Avionics News April 2016 - 32

"It all goes back to our core talent of being able to interface
new products with legacy avionics and systems. That's what
we are truly good at. Our current and future solutions can
effectively bridge the gap between the latest capabilities and
functionality without an operator having to totally rip out their
current avionics suite.
"We are very successful in being able to develop interfaces
to bring new capabilities into legacy cockpits, even though it
continues to get more challenging. We're committed to it, so
our road map has plans in place to keep improving our interfaces and ability to get our products into those cockpits."
But Clare also said that in some situations, starting from
scratch could be a more efficient way to approach a panel
upgrade. To that end, Universal is actively exploring what it
would take to become one of the full-line, rip-and-tear panel
providers.
"We are looking closely at what we can do to adapt to that
way of doing things in order to be more diversified - to be
able to do whichever type of installation the individual customer requires," he said. "One of the requirements of reaching
that goal is the need to develop more products. We currently
don't have everything in our lineup that we need to provide
that complete solution. It's quite an investment and commitment to make, and we are actively exploring that right now."

them to spec out an installation, they can come directly to our
engineering group to get our advice and guidance on how to
best integrate our products into that aircraft. There are just so
many possible combinations of legacy and current avionics
that it's impossible for any dealer to stay on top of that.
"We have a team dedicated to what we call an Aircraft
Survey, and we will act as a consultant to the dealer and go in
and help them with the detailed avionics and systems survey.
Once we have all the information, we will give the dealer our
recommendations on not only how to integrate our avionics,
but also about what other equipment they should include for
the upgrade. It's a service we offer to our dealers at no charge
- within reason of course."
He also explained that authorized dealers are licensed a
Universal FMS training simulator that is used to train new
customers and also help keep the dealer's sales representatives
and technicians proficient in the system's proper operation.
Clare said that whether it's a pre-bid avionics survey, ongoing product training and support or just answering a question,
it's Universal Avionics' goal to help its authorized dealers
educate their customers and not just be viewed as an avionics
sales company.
"We like to think of ourselves and our authorized dealers
as experts in avionics and safety and NextGen as a whole," he
said. "We want our dealers and their customers to know we
are here to help them make the right decisions when they start
to look at the options for upgrading their aircraft."

Let's make a deal-er
Clare is quick to attribute a great deal of Universal's ongoing success to the strong global dealer and support network
the company has developed throughout the years.
"Our authorized dealer network is of critical importance
to Universal's ability to continually build its brand around
the world," Clare continued. "They are our daily link to past,
present and future customers.
"And because they are so highly relied upon, Universal
doesn't take the selection of a dealer lightly. Each prospective
dealer must demonstrate a high level of technical knowledge,
as well as the skills and abilities needed to successfully sell,
install and support each product through the course of that
product's life cycle.
"We are focused on supporting our products after the fact -
we feel that is another differentiator. We still have units flying
that are more than 20 years old, and supporting them takes a
lot of resources from our representatives and our dealers."
While supporting decades-old avionics can often take more
than their share of dealer resources, Clare explained that being
a Universal Avionics authorized dealer does have its perks.
"One thing we feel is unique in the industry today is when
a customer goes to one of our authorized dealers and asks

What's next, Gen?
While the rapidly approaching ADS-B mandate is front and
center, Clare said that the Universal Avionics team already
has its sights set on what could be the next big thing from the
FAA - SBAS.
"As far as the implementation of NextGen airspace, we
see a strong possibility that SBAS could be the next big
mandate," Clare said. "We have a group of people who are in
constant contact with the FAA's NextGen group, and they feel
that SBAS, performance-based navigation capabilities, at least
right now look like the next target.
"The FAA is shutting down a lot of the old ground-based
navigation technologies and introducing a new generation of
precisely surveyed ground reference stations that are strategically positioned to collect, monitor and process satellite
signals. That's the network behind SBAS. It can eliminate any
issues with signal delays or solar activities to provide aircraft
with even more accurate and reliable positioning information
than GPS alone."
So whether it's NextGen, EGNOS, GAGAN, MSAS, an
SBAS-ready FMS, a flat-panel display or a complete panel upgrade, you can be sure that Universal Avionics will be ready for
whatever operators in tomorrow's global airspace require. q

UNIVERSAL GROWTH
Continued from page 30

avionics news

april

2016

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