Saab has signed a strategic partnership agreement under which the IFS Applications solution will become part of the company’s technical support offering. The first major contract concluded as part of this partnership concerns comprehensive IT support for the maintenance of the SK60 jet trainer aircraft system.
Under the agreement, Saab’s technical support division, in addition to using IFS Applications for internal needs, will offer its customers various business models including services related to IT and information management. As a result, Saab, acting as a technical support integrator, will be able to work with IFS to implement appropriate solutions for customers, provide services as an application provider, and manage processes using its own internal systems.
Customers in the civil aviation, security, and defense sectors are increasingly requiring comprehensive solutions covering maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) throughout the product lifecycle. An example of this is a contract worth 900 million Swedish kronor, under which Saab, as a supplier, is responsible for logistics support, including the maintenance of all SK 60 aircraft serving in the Swedish Armed Forces. Furthermore, Saab is tasked with guaranteeing the full technical readiness of these aircraft.
– We are considering a number of opportunities for cooperation with military and civil authorities, as well as working on defining a framework for cooperation with IFS to combine our development, sales, and marketing activities. We estimate that the market value for services and products related to technical support, maintenance, and repair over the next 10 years will amount to 1.6 – 3 billion Swedish kronor – says Göran Kristoffersson, Director of Business Development at Saab Aerotech.
The simplest form of technical support services provided by external companies is an agreement concluded under a so-called PBL (Performance Based Logistics) contract. In Sweden, the term Public-Private Partnership (PPP) is often used.
– This is the first major project under a Public-Private Partnership involving the Swedish defense sector in which we are participating. We have been working on similar solutions for a long time with the armed forces of the UK and the USA. Now, in cooperation with Saab, we can offer proven solutions that can be used in future PPP-type ventures in Sweden. The solutions we offer contribute to improving work efficiency and savings – said Glenn Arnesen, Managing Director of IFS Scandinavia.
The IFS Applications solution for the aerospace and defense sector consists of standard modules supporting comprehensive maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) and fleet management in defense structures. The IFS Applications system for the defense sector is designed to meet individual requirements resulting from conducting maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) and to streamline fleet and supply chain management.