OREANDA-NEWS. Sikorsky, A Lockheed Martin Company (NYSE: LMT) today announced the opening of a Forward Stocking Location in Brisbane, Australia, at the Sikorsky Helitech facility. The announcement was made at the Farnborough International Air Show. 

The in-country warehousing of spare parts provides Australian S-76® and S-92® commercial helicopter operators quicker access to materials and is part of Sikorsky’s continued effort to improve customer support.  

“By positioning inventory parts closer to customers, we are able to deliver parts in hours rather than days. This expediency improves aircraft readiness and reduces the operators’ overall expenses,” said Joe Triompo, vice president, Sikorsky Customer Support. “This has been a joint effort working with operators to expand our support presence to meet fleet requirements for improved operational readiness for all their critical missions.”

In March, Sikorsky announced it had opened an FSL in Stavanger, Norway, to support one of the largest S-92® helicopter operating regions in the world.  Sikorsky also expects to open an FSL in Aberdeen, Scotland, this year.

Additionally, Sikorsky has more than 20 Customer Support Centers operating worldwide and is continuing to expand its service capabilities to where customers operate. Customer Support Centers enable quick access to Sikorsky’s logistics and spare parts inventory for operators, and provide advanced service capabilities. Helitech is a Customer Support Center for the S-76 family of aircraft, and became the first authorized CSC for S-92 aircraft in 2015.