Author: Sensus Sandbox
By Furkan Ozgunaydin , Director of Sales and Marketing, Sensus Aero
As we step into 2025, I’ve had the privilege of engaging with MRO leaders across the globe – through conferences, meetings with potential customers, and visits to diverse maintenance facilities. These interactions provided a clear picture of the challenges the industry faces and, more importantly, the opportunities to drive meaningful change.
MROs are the backbone of aviation, yet many still grapple with outdated, inefficient systems and processes that hinder their ability to adapt to modern demands. Here are the key findings and reflections from last year’s journey.
Legacy Systems: A Sunk Cost Holding Back Progress
One recurring theme was the overwhelming reliance on legacy, highly customized on-premises software. These systems, while once innovative, have become a costly burden to maintain and nearly impossible to migrate without significant disruption.
The challenge extends beyond the technical aspects. Many MROs struggle with historical and operational data that is fragmented or misleading, leading to poor decision-making and compounding sunk costs. For component MROs managing complex parts like auxiliary power units (APUs), landing gear, and engines, the lack of comprehensive software to address their unique needs pushes them toward expensive, heavily customized solutions.
The industry is crying out for scalable, adaptable systems that can replace these legacy solutions without the operational headaches and financial strain.
Mobility and IoT: Bridging the Gap to Paperless Operations
Another critical takeaway from the field is the growing demand for mobility in hangar maintenance. With technicians working across vast spaces and handling complex jobs, integrating mobile tools, IoT devices, and real-time inventory, tooling, and job card management has become non-negotiable.
MROs want to transition incrementally to a paperless environment, but this requires solutions that prioritize usability and connectivity. A mobile-first approach, combined with seamless IoT integration, will enable technicians to access, update, and complete tasks without the inefficiencies of traditional processes.
The Challenges of Implementation and Migration
One of the most persistent pain points in adopting new software is the time and cost of implementation. MROs are cautious, as migrating from legacy systems often involves significant downtime and operational disruption.
At Sensus Aero, we’ve addressed this by building solutions rooted in Lean and Agile principles, enabling shorter implementation timelines and smoother migrations. By offering scalable, lightweight systems, we empower MROs to make the transition without compromising their operations.
The Importance of Seamless Integrations
MROs increasingly require
software that integrates with OEM databases, supplier portals, quality assurance systems, and financial tools. However, these integrations are often fraught with technical challenges that delay projects and inflate costs.
Having robust APIs and a partner who prioritizes seamless integrations can eliminate these headaches. Smooth data flow between systems is critical for optimizing workflows and ensuring compliance, all while reducing the manual effort required to keep systems in sync.
Financial Sensitivity: The Margins That Matter
MROs operate on razor-thin margins, where even a single delayed job card or an AOG order can jeopardize project profitability. A key takeaway from my discussions is the critical need for a technology partner who truly understands these financial realities.
Flexible pricing models, such as OPEX-CAPEX hybrids or SaaS options, are increasingly preferred over rigid, high-cost vendor solutions. MROs require adaptable cost structures that align with their operational needs—whether during peak seasons, when part-time or contracted staff are brought on, or during expansion phases that demand additional licenses.
Scalability and Centralized Control
As MROs expand their global reach, the need for centralized solutions becomes critical. Managing operations across multiple locations requires a system that scales effortlessly while maintaining visibility and control.
By offering solutions that adapt to fluctuating staffing and stock levels, MROs can avoid unnecessary costs and
streamline operations during peak activity. Scalability isn’t just about growth—it’s about providing flexibility to meet the demands of a dynamic industry.
Key Takeaways and a Path Forward
The insights gathered over the past year paint a clear picture: the MRO industry must modernize to keep pace with the demands of a rapidly evolving aviation ecosystem. However, modernization does not mean disruption. By embracing flexible, scalable, and integrated solutions, MROs can overcome legacy challenges without sacrificing operational continuity.
The focus should be on:
– Transitioning from legacy systems to lightweight, adaptable platforms.
– Digitizing workflows to enable mobility and IoT-driven efficiencies.
– Prioritizing seamless integrations to streamline operations.
– Adopting financial models that align with the sensitive margins of MRO projects.
– Ensuring scalability to support seasonal fluctuations and geographic expansions.
The journey to modernization is not without its challenges, but the rewards—greater efficiency, reduced costs, and enhanced operational agility—are well worth the effort. The question is: how quickly can the industry adapt to this new reality?
By
Matas Stumbrys, Head of Development, Sensus Aero
In the fast-paced world of aviation maintenance, keeping aircraft operational isn’t just a technical challenge – it’s a logistical and regulatory battle. MROs today face a perfect storm of obstacles: evolving Aircraft Maintenance Manuals (AMMs) and Maintenance Planning Documents (MPDs), supply chain disruptions, a shortage of skilled labor, constant regulatory demands, and the increasing complexity of customized workflows.
