Kannad And Eurocopter Co-Developed The Safety Device
The joint development by Eurocopter and ELT manufacturer Kannad
of a new emergency distress beacon for helicopters was recognized
Thursday with an award presented during a conference of
industry, economic, and technology managers,
entrepreneurs, and agencies. The trophy was awarded to the two
companies for their collaborative development of the distress
beacon – called Integra – which enables a helicopter to
be more reliably located in an emergency situation.
ELT Transmits When External Empennage Is
Damaged
Innovative features of the Integra beacon include the first use
of an internal GPS and an integrated antenna for signal
transmissions detected by search and rescue systems.
The award was received by Kannad and Eurocopter during the 6th
conference of the observatory on relationships between large
multinational groups and small/medium enterprises. This event was
organized jointly by France’s MEDEF, OSEO, Croissance Plus,
PactePme and the IE Club. The prize, awarded in the
‘High-Technology’ category, was presented by the two
companies at Thursday's conference in the Paris suburbs at
Jouy-en-Josas, which is staged during the MEDEF Summer University
– a major French political-business gathering where industry
captains and politicians participate in roundtable discussions on
key economic issues.
“We are especially proud to receive this distinction,
which recognizes our innovation strategy and our technological
leadership in the distress beacon market,” commented Jean
Yves Courtois, CEO of the Orolia Group. “For Kannad, the
partnership with Eurocopter allowed us to define the functional
characteristics of the product, and to test the product in
real-life conditions thanks to the technical methods and materials
that Eurocopter has available. At the same time, we have benefitted
from an exclusive licence carrying the Eurocopter
patent.”
Courtois added that the technological advantages provided by the
Integra beacon across all sectors of the aviation market have led
to the company’s decision to establish a new commercial team
in the United States, with the goal of speeding up its development
in the world’s largest aviation market.
Claudius Zwicker, Eurocopter’s Senior Vice President of
Avionics Systems, said the Integra system uses technological
innovation to significantly improve the reliability of aviation
emergency distress beacons. “This improves the efficiency of
search and rescue agencies in locating helicopters in difficulty or
in emergency situations,” he said. “Thanks to this
partnership, Eurocopter now has a new technology that provides the
most reliable pinpointing of helicopters in critical
situations.”
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