Press Release
Issued by Constant Aviation.
September 2, 2021
Constant Aviation, the nation's leading provider of quality maintenance, repair, overhaul (MRO) and aircraft-on-ground (AOG) services, today announced a partnership with Decibullz, a leader in hearing protection, audio enhancement and other acoustic products. Under the partnership, Constant Aviation and Decibullz will introduce Decibullz's hearing protection products into aviation use and cooperate on the development of new products to address needs specific to aviation.
Hearing protection is mandated for participants and workers in many industries by the federal Office of Occupational Health and Safety (OSHA). However, many aviation organisations choose the least expensive options, which often are less-effective, uncomfortable to use and not reusable. In many cases, workers do not use or misuse hearing protection, making them less effective and risking hearing damage.
“The health and safety of our team members is our highest priority, but proper hearing protection use and acceptance has always been a challenge in aviation,” said Kent Stauffer, Constant Aviation's vice president of quality, safety and technical programmes. “We are choosing to take the road less travelled and work directly with a manufacturer to use and help refine an innovative solution to the problem.”
Constant Aviation plans to use its partnership to introduce Decibullz to aviation, and will be the first company in the aviation industry segment to choose customised personal protective equipment (PPE) products. Initially, each Constant Aviation team member will be issued a set of customisable plugs and a carrying case. The Decibullz ear plugs will be custom-molded to each team member's ears for comfort and extensive protection. The plugs are easy to form and retain their shape over time, but if a problem arises, they can be reshaped multiple times.
Constant Aviation chief executive officer, David H. Davies, discovered Decibullz through his participation in National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) auto racing, of which Constant Aviation is a sponsor. Davies uses Decibullz products for his protection on and near racetracks and thought they would be effective for aviation, where operations both on the airfield and in the shop can be extremely loud. Constant Aviation is the Official Aircraft Maintenance & Aircraft on Ground (AOG) provider of the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA), and also is the official sponsor of the NHRA's iconic Factory Stock Showdown class.
“It's not every day the CEO of a company like Constant, a significant player in aviation MRO, reaches out to us directly because it has firsthand experience with our product and wants to bring its protection and comfort to its working men and women.” said Kyle Kirkpatrick, Decibullz's chief executive officer. “We believe that our hearing protection and audio enhancement products are perfect for Constant and the entire aviation industry and will take the real-world feedback we receive from it to further innovate hearing safety for the broader aviation industry.”
Earlier this year, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) accepted Constant Aviation's fully functional SMS as being in “Active Conformance” with the FAA's Part 5 voluntary safety management system (SMS) programme, the final step in the SMS process. The certification ranks Constant Aviation among the leaders nationally in business aviation maintenance safety and risk mitigation. Constant Aviation is only the fourth MRO out of the more than 4,500 maintenance organisations nationally and the first independent business jet MRO Part 145 repair station to achieve this designation.
