According to the latest market study released by Technavio, the market size of the global commercial aircraft HMS (health monitoring systems) market is predicted to reach a CAGR of close to 8% until 2020. This research report titled ‘Global Commercial Aircraft HMS Market 2016-2020‘provides an in-depth analysis of the market in terms of revenue and emerging market trends. This market research report also includes up to date analysis and forecasts for various market segments and all geographical regions.
“Rapidly growing aviation markets in Asia and the Middle East have been at the forefront in terms of the adoption of health monitoring systems technologies for commercial aircrafts, and have positively impacted the growth of the global aircraft structural health monitoring systems market. Therefore, the market is currently witnessing a majority of the aircraft engine MRO works being outsourced to these regions,” said Abhay Singh, Technavio’s industry analyst for aerospace components and a subject matter expert.
“These developments are attributed to the increasing demand for air travel from countries such as China and India. Other East Asian countries have also recorded rapid growth in air traffic, showing immense potential as key emerging markets for commercial aircraft health monitoring systems,” added Abhay.
This market research study indicates significant investments flowing into R&D activities of various segments of SHM (structural health monitoring), and this trend is expected to drive the global commercial health monitoring systems market through 2020. These investments include development of sensors that can be bonded, embedded, or integrated into the aircraft structure and sensors through the use of specialized composite materials. Research is also likely to be conducted in the development of energy-harvesting mechanisms for self-reliable and durable sensors. The industry is working toward the introduction of an ideal aircraft health monitoring system that ensures the integrity of the entire aircraft, including its structure and subsystems.
Some other driving forces behind the growth of the global commercial aircraft HMS market are:
- Demand for real-time damage detection and localization methods
- Growing popularity of SHM over NDT application
- Industry initiatives involving innovations in health monitoring of aircrafts
Demand for real-time damage detection and localization methods
Structural health monitoring (SHM) helps in the early detection of possible damage to an aircraft and reduces the need for disassembly and manual inspection. This technology enables on-board sensors to send alerts in real time and allow technicians to find damaged components faster, thus reducing the need for major repairs at a later stage. The system also determines the location, size, and type of damage, and diagnoses the health of the aircraft structure. For example, an FOS (flight operations system) used for fuel leakage detection in aircrafts can not only detect the presence of the leakage but also provide information about its location. It is made possible through the presence of sensor nodes at different locations throughout the length of the FOS.
Growing popularity of SHM over NDT application
NDT (non-destructive testing) is a damage detection technique that follows a definite maintenance cycle. It allows the detection of anomalies such as cracks, strains, and fatigue, as well as irregularities in the aircraft structure and engine components. However, these maintenance sessions may require the removal or disassembly of parts and components (like seats and wings) during inspections. Removing parts or dismantling sections of an aircraft for maintenance increases the possibility of damaging and hampering the integrity of the structure. This also increases the time required for the repair activity.
SHM systems help overcome these hindrances through the use of sensors that are connected to a central server on the aircraft to provide information about the condition of the components. This allows aircraft technicians to acquire information from the server's database from remote locations. Engineers find and resolve the damage with a quicker response time, therefore reduces the need for major repairs, enabling faster return of the aircraft to service. This helps the airline industry eliminate unnecessary expenses and delays.
Industry initiatives involving innovations in health monitoring of aircrafts
A lot of research is being conducted on the development of SHM systems for aircraft. Organizations like Cooperative Research Centre for Advanced Composite Structures (CRC-ACS), European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Sandia Labs, Boeing, Airbus, and other government agencies in Europe, North America, and Asia sponsor these research programs. The National Program for Smart Materials (NPSM) in India, for instance, conducts R&D on the applications of smart materials and SHM in aerospace and defense.
As the development of SHM systems has reached a stage where they can be put into flight tests, it has become imperative to put into place a set of standards and procedures for certification before fully implementing these systems. Committees and agencies forming guidelines to steer these initiatives are expected to further augment the market until 2020.
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