost 30% to account for deferrals-but no outright cancellations-by customers.

How long will the downturn last? "My crystal ball is as good as yours," Heathsays, "but the airlines are re-scheduling their engine deferrals for 2004-05" which is as good an indication as any.

By Paul Jackson