JSSI • PAID FOR CONTENT

Reinvesting to reduce costs and downtime

Everybody wins: How JSSI is saving the industry time and money

JSSI built its reputation as business aviation's independent advocate. As owners and operators face rising maintenance costs and longer lead times, JSSI is putting significant capital behind its support model: expanding its rental pool from 30 to nearly 120 assets, deepening inventory and strengthening programmes that protect value from delivery to resale. Francisco Zozaya, Philipe Figueiredo and Tim Ferrell explain.

JSSI • PAID FOR CONTENT

Reinvesting to reduce costs and downtime

Everybody wins: How JSSI is saving the industry time and money

AN AIRCRAFT waiting on a part is an aircraft that is not flying. Since the pandemic, parts and labour costs have climbed significantly and lead times on key components can stretch to 18 months. Much of the industry has been forced to absorb these pressures. JSSI has spent the past several years investing ahead of them.

Founded in 1989, JSSI is the largest independent provider of maintenance support and financial tools to the business aviation industry, supporting more than 30% of the world’s business jets across its suite of solutions. OEM-independence is core to the company’s service model and value proposition. For maintenance coverage, owners and operators have essentially two options: the manufacturer's programme or JSSI.

“The fundamental difference is that we are aligned with the operator,” says Tim Ferrell, senior vice president, JSSI Technical Services. “We advocate on their behalf, bringing volume, options and deep technical expertise.”

“That alignment has real money behind it: over $1bn invested in engines and parts inventory in the last five years alone, much of it through opportunistic and strategic acquisitions of younger, high-pedigree airframes as well as new OEM parts.”

What does investing ahead of demand look like?

JSSI Parts & Engines is the company’s parts and assets division, candidly described by the team as “the industry’s best kept secret”. In just a few years, it has grown its rental pool of engines and APUs from around 30 assets to nearly 120 and holds more than 100,000 lines of owned parts inventory, with warehouse, sourcing and distribution operations actively expanding. A dedicated demand planning team decides where investments go, informed by a signal no parts trader has: the 10,000-plus maintenance events JSSI manages every year across its programme fleet and maintenance tracking intelligence.

“We see demand forming early,” says Philipe Figueiredo, global vice president, JSSI Parts & Engines. “That tells us which airframes, engines and parts to invest in and the material we acquire supports not only aircraft on our programmes but broadly operators and MROs worldwide.”

Operators themselves are driving a market shift, increasingly requesting alternatives to factory-new parts, including quality used serviceable material (USM) which would not have been widely accepted only a few years ago.

Francisco Zozaya, chief commercial officer, JSSI

JSSI Parts & Engines Warehouse

The market's attitude to this material has shifted decisively. “The Covid-19 supply chain crunch dispelled the myths around used serviceable material,” says Francisco Zozaya, chief commercial officer, JSSI. “Today, everyone, including OEMs, is buying USM to get aircraft back in the air. The industry is asking for options and we are in a position to invest broadly in this space: we can make decisions quickly, with data intelligence and funds to act. Because we are OEM agnostic, our strategy covers every manufacturer and their full range of components.”

Crucially, this inventory serves the whole market, not only JSSI’s programme clients. Certified, traceable, tagged material flows to operators, MROs, parts brokers and OEMs worldwide, delivering quality options into a tight market.

"Owned inventory is only half the story; our procurement team is sourcing around the clock," says Figueiredo. "There are many great stories where our team has found an alternative to a new part with an 18-month lead time, sometimes at a fraction of the cost; demonstrating the value of having a team on your side looking for all available options."

Can an independent programme support a factory-new jet?

Roughly one in five new midsize and larger business jets enrols on a JSSI programme at delivery. On certain models, that number is one in three. The old assumption that an independent option exists only to support older aircraft no longer holds.

For factory-new aircraft, JSSI operates a deliberately different sourcing model. "USM does not play the same role for new aircraft. We acquire new material directly from the OEMs and work through their approved service networks," Zozaya says. “What does not change is the service layer: we manage warranty claims, schedule shop visits and fund major events and unscheduled maintenance from the first hour flown.”

Independence also adds a structural benefit no manufacturer can match. The engines, airframe and auxiliary power units (APU) often come from three different manufacturers, each with its own programme, its own terms and its own support line. JSSI can cover the whole aircraft as one solution under its JSSI Tip-to-Tail® programme: no gaps between components, one contract, one call across every asset.

Where does the value show up at resale?

The residual value benefit of engine programmes has long been recognised by the appraisal and brokerage community and JSSI's 100% coverage stands on par with competing programmes: validated by ASA accredited appraisers, leading brokers and the transaction history itself. What has changed is the market’s view of airframe programmes, particularly at the moment of a transaction.

Ferrell points to why. “The main point of friction in a transaction is the pre-purchase inspection [PPI] and some go too far. A PPI often becomes a negotiation over future maintenance costs. An airframe programme removes that friction, because those costs sit with the programme provider, and the scope of the PPI narrows accordingly.”

The residual cost of an uncovered airframe is most clear when a major inspection falls due within 18 to 24 months of a sale. A programme makes those costs predictable, protects against heavy checks and can help significantly shorten an aircraft's time on the market.

“The Covid-19 supply chain crunch dispelled the myths around used serviceable material.”

Francisco Zozaya, chief commercial officer, JSSI

“Ultimately, owners and operators care about time and money and our job is to protect both.”

What ties it all together?

The parts operation is deeply integrated with how JSSI supports its clients. The inventory supports the aircraft under programme; the programme fleet’s demand tells JSSI Parts & Engines what to stock next. Behind both sits the technical organisation described as the heart of the business: close to 100 regionally based technical advisers handling on-wing support, scheduled events and day-to-day maintenance operations. Dedicated product line specialists oversee major events on specific engine and airframe types, wherever they occur in the world.

Funds paid into JSSI programmes are held in an independent trust, earmarked strictly for maintenance, with full transparency for the owner.

For buyers and their advisers thinking about maintenance coverage, the team's recommendation is simple: compare every option. “Ultimately, owners and operators care about time and money, and our job is to protect both,” Zozaya says. “When evaluating your options, look for the partner who is going to pick up when something happens, and has the means and mindset to solve your problem.”

A strong independent alternative keeps the whole market healthy: standards rise, pricing stays competitive, and owners are better served by weighing every option, whichever they ultimately choose.

Before your next transaction, compare your options with JSSI. Start at jetsupport .com