Gastops Ltd. recently announced that it received an investment from Raytheon Intelligence & Space. The investment falls under Canada’s Industrial and Technological Benefits (ITB) program and will support a multi-year research and development collaboration with Pratt & Whitney. This collaborative project will be focussed on developing next generation critical equipment intelligence solutions for both commercial and military aircraft engines.
Pratt & Whitney and Raytheon Intelligence & Space are both businesses of Raytheon Technologies.
Gastops has been enabling Pratt & Whitney’s advanced diagnostics and engine monitoring solutions since the early 1990s and their introduction of the F119 engine, which powers the F-22 Raptor, using MetalSCAN online Oil Debris Monitors (ODM). Since then, MetalSCAN technology has been included in many major Pratt & Whitney engine developments including the F135 for the F-35 Lightning II as well as the GTF commercial engine family. This latest investment will now fund the development of an advanced version of the ODM with increased sensitivity and reliability.
According to Adam Oszmian, Gastops’ Product Manager for MetalSCAN, the new collaboration will revolutionize oil debris monitoring technology. Adam explains, “We are eager to continue our partnership and to advance oil debris monitoring of critical oil wetted components. This investment in ODM will result in a significant improvement in prognostic health monitoring that will enable maintenance planning as well as reduce the through life maintenance costs of an engine, gearbox or transmission.”
In addition, the collaboration will drive the advancement of another one of Gastops’ revolutionary product lines, ChipCHECK, used for portable debris analysis. While the instrument is already deployed worldwide by airlines, maintainers, and military operators to reduce engine maintenance turnaround time, it will now be validated for inclusion in Pratt & Whitney engine maintenance programs.
An advanced version of ChipCHECK will also be developed that will feature increased performance to provide analysis capabilities currently dependent on laboratory-based systems.
Stephane Daviault, Gastops Product Manager, says, “We are very excited to be jointly working with Pratt & Whitney and Raytheon Intelligence & Space to incorporate the ChipCHECK product line into the maintenance practice for operators of the PW2000, PW4000, V2500 and the GTF engines. ChipCHECK adds significant benefits by providing key decision-making data when and where you need it! The new version will be a major advancement in portable debris analyzer platforms that will enable Gastops to address the future prognostic needs of our customers.”
“Pratt & Whitney has deep roots in Canada with more than 6,000 employees across seven facilities and a long history of collaboration with the Canadian aerospace industry on our commercial and military products,” articulated Lisa Finklestein, Director, International Customer Solutions for Pratt & Whitney. “We look forward to working with the Gastops team on these projects to continue advancing engine diagnostic and health monitoring capabilities for multiple product applications.”
“This program is the continuation of our long-standing partnership with Pratt & Whitney,” explains Shaun Horning, President & CEO of Gastops. “Through our successful support of multiple commercial and military engine programs with our MetalSCAN technology, we will be expanding our current product offering with Pratt & Whitney to include our at-line quantitative debris analysis offering, ChipCHECK. All projects will be completed over the next four years and will result in the expansion of our Engineering and Research technical teams. This ITB program represents a great opportunity for us to advance our technology and contribute to the future of the aerospace market.”
