Emergency equipment configuration software by PACE operational at Airbus

Citation

(2006), "Emergency equipment configuration software by PACE operational at Airbus", Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, Vol. 78 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/aeat.2006.12778dab.012

Emergency equipment configuration software by PACE operational at Airbus

Emergency equipment configuration software by PACE operational at Airbus

Keywords: Aircraft safety, Emergency measures

Emergency Equipment layouts for the A320 and A330/A340 Airbus families are now being planned with the emergency equipment configuration tool (EECT), custom-made by Berlin- based software manufacturer PACE. The tool adds to the existing family of cabin interior and cabin systems applications by PACE already in use at Airbus.

Emergency equipment layouts are part of the contractual cabin interior layouts package that aircraft makers have to agree with their airline customers. For Airbus, the EECT software offers enormous potential to streamline the development of such layouts and cut down the number of iterations. By using EECT, Airbus expects significant time and cost savings as well as an impressive reduction of response times.

The main challenge in the process of developing emergency equipment layouts is their complexity: They are highly diverse and take time to build and validate. This even holds true for the same aircraft type and customer. The scope and locations of the emergency equipment carried on board hinge on a variety of factors. These include passenger capacity, the cabin interior layout and specific imperatives imposed by certification regulations. Operations over water and mountain ranges, for example, necessitate special rescue equipment and supplies.

The EECT software, with its highly useful semi-automatic routines and check-up mechanisms, is an excellent help for the Airbus engineers: It ensures that a complex set of conditions and regulations is complied with, while making optimum use of the precious cabin space available.