Friday, 11 January 2013

Rolls-Royce, the global power systems company, has opened its first Service Delivery Centre to support military engines at the Royal Air Force base at Marham in Norfolk, UK. The facility was officially opened today by the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton, and Rolls-Royce Chief Executive Officer, John Rishton.

A team of around 15 specialist Rolls-Royce engineers will work alongside their RAF counterparts at the new centre to deliver tailored support services for the Tornado combat aircraft’s RB199 engines at the customer’s operating base. The Service Delivery Centre also features live video links to the Rolls-Royce Operations Centre in Bristol, which will enable real-time decision making on engine issues helping to further increase aircraft availability for missions.

Service Delivery Centres form part of a suite of innovative support solutions that Rolls-Royce is implementing across a global network of over 100 military customers. The centres are aimed at improving engine availability and reducing costs for customers.

The Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton, said: “I was privileged to be at Royal Air Force Marham today to open the newly refurbished Rolls-Royce Service Delivery Centre. This state of the art facility will provide critical support to the Royal Air Force’s Tornado fleet so that it can continue to deliver the first rate operational capability for which the Force is justifiably famous. We are grateful for the essential support that our industry partners provide; their work, in true partnership with the Royal Air Force, has and will continue to deliver world class performance on operations and in training.”

John Rishton, Rolls-Royce Chief Executive, said: “This new Service Delivery Centre is an excellent example of Rolls-Royce and the Royal Air Force working in close partnership at the heart of our customer’s operations. It will enable us to maximise engine time on-wing and improve response times on critical operational decisions.”

Rolls-Royce supports the Tornado’s RB199 engines under the ROCET (RB199 Operational Contract for Engine Transformation) contract which has effectively halved the cost of engine support for the RAF. The contract was renewed and expanded in April 2010 to include the transfer of the RB199 repair and overhaul to Bristol from Marham. This support model was significantly tested by the need to surge engine output in support of the UK’s Operation Ellamy activity in Libya in the summer of 2011 and delivered all customer requirements.

Work on the Service Delivery Centre started at Marham in April 2012 and was completed in September.

Source and photo: Rolls-Royce