DRF Luftrettung continues to rely on Bucher Leichtbau for the interior fittings of its new helicopters. The signed agreement between the two organisations comprises of 15 AC70 kits for the H145 and up to 5 AC67 kits for the H135, which were developed with the input of DRF Luftrettung’s and Bucher Leichtbau’s extensive practical experience and technical know-how. The new “heart” of the established interior fittings is the stretcher. This new system for carrying patients was extensively tested for over a year at two of DRF Luftrettung’s HEMS bases before the start of series production, and meets all the requirements of the HEMS crew today.
“For many years now, we have relied on Bucher Leichtbau’s HEMS equipment, which meets our high quality standards. Thanks to our close collaboration, we were able to incorporate our practical experi-ence directly into the development process at Bucher Leichtbau. The equipment’s modularity offers us the advantage that it can be adapted to different mission profiles, such as winch rescue or special inten-sive care transport,” explains Dr. Krystian Pracz, CEO of DRF Luftrettung.
Adapted to the requirements of crews and patients
The new carrying system boasts innovative features which relieve the crews and benefit the patient. For instance, the stretcher is optimised for the transfer processes. If a patient has to be transferred to an ambulance stretcher on the way between helicopter and hospital, for example, this operation will be even gentler and safer in the future. The pressure on the crew is reduced, as medical devices can also be safely carried along. Furthermore, the newly developed head of the helicopter stretcher allows power-assisted adjustment and thus even better patient care. Last but not least, the entire stretcher ensures even greater user safety – particularly during the helicopters’ take-off and landing phases and also during missions with patients on the ground.
The stretcher was initially developed for helicopter type H135 and then modified for type H145 (on wheel drive system). Thanks to this standardisation, crews only need to adjust to one system for differ-ent helicopter models. It was possible to maintain the stretcher’s load-carrying capacity of up to 250 kg in the modification for helicopter type H145.
In the future: Independent installation
As the first user, DRF Luftrettung has already introduced the stretchers at several HEMS bases: The new configurations are already in service in Halle (H135/H145), Friedrichshafen (H135) and Freiburg (H145). From now on, all new helicopters will be equipped to accommodate the new HEMS kits. In the future, DRF Luftrettung plans to independently install the HEMS kits in its helicopters at its hangar at the Operation Centre located at the Karlsruhe / Baden-Baden airport, and will also be able to offer this ser-vice to external customers. The necessary training courses by Bucher Leichtbau for the engineers of DRF Luftrettung are currently being planned.
“We are very pleased that our offer has been so well received and that we can continue our successful collaboration with DRF Luftrettung. Having such an experienced air rescue organisation by our side means great added value for us,” emphasises Beat Burlet, CEO of Bucher Leichtbau.
Dear Valued Business Partners,
The coronavirus is challenging us all in our professional and personal environments. The World Health Organization WHO has raised the threat level of the virus to its highest and local governments have implemented drastic measures to reduce further spread. These measures require extraordinary behavior and new ways of dealing with our day-to-day lives.
At Bucher, we are actively monitoring the developments. The health and wellbeing of our employees, and their families, remains our top priority. We have implemented numerous health and safety measures for our workforce. This includes travel restrictions, self-quarantine procedures, employee social distancing, remote and flexible work schedules, and continuous and comprehensive cleaning and disinfecting of our manufacturing facilities and offices.
With these measures in place, we are maintaining our operations including all services and deliveries. We will do everything in our power to ensure our services continue to be provided carefully and reliably at all times. We encourage you as well to support us by providing timely information about necessary postponements or even cancellations, so we can properly adjust our production planning.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. We wish you and your families all the best – and most importantly, stay healthy.
Yours sincerely,
Bucher Leichtbau AG
Beat Burlet
CEO
We will be proudly presenting our newest multi-mission helicopter equipment – for the first time in the international market and exclusively in the United States.
Is your helicopter not working at full capacity? Do you want to carry out Search & Rescue, Military or Fire Brigade missions in the morning and VIP transports in the afternoon? Everything is possible with our newest innovation – the H135 AC67 flex.
Our presentation will give visitors fascinating first-hand information of the highly modular and customizable equipment that offers maximum flexibility for every operation. Depending on individual mission profiles, clients can choose between several mission configurations according to their needs and requirements.
Modular HEMS Stretcher System
We have further expanded our Stretcher system and can now offer our customers a completely modular solution on different configurations regardless of which loading device the customer uses. It can be installed in our AC70 HEMS equipment for the H145 or in the AC67 for the H135 as well as in the new AC67 flex equipment.
