VIEW FROM THE TOP
BACKBONE OF QUERETARO MRO BUILT ON EDUCATION, SAFETY JESS LOSADA CEO and COO of TechOps Mexico
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Q: How has TechOps Mexico improved its capabilities?
In line with our customer focus, we are introducing the
A: We doubled our capacity thanks to changes to our
principles of KBKC for the first time in Latin America.
organizational structure in 2016. We completely renovated
KBKC dictates you know your customer, be proactive, keep
the way we operate to increase our efficiency. TOMX in
your promises and create value. To optimize operations,
Queretaro inhabits three hangars, which can accommodate
we created a central “brain” to coordinate all MRO lines,
12 aircraft simultaneously and 12 operation lines. We are
which saved thousands of man-hours per month. This
the biggest player in Central America after Aeroman in El
team is responsible for setting the strategies for every
Salvador and one of the largest in Latin America. 2016 was
other team. We have an interior workshop and are bringing
our best year in terms of financial results. Our teams are
many other capabilities such as paintwork. Eventually we
operating at full capacity but this facility was designed to
might even develop capabilities for low-volume, high-value
host an additional hangar. Once the fourth hangar is built,
manufacturing.
between 400 and 600 jobs will be created as part of our commitment to Queretaro. In return, the state will continue
Q: What changes were necessary to prepare the facility
to allocate funds to education and other incentives to
to incorporate projects from other airlines?
support human capital growth.
A: We have received many enquiries from airlines from the US and Canada, which have been impressed by our
As we are owned by Delta Airlines and Aeroméxico we had
capabilities. There is no other MRO like ours in Mexico,
a fixed number of projects in 2016. Having incorporated
the US or in Europe. Being only 3 years old, the facility’s
additional lines to support our existing operations, in the
design is modern and environmentally conscious. Solar
future we could incorporate third-party airlines. As an
panels over the parking lot supply 30 percent of our
incubator for new ideas for Delta Airlines, we became a
electricity costs. We have water-retention systems and
center of excellence for safety, which is our main priority.
a reverse osmosis water-filtration system. This system
Our security risk decreased from 1.7 percent to 0.7 percent
recycled 264,700 liters of water in 2016, which was used
last year. Safety and training our people are the backbone
to irrigate green areas.
of our operations. We have doctors and an ambulance on site 24 hours a day. Since 2015, incidents have been reduced
Our growth model is different to other MROs, as we base
by 60 percent and injuries by 33 percent. This has led to a
it on our experience working with manufacturers both
reduction of our insurance premium of several million pesos,
in aerospace and in sectors such as automotive and oil
which we are reinvesting in safety certifications.
and gas. We are also deeply involved with the aerospace cluster, sharing resources and best practices with other
Q: What strategies did TechOps Mexico implement to mitigate
members.
problems and take advantage of operational growth? A: We began building our facility in 2016 under the Six Sigma
Q: What challenges will TechOps Mexico face during the
three-year framework. We analyzed the areas that needed
construction of the new hangar and how do you plan to
improvement, doubling our workload to 12 lines. This was
overcome them?
a challenge but allowed us to determine further areas for
A: We could easily build the hangar in two years but it
improvement. A comprehensive plan was developed to
would require an increase in our workforce by 30 percent
sustain this growth and we added 200 people to our team.
and training that number of people in such a short time is
Today, we are focusing on our partnership with the cluster to
not feasible. For that reason, we are working with UNAQ
share best practices and incorporate the Six Sigma culture
and CONALEP to generate more training courses. We
into our operations. We are also investing in Dale Carnegie
employ 1,710 people, of whom 800 are technicians who
training to continue generating front-line leaders.
graduated from UNAQ and 95 from CONALEP. Our teams
