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COMPANY PROFILE
the development programme can be accelerated. The PS4 will be the aircraft submitted for certification, which Kopter expects will be achieved next year, ensuring the first aircraft can be delivered to customers before the end of 2019. While currently the plan is to build the helicopters in the facility in Switzerland, there will be a time in the near future, according to Löwenstein, when this will not be the case: “The SH09 has been built in the knowledge that parts can be made here, and tested here, but can ultimately be put together in other countries.” There will be a manufacturing facility in the US before long, he said, and there are also plans to expand to the Asia Pacific region. Assembly facilities around the world are a sensible move – not only to ensure compliance with local laws and regulations, but lso because it is a much more cost effective way of doing business, he explained, as Kopter will be able to meet local operator requirements for customisation of the helicopter. Market opportunity The belief in the product among the Kopter employees to whom AirMed&Rescue spoke for this article was infectious. Christian Gras, Executive Vice President of Customers, has lengthy experience in the industry, and is passionate in his belief that strong, adaptable singleengine helicopters such as the SH09 are the future of the industry. “Kopter,” he said, “is going to shake up the hierarchy of the helicopter manufacturing sector.” Having worked in the US, Europe and South America, Gras’s understanding of market dynamics is impressive. Identifying gaps in the market and being able to exploit them is key to success in any business, but in the relatively dense aircraft manufacturing business, it is more important than ever. The growth of the helicopter emergency medical services
sector in the US will continue, he says, and through a close strategic co-operation with Metro Aviation, Kopter is planning on holding a strong position in this area in years to come: “We are going to aim to take a significant per cent of the market in the next 10 years,” he told AirMed&Rescue. With many operators in the US still using the AS350 Ecureuil, the time will soon be nigh for these helicopters to be put out to pasture, and thus comes the opportunity for the SH09 to potentially become the aircraft of choice. While it is possible that other manufacturers could downgrade a twin-engine aircraft into a single-engine one, question marks hang over whether or not this would be a profitable move for them. Kopter’s first customers of the SH09 ‘will be partners’, said Jan Nowacki, Executive Vice-President of Operations. Kopter isn’t going to deliver hundreds of helicopters in the first few years. There will be time for feedback from these initial customers, with the opportunity to improve and streamline processes and services. Without data from these customers, the company is unable to progress further. “It is normal in a complex technical development process that unforeseen circumstances will appear,” said Löwenstein, “and we have mitigation processes in place for when that happens.” A passion for what they are doing is apparent throughout the layers of the company, from the CEO to the Chief Safety Officer, who explained in detail the inner workings of the helicopter prototypes and the testing that was going to be taking place. Kopter is not innovating for the sake of it – the team has the experience to know what can be improved upon, and is taking the opportunity to do just that, with new technology allowing for the introduction of an aircraft that offers real mission versatility and enhanced safety features. The EMS helicopter of the future? Maybe.
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12-14 June AIRMED World Congress Warsaw, Poland
18-24 June 50th Annual Washington States Search and Rescue Conference Ellensburg, Washington, US
9-14 July ALEA Expo 2018 Airborne Law Enforcement Association Louisville, Kentucky, US
10-12 July International Search & Rescue Conference 2018 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
7-9 September SAREX 2018 El Dorado, California, US
19-20 September The Emergency Services Show 2018 Birmingham, UK
1-4 October American College of Emergency Physicians Annual Meeting San Diego, California, US
19-20 October The Pittman Course: Flight & Critical Care Paramedic Review Phoenix, Arizona, US
22-24 October Air Medical Transport Conference Phoenix, Arizona, US
29 October EMS World Expo Nashville, Tennessee, US
12 November Association of Air Ambulances Air Ambulance Conference London, UK
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