Modular Equipment Options
Learn more about Bucher’s modular equipment options! Our products have been designed to be used interchangeably and, as such, it is possible to use various elements of the AC67 HEMS equipment in a H145 or elements of the AC70 in a H135. One example is the multifunctional Center Cabinet with optional cabin heating and/or hot compartment for infusion bottles, storage compartments and a wide range of standard interface mounts for medical devices, which is included in the new HEMS kit AC67.
This interchangeability allows you to configure the equipment for any application with maximum flexibility, modular and individually adapted to the customer. Accordingly the weight of the helicopter can be reduced depending on the application.
Our 1:8 scale model, offers visitors the opportunity to get to know our modular equipment first hand. Visitors can take a closer look at a H145 equipped with the Bucher AC70 HEMS equipment and at a H135 equipped with the Bucher AC67 equipment during our digital presentations.
If you want to expand your business, visit us at our booth Hall B, Booth #2531 and experience outstanding Swiss hospitality as well as our proven lightweight and ergonomic design – you will not want to miss this!
We look forward to meeting you at HAI Heli Expo!
Customized products based on a high-quality standard, are the results of close and fruitful cooperation between the Bucher and Garuda Indonesia team.
The focus was on the arrangement of the inserts, including large 48-meal-ovens while optimizing work table space for the crew.
Commenting on the news, Beat Burlet, CEO of Bucher Group:
“I am delighted that Bucher had been selected to supply galleys and stowages to Garuda’s state-of-the-art fleet of 14 A330neo aircraft. The news is a testament to the quality products and service that Bucher is renowned for, and marks the start of our working relationship together. We are excited to see the finished product take to the skies.”
Quality is a key factor at Bucher. This can be attributed to the founder of the company, Heinrich Bucher, who was driven by the idea of producing lightweight and reliable galleys made out of aluminum. Bucher has continued to refine and optimize this unique lightweight construction concept. However, Bucher nowadays also offers composite and carbon fiber solutions, so the company remains flexible and can adapt its products to meet individual customer requirements.
At this year’s Aircraft Interiors expo in Hamburg, Bucher Leichtbau and Satair together signed a contract to supply galley spare parts. This agreement marks a first between the two companies.
„With this agreement, we want to give our customers the opportunity to benefit from Satair’s regional inventory and worldwide support. Bucher’s Terms and Conditions will remain the same. The goal of this partnership is to provide regional solutions and support to reduce lead times and further improve our award-winning customer service level”, states Beat Burlet, CEO of Bucher Leichtbau AG.
From this partnership our customers will only benefit. With the combined experience of the two companies in the aviation industry, the aim is to offer airlines even more added value. Explore these additional benefits and services by clicking here.
The last delivery was the first to be installed on-site by our specialists in the newly built FAL (Final Assembly Line) in Qingdao, in the eastern Chinese province of Shandong. The plant is the first H135 FAL outside Europe. The opening of this FAL took place after the cooperation agreement between Airbus Helicopters and China on the purchase of 100 H135s Helicopters has been signed in 2016. 95 of these 100 helicopters will be assembled in Qingdao starting this year.
The main components, such as the main fuselage, main gearbox and rear fuselage, will be delivered to China from Donauwörth, Germany and Albacete, Spain. The 6,500 square meter plant in Qingdao consists of four assembly stations, a painting cabin, ground and flight test areas as well as a delivery center. The Bucher team installed AC67 HEMS equipment at Airbus Helicopters Qingdao (China) at the Flight Line. Our very experienced specialists were able to meet the high on-site requirements for the installation, and the cooperation with the Chinese colleagues was also flawless. After the helicopter was lined entirely, our specialists started with the installation of our equipment. In addition to an electrical system installed behind the lining, this also includes various medical equipment mounts at different points in the helicopter. As a central work station for the physicians, a medical wall in the center with power supply as well as oxygen distribution system . This system is supplied by oxygen bottles, which are placed in a side window niche. The HEMS equipment consists of a stretcher system for the patient and three seats for the medical crew who care for the patient during the flight. The number of seats, as well as the remaining equipment, can be individually adapted to the customer’s wishes. The installation of the Bucher lightweight equipment is certified by the European EASA (STC) as well as the validation of the Chinese Aviation Authority CAAC. You can find more information about our equipment at:
“The installation of our equipment in China was a complete success thanks to excellent cooperation with Airbus Helicopters Donauwörth (Germany) and Airbus Helicopters Qingdao (China). We are proud that we were able to complete this order for our customer smoothly and thus laid the foundation for further installations on site. Once again, Bucher has proven its well-known strengths such as reliability, punctuality and outstanding quality, as well as its extensive expertise,” says Beat Burlet, CEO of Bucher Leichtbau AG.
The H135 is one of the most popular light twin-engine helicopters in China, mainly used in helicopter emergency medicine (HEMS), search and rescue, law enforcement, firefighting and tourism. At the moment, some 1’300 H135 family helicopters with more than 5 million flight hours are in service worldwide.