Add to this the unique challenges of newer aircraft with their sophisticated systems and older aircraft requiring tailored maintenance processes to meet airline-specific needs, and the pressure on MROs becomes immense. Outdated manual processes, legacy technologies, and organizational silos only exacerbate these issues, costing millions in lost productivity and resources.
It’s clear: the industry needs a better way forward.
Agile and Lean: A Powerful Combination for MROs
At Sensus Aero, we’ve witnessed firsthand how the combination of Agile methodologies and Lean principles transforms MRO software development and operations. Both Agile and Lean share foundational principles such as customer-centricity and continuous improvement. While Agile emphasizes adaptability, collaboration, and delivering value incrementally, Lean focuses on eliminating waste, maximizing customer value, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement. Together, these approaches align around the core principle of delivering value with efficiency and precision.
Here’s how Agile and Lean tackle the industry’s biggest challenges:
Breaking Down Silos and Standardizing Workflows:
Agile fosters collaboration across traditionally disconnected teams, while Lean emphasizes standardizing processes to reduce variability and waste. Together, these approaches ensure that software development aligns with real-world operational needs and eliminates inefficiencies caused by siloed operations.
Adapting to AMMs, MPDs, and Regulatory Changes:
Agile’s iterative and incremental approach ensures that software updates prioritize customer needs, enabling quick adaptation to changes in AMMs and MPDs while maintaining compliance and minimizing delays. Combined with Lean principles, workflows are optimized through Value Stream Mapping (VSM), identifying and removing inefficiencies to minimize resource waste and enhance customer value.
Modern MRO software further enhances this process by integrating with OEM databases to provide live updates. This ensures maintenance teams always have access to the latest data, boosting compliance and operational efficiency.
Creating Adaptable Software for Diverse Needs:
From General Aviation to Heavy Airframe Maintenance, MROs require tailored solutions that reflect their unique operational demands. Lean principles guide the creation of adaptable workflows that minimize unnecessary steps, while Agile ensures flexibility, enabling the software to evolve seamlessly with tailored customizations for diverse operational needs.
Replacing Manual Processes with Automation:
Agile-driven development empowers teams to focus on delivering value by leveraging automation for repetitive tasks like inventory tracking, task scheduling, and maintenance recordkeeping, reducing errors and improving efficiency. Lean principles enhance this by systematically identifying and eliminating waste, inconsistencies, and overburden, ensuring that automation maximizes efficiency while aligning with customer value.
Providing Real-Time Transparency and Risk Mitigation:
Agile methodologies offer continuous visibility into project progress, allowing MRO managers to identify bottlenecks early and adjust workflows proactively through tools like Sprint Boards in Scrum or Kanban Boards for continuous flow. These visual aids, combined with practices like regular sprint reviews, enable MRO managers to identify bottlenecks early, adapt workflows proactively, and ensure steady delivery of value.
Lean complements this by emphasizing flow efficiency and actionable metrics, ensuring workflows are streamlined, disruptions are minimized, and throughput is maximized through continuous feedback loops.
Future-Proofing with Scalability and Lean Flexibility:
Agile’s adaptability supports the evolution of systems, whether scaling operations to new regions or integrating predictive maintenance tools, ensuring responsiveness to changing demands.
The Power of Agile and Lean in Action
A recent project at Sensus Aero exemplifies how Agile and Lean methodologies are driving real-world impact. We partnered with FL Technics Lithuania, an MRO previously struggling with inefficiencies caused by siloed operations, outdated systems, and complex workflows. Through Agile and Lean principles, we are iteratively replacing legacy systems with a customized ERP solution, continuously delivering value while adapting to evolving needs.
Results to date:
– 20% reduction in downtime through Lean-optimized workflows.
– Automated processes that eliminate human errors, improve accuracy, and save hundreds of hours.
– Flexible, Lean-driven workflows tailored to their diverse and unique operational needs.
– Enhanced labor and material efficiency, optimizing utilization and reducing waste across operations.
As the project progresses, we are expanding and scaling the MRO management software to support FL Technic’s new hangars in the fast-growing Asia-Pacific market. This ongoing transformation not only continues to optimize their existing operations but also equips them to manage future growth and regional expansion with confidence and adaptability.
A Call to Action for the Industry
The aviation industry can no longer rely on outdated systems and rigid processes. Agile and Lean methodologies provide MROs with the flexibility, collaboration, and efficiency needed to meet today’s challenges and tomorrow’s opportunities.
If your organization is ready to embrace Agile and Lean-driven solutions and unlock the full potential of your operations, let’s start the conversation. Together, we can break down silos, streamline processes, and build a future-ready MRO.
Matas Stumbrys
Head of Development, Sensus Aero