PRODUCTS & S ER V ICES
Perrone Aerospace has taken ‘repair, recycle and reuse’ to
a new level in its dress cover refurbishment programmes
aircraftinteriorsinternational.com
NOVEMBER 2019 115
o green. These two small words
have become a recognised
tagline of the global
G
environmental movement, which began
in the mid-1960s. When it comes to
discussing matters of sustainability,
aviation is not often perceived as a
positive contributor. It is common
knowledge that air travel contributes
to global greenhouse gas emissions,
but what is being done to
counteract it? In an
industry where every
slight improvement
matters, the team at
Perrone Aerospace
is doing what they
can to make a
difference.
“Our repair station
did not begin as a
green initiative, but it has
given us a way to contribute
while still providing a necessary
service to our customers,” explains
Bill Perrone, president of Perrone
Aerospace. “Through our dress cover
refurbishment programme, we are able
to keep thousands of dress covers out
of landfills every year.”
According to the FAA, a repair station
“refers to a maintenance facility that has
a certificate issued by the FAA under Title
14 of the Code of Federal Regulations
(14 CFR) Part 145 and is engaged in the
maintenance, inspection and alteration
of aircraft and aircraft products.”
Perrone’s All Leather Maintenance
division does just that. “Perrone is on
track to receive in excess of 15,000 parts
in 2019. We have the ability to return
about 90% of them to service,” explains
Kevin Shea, head of the division, and
Perrone’s VP of sales for the Americas.
Perrone’s skilled sewing team is
trained to repair genuine leather,
GO GREEN
The company is also exploring possible
options for breathing new life into
upcycled seats and scrap leather
produced by its cut parts programme.
“The software used to nest our
patterns works to produce very little
scrap in the cutting process, but that
scrap often ends up in landfill,” states
Marc Cognetti, director of marketing. “Our
team has been working with a not-forprofit
to develop an upcycling initiative.”
Aside from contributing to a solution
for a global issue, Perrone is pushing for
increased education regarding the
lifecycle of its products. “Many people
just assume that once airline seats have
reached the end of their lifespan they are
automatically recycled, but that is not
the case,” adds Bill Perrone. “We want
to change this perception and are hoping
this new project will accomplish that.”
synthetic leather, fabric,
sheepskin and other aircraft
upholstery – all of which can
be expensive and time consuming
to replace as full dress covers.
“Our panel replacement programme
allows us to discard only what is
absolutely necessary, returning the rest
to service in ‘like new’ condition” notes
Shea. While the repair station is not
Perrone’s core business, its physical
footprint and capacity has more than
quadrupled over the last 10 years.
To conserve warehouse space and
management resources for customers,
Perrone offers inventory management of
dress cover parts, with real-time visibility
of quantities, level of service and
availability to return to service.
Perrone has become a ‘one-stop shop’
for airlines and designers, providing
interiors products and overseeing the
lifecycle of their leather, from the time it
comes in as an unfinished hide, through
its time as a finished dress cover, to the
time it is ready to be retired and recycled.
FREE READER ENQUIRY SERVICE
To request more details from Perrone Aerospace,
visit www.magupdate.co.uk/paii
Learn more
about Perrone
Aerospace in the
Aircraft Interiors
International 2020
Design Showcase,
out in November
/aircraftinteriorsinternational.com
/paii