“We are particularly proud of this work, because it highlights some of the skills and in-depth knowledge we have gained since the company was founded in 1953. It also provides a good behind-the-scenes look in to our company,” says Beat Burlet, CEO of Bucher Leichtbau AG.
In just a few minutes, this video will give you an impression of our core business: lightweight monuments. Bucher stands for openness, respect, reliability, integrity, trust and commitment. Our customers feel these values through our personal and professional approach and experience them as the result of their projects.
Bucher products are durable and robust resulting in very low total cost of ownership throughout their lifecycle. In addition, they are designed to be recycled up to 95% at the end of their life cycle.
Quality is in our blood at Bucher and has been since the company was founded in 1953 by Heinrich Bucher. It was Heinrich’s vision and drive for producing lightweight galleys that propelled the company forward in its infancy. To this day, Bucher has not only refined and optimized its unique aluminum-based design principle but it has also expanded its offerings to include composite and carbon solutions. These developments over the years have enabled the company to remain flexible and to adapt its products to individual customer requirements. Bucher remains to this day a reliable partner for all projects in Aircraft Interiors!
With the A330neo, Airbus is introducing the new “Airspace” cabin concept. Flexible zones in the aircraft enable the optimum formation of the cabin crew’s workspace, and the innovative design also provides passengers and crew with a new travel experience. During the development, the focus was placed on the passengers but also on the crew’s mode of operation, with the result that the interior layout is very comfortable and achieves a pleasant ambience while also allowing the passenger to be spoilt with first-class service.
Bucher Leichtbau is proud to have been given the opportunity to develop and manufacture the well-known Bucher galleys for the Portuguese “launching operator”. The great challenge here was to develop galleys that were appropriately light, safe and which conformed to the specifications while also adapting to the customer’s requirements, taking into account functionality and ergonomic considerations.
Joel Fragata, Head of In-Flight Product for the cabin outfitting at TAP Air Portugal: “Bucher has equipped this wonderful aircraft with efficient and well-designed galleys. The galley specification for the A330neo was an enormous challenge and Bucher accepted to be part of this great project and adventure. We were convinced that they would be up to the job.We know the company from previous projects and have always been highly satisfied with the continuous and personal service and the resulting products, the reliable galleys. These impresses, amongst other things, due to their exceptional quality and the very low maintenance costs throughout the plane’s lifetime. Bucher Leichtbau has once again wowed us with its performance, flexibility, quality and reliability. For years, we have placed great trust in the craftsmanship and expertise of this leading galley provider.”
Bucher lives and breathes quality, something that can be traced back to the company’s founder. The original founder Heinrich Bucher was inspired by the idea of manufacturing galleys in a lightweight construction out of aluminium, with the guiding thought behind this being to fly with the minimum of weight and the highest degree of reliability. Bucher has been refining and optimising this unique lightweight construction principle ever since. However, Bucher also offers composite solutions, which allows the company to be flexible and able to adjust the products to individual customer requirements.
Once again this year Bucher was part of this impressive exhibition. In addition to the live demonstrations at our booth, visitors to the Airbus Helicopters booth had been able to have a look at a H145 equipped with Bucher‘s AC70-HEMS equipment. Furthermore Airbus presented the H160 with our new HEMS concept. This was the ideal stage to present our new Side/ Rear Load Stretcher.
Side/ Rear Load Stretcher
An absolute novelty is our modular Side/ Rear Load Stretcher, which is already in use at one of our most valued customers. In close collaboration with the rescue teams of two reference customers, we have designed the stretcher to meet the requirements of rescue operations even more effectively. New functionalities such as intuitive, quick and easy loading, a one-hand-adjustable backrest, approved by Bucher for the “taxi, take-off and landing” phase, and V-shaped comfort handles adapted to the anatomy of the human body are just a few of the many innovations. And best of all, we enable both smooth rear loading and highly ergonomic side loading. The functional design also ensures maximum flexibility for patient care – essential in critical situations.
If you could not participate at Helitech, but are interested in our equipment, let one of our experts explain our novelties and products to you.
Modular equipment options
Learn more about Bucher’s modular equipment options. Because our products have been designed to be used interchangeably, it is possible to use various elements of the AC67 HEMS equipment in an H145 or elements of the AC70 in an H135. One example is the multifunctional Center Cabinet with optional cabin heating and/or heat compartment for infusion bottles including spacious storage compartments. We also offer a wide range of standard interface mounts for medical devices, which are included in all new HEMS kits from Bucher Leichtbau.
This interchangeability allows us to configure the equipment for any application with maximum flexibility, modular and individually adapted to the customer. According to this, the weight of the helicopter can be reduced depending on the application.
