AkzoNobel Aerospace Coatings will showcase the latest evolution of its Aerofleet Coatings Management service at MRO Americas, introducing new drone-enabled inspection capabilities that deliver faster, more consistent and data-rich insights to help airlines optimize coating maintenance across their fleets.

Aerofleet Coatings Management was created as a digital, data-driven solution to support predictive maintenance, helping airlines and operators determine precisely when an aircraft needs to be repainted and allow them to move beyond traditional time- or usage-based schedules.

Source: AkzoNobel

The latest evolution introduces a new drone-based inspection tool, developed in partnership with Donecle: the Iris CMX (Coatings Management eXpert). This drone is capable of directly measuring coating performance using a 3-in-1 contact-based sensor capturing precise, quantitative data for dry film thickness, color data and gloss measurements to bring a new level of accuracy, consistency and repeatability to coating inspections.

With the addition of Iris CMX, Aerofleet Coatings Management now brings together three core data inputs to provide a comprehensive view of coating performance:

• Flight and environmental data, such as route profiles, UV exposure and humidity

• Full-surface visual analysis from the Iris GVI drone

• Targeted, high-precision measurement from the Iris CMX.

Together, these data streams enable a more accurate understanding of coating condition, helping operators to optimize maintenance planning across the fleet. 

In addition to in-service inspections, the Iris CMX can be utilized for quality control during the OEM production and MRO processes. Its precise, repeatable measurements of coating thickness, color and gloss at key application stages ensure coatings meet specifications from the outset, reducing the likelihood of rework and unnecessary application.

The two drone systems together combine full-surface visual analysis with targeted, high-precision measurement of coating performance to provide both qualitative and quantitative insight into coating condition. The two drone systems can be operated simultaneously, one on each side of the aircraft, by a trained team, who can complete a full inspection of a narrowbody aircraft in approximately 30 minutes.

Inspection training is provided by AkzoNobel Aerospace Coatings and Donecle specialists, allowing customers to collect data that feeds into a central database, creating a continuously evolving picture of the fleet over time. 

First launched in 2023, Aerofleet Coatings Management was designed with a clear development roadmap to incorporate more advanced inspection capabilities over time.

The introduction of Iris CMX represents a significant step forward in that vision explains Michael Green, Segment Business Services Manager at AkzoNobel Aerospace Coatings: “Aerofleet Coatings Management has always been about giving airlines greater confidence in when and why they maintain or repaint their aircraft. From the outset, we had a clear roadmap to enhance the service with more advanced measurement capabilities. The addition of the Iris CMX brings precise, consistent measurement into the process to strengthen the data that underpins our predictive models. It also allows us to support expert assessment with more objective, consistent and repeatable inspections, while improving the speed and efficiency of the inspection process.

Ideally suited for fleets of 100 aircraft or more, the service supports airlines in reducing unnecessary repainting, lowering maintenance costs and increasing aircraft availability. Over time, this contributes to both improved operational efficiency and reduced environmental impact.

Aerofleet Coatings Management forms part of AkzoNobel Aerospace Business Solutions, a suite of services designed to support customers with data-driven insights, technical expertise and operational efficiency.