With a longstanding presence in India, Honeywell is bullish on its growth prospects, driven by buoyant commercial aviation and defence segments. The $35.5 billion Fortune 500 company, with about 99,000 employees globally, is increasingly emphasising its India operations.
The $11.1 billion Honeywell Aerospace supports global airline, cargo business, general aviation, defence, helicopters, space and emerging transportation solutions segments.
The US technology behemoth has a longstanding presence in India, stretching back nine decades, beginning with supporting India’s oil and natural gas industry. Today, Honeywell India employs over 13,000, including over 5,000 engineers, generating domestic sales and exports worth $1 billion annually.
Its footprint in the global aviation industry cannot be understated, as its products are used on virtually every Western-origin commercial and military aircraft, including aircraft propulsion, cockpit systems, satellite communications and auxiliary power systems. It is also rapidly growing its Unmanned Aerial Systems/Urban Air Mobility (UAS/UAM) capability, focussing on autonomous flight tech, development of detect-and-avoid systems and electric and hybrid-electric propulsion.
The company has invested in four technology development centres in India in Bengaluru, Madurai, Hyderabad and Gurugram. It also has manufacturing centres in Gurugram, Dehradun and Pune.
Honeywell's Aviation Business portfolio includes Electronic SolutionsNavigation, Safety and Surveillance, Integrated Avionics Offering, Engines & Power Systems (Propulsion Engines & Electric Power Systems), Mechanical Systems & Components (Air Pressure and Control Systems & Life Support Systems and Air Travel Hygiene), Services & Connectivity (Airtime Connectivity Services & Flight Efficiency and Maintenance Optimisation) and Unmanned Aerial Systems/Urban Air Mobility (Autonomous Flight, Detect-and-Avoid Systems & Electric and Hybrid-electric Propulsion).
Accelerated Innovation
Honeywell Technology Solutions (HTS) is the company's global engineering and technology arm and innovation engine employing about 6,200 employees in India. HTS India Aerospace which handles all aerospace-related tasks has an India presence going back three decades and today is staffed by more than 2,200 engineering professionals. Over 600 engineers at HTS India Aerospace have over 17 years of experience.
On average, about 100 patents are filed annually by the HTS India Aerospace team, which has also built up extensive lab capabilities for electronics, mechanical component testing, material analytics, manufacturing processes, additive manufacturing, idea incubation, rapid prototype simulation, vibration and thermal testing.
Mobility Outlook was recently provided with an exclusive tour of the HTS India Aerospace Bengaluru facility, showcasing the work in the aerospace domain. Its Urban Air Mobility Tools for Rapid Advanced Cockpit Simulations (UAM TRACS) lab is at the Bengaluru facility, and the company was one of the first major aerospace manufacturers to create a dedicated UAM team.
This lab features a complete cockpit setup, including out-of-the-window views to provide an immersive pilot experience. This setup helps develop advanced concepts such as Simplified Vehicle Operations for UAM. The TRACS suite provides interfaces to integrate any cockpit system that needs to be evaluated. Work is presently being done on cutting-edge UAM solutions developed by electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) developer Lilium.
Speaking to Mobility Outlook, Niranjan Kalyandurg, Vice President, Engineering & Aerospace Leader, HTS, said the company is developing Flight Management System (FMS) for Lilium eVTOL aircraft. The avionics system is designed to reduce training time and will support operation by a single pilot, freeing up greater passenger capacity.
Honeywell’s next-generation integrated avionics system will provide a simplified pilot user interface. The advanced flight deck will act as the central interface to the pilot with a vehicle management computer and a high-integrity flight control computing platform. Its avionics and flight control computers are a key element of the Lilium Jet's electronic architecture.
The company's Compact Fly-by-Wire System will control the Lilium Jet’s moveable parts, including 36 control surfaces and ducted fans. Lilium and Honeywell partnered in June 2021 to develop avionics and flight control systems for the 7-Seater.
Kalyandurg said much of FMS work was being done predominantly out of India. An extensive network of test benches has been created at the facility over the last 28 years, costing over $130 million. These test benches are remotely accessible and similar to its facility in Phoenix, Arizona.
The centre also works on the cockpit avionics and pilot experience for Dassault Aviation’s flagship Falcon 10X business jet, slated to enter service in 2025. HTS India Aerospace teams also did much work for the APEX 12 avionics suite installed on the Swiss Pilatus PC-24 light business jet. Engineers at the facility also have access to a Flight Simulator, which mimics Honeywell’s EPIC Avionics suite.
The teams are also doing extensive work on the new Boeing 777X’s flight and navigation displays and its onboard maintenance system. In addition, work has also been done on the FMS for Boeing 777 and Airbus A320, A350 jetliners. In addition to this, the Bengaluru facility is the sole centre to support Honeywell FMS fitted on the Dornier Do-228 NG.
The company's Flight Operations Centre (FOC) in Hyderabad supports its flight services that provide flight planning, datalink, cabin services, flight following and concierge services.
Interestingly, it encourages its employees to learn to pilot light aircraft and has been actively funding such an initiative since 2001. Over the past two decades, nearly 55 employees have volunteered for the programme and taken to the air. Currently, the latest batch of 11 people is receiving flight training at an academy in Mysuru.
Growing Defence Business
Honeywell also has a sizeable presence in the Indian defence ecosystem and targets emerging opportunities related to unmanned drones and indigenously developed military aircraft. Suneet Hazra, Director, Aerospace and Defence, HTS Aerospace India, said the company is discussing UAV programmes with HAL and is also eyeing a role in the upcoming Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA).
Honeywell’s Auxiliary Power Units (APU) and Navigation, Safety and Surveillance equipment are already fitted on platforms such as the Boeing CH-47I, AH-64E, C-17 Globemaster III, P-8I and Lockheed C-130J Super Hercules. Indigenously developed platforms like the Dhruv and Light Combat Helicopter feature Environmental Control Systems, Communication and Vibration Monitoring equipment. Honeywell also supplies engines.
The company has a four-decade-long partnership with HAL, and in July 2022, it inked a contract worth over $100 million for the supply and manufacture of 88 TPE331-12B engines/kits, along with maintenance and support services.
The TPE331-12B engine will power HAL’s Hindustan Turbo Trainer 40 (HTT-40) and is a single-shaft turboprop engine with an integral inlet and gearbox, two-stage centrifugal compressor, power turbine, gearbox, three-stage axial turbine and turbine exhaust diffuser.
The HTT-40 prototypes have been flying with TPE331-12B engines since 2014. Honeywell’s TPE 331-10GP / 12JR engines are also fitted on variants of the Dornier Do-228, manufactured in India under license by HAL. More than 300 TPE series engines are flying in India at present.
Also Read:
Honeywell Completes Phase One of Bangalore Safe City Project