Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC) has won the Ideas Arabia Competition 2016 in the ‘Health and Safety’ category for its innovative idea in the design and deployment of specialised jet refuelling hydrant servicers for the smaller-sized Boeing 737 aircraft
The new system allows for faster and safer refuelling of aircrafts. Due to their size, the Boeing 737 aircrafts require a servicer of lower height, compared to standard aircrafts, which allows it to be positioned directly under the wing of the Boeing 737 aircraft thus enabling for direct fuelling into the plane. This is in contrast to the standard servicer which had to be parked away from the aircraft, requiring an operator to carry the hose and use ladders to reach under the wing.
In response to the requirement, the EPPCO aviation team identified the specifications of the equipment and the optimum design. Following several months of testing, in September 2015, the newly designed hydrant servicer was commissioned for Fly Dubai fleet of aircrafts. The system also helped in servicing other airlines such as Oman Air and Ethiopian Airlines, amongst others.
ENOC marketing managing director Burhan Al Hashemi said, “Today’s challenging economy calls for innovation to reduce costs and enhance performance. The new hydrant servicer has reduced fuelling time by nearly seven minutes per aircraft which translates into the cost of an operator per year.”
