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Erick Martin, PresidentPartnering with a one-stop shop like Phoenix Composite Solutions who can handle testing, repairs and compliance is crucial to make an operator’s life easier.
The company specializes in composites and manages a variety of projects, ranging from commercial/medical aerospace components to classified defense applications. Phoenix Composite Solutions focuses on OEM and MRO, offering design development, technical document-based manufacturing and comprehensive non-destructive testing (NDT). It even provides traditional mechanical testing, which covers climbing drum, overlap shear, floating peel and flat-wise tensile testing with its 100 KTN machine.
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Beyond manufacturing and testing, Phoenix Composite Solutions is well-renowned for its leadership in aircraft parts repair. While most players classify parts beyond economical repair (BER) as scrap, the company takes a different approach. It develops repair solutions approved by FAA-designated engineering representatives (DER), enabling airlines to salvage valuable components while remaining fully compliant with regulations.
“Rather than discarding legacy parts, we develop certified repair solutions that keep mature aircraft flying,” says John Scanlon, CEO and co-founder. “With lower labor rates at our Michigan facility and our logistical and material expertise, we deliver unmatched value to our clients.”
The company begins a client engagement with a thorough component teardown and evaluation. If manual repair isn’t feasible, the in-house repair coordinator works closely with an FAA-approved DER to develop and execute an authorized repair solution.
“Our expertise lies in bringing older parts on par with newer material, extending their life as well as making them stronger than the original design,” says Erick Martin, president.
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Rather than discarding legacy parts, we develop certified repair solutions that keep mature aircraft flying. With lower labor rates at our Michigan facility and our logistical and material expertise, we deliver unmatched value to our clients
“Our expertise lies in bringing older parts on par with newer material, extending their life as well as making them stronger than the original design,” says Erick Martin, president.
Building on its commitment to cost-effective repair solutions, Phoenix Composite Solutions actively secures maintenance contracts and agreements with airlines, air freight carriers and brokers. To encourage long-term partnerships, it offers volume discounts to generate significant business opportunities. Further strengthening its capabilities, the company has organized its operations into specialized divisions, each with dedicated engineering, planning, and management teams for its OEM/manufacturing and MRO sectors.
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This structured approach ensures focused expertise and strong leadership, enabling Phoenix Composite Solutions to build long-term collaborations with industry leaders. The over two-decade-long partnership with Pratt & Whitney Canada is a good example, where the company produces fan cases for the 535E and various lightweight composite fairings.
Recently, it secured a contract to manufacture eight different fan case models, structuring the agreement with a CPI-U index-based pricing model to provide more cost savings. The company also helped Japan Airlines with a fan case overhaul at half the OEM quoted price and developed a ceramic composite to protect aircraft cowlings from APU exhaust damage.
These outcomes are possible thanks to the foundation laid by Scanlon and his partners, who had over a century of experience in composite structures and ensured the mantle was passed down to the new leaders. Today, most department heads have over 15 years of experience within the organization.
Phoenix Composite Solutions complements industry expertise with advanced equipment, including the rare Laser shearography NDT system. It operates four autoclaves—the largest spanning 38 feet by 18 feet—featuring upgraded PLC, HMI, nitrogen fire prevention and specialized loading systems. This supports larger thrust reversers and fan cases while offering autoclave curing.
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Its in-house services include phosphoric acid anodizing, machining, painting, reverse engineering and laser scanning. Certified by FAA, EASA, CAAC, AS9100 Rev D, ISO 9000, and Nadcap (composites accredited for metal bonding and autoclave) the company ensures quality and compliance. As an ITAR-compliant, U.S.-Canada JCP-certified entity, Phoenix Composite Solutions is a trusted, one-stop destination for aerospace clients worldwide.
FAA Repair Station Selection for Aerospace and Defense Fleets
For aerospace and defense operators, a choice of repair station is far more complex than the availability of shop space and the cost of a repair quote. The extended service life afforded by capable repair stations has taken on increasing importance in today's environment of aging fleets, supply chain issues and lengthy lead times for new replacement parts. Many times, the question faced by a maintenance team is "to replace" this expensive part, or find a capable repair process that will extend the life safely. A competent repair station ensures that the choice is technically and programmatically safe.
Complex components such as aircraft structures, nacelles, fan cases, thrust reversers and bonded assemblies require more than skilled technicians. They demand a repair provider that can accurately assess damage, understand the original design and determine whether an FAA-approved repair can return the part to service with confidence. This is particularly important for composite and hybrid structures, where visible damage may not tell the full story. Effective repairs require expertise in materials, bonding, curing processes, inspection methods and validation testing. A provider focused only on inspection and rejection may meet procedural requirements, but it does little to preserve asset value.
The strongest repair stations provide a seamless path from inspection and diagnosis through engineering support, repair development, testing and final certification. Keeping these capabilities within a unified quality system reduces delays, minimizes communication gaps and improves consistency throughout the repair process. It also allows providers to find practical solutions for legacy components that might otherwise be replaced. Buyers should evaluate whether a repair station can work from existing technical documentation, develop approved repair approaches when standard manuals fall short and validate repairs through appropriate testing methods.
Cost control is paramount, but the cheapest quote does not always yield the best result. The best repair stations support the operator to lower overall cost by extending the life of testable parts and fast turnaround and zero rework and using correct repair procedures with documented testing and inspection techniques with a quick response time during an AOG. Compliance and appropriate approvals also carry weight in international and defence-related applications, where a higher level of certification than the FAA might be required. Good partners will have technical capability, responsiveness and compliance.
Phoenix Composite Solutions stands out for buyers who need a repair station built around complex composite, metal and hybrid component work rather than routine throughput alone. It is an FAA- and EASA-certified repair station with CAAC approval, 7-day repair station availability, an average turnaround of about 14 days, and expedited support for AOG needs. Its repair model emphasizes rapid DER development, repair alternatives for expensive or difficult-to-find OEM components and problem-part recovery. Phoenix is especially relevant where parts may otherwise be scrapped: its in-house strengths include NDT, laser shearography, autoclave capacity, phosphoric acid anodizing, metrology, mechanical testing, painting and engineering support. For executives trying to extend component life while maintaining controlled approval pathways, Phoenix Composite Solutions is a strong, practical choice.
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Company
Phoenix Composite Solutions
Management
Erick Martin, President
Description
Phoenix Composite Solutions operates in the aerospace and composites sector, serving medical, military and civilian customers with projects ranging from commercial aerospace components to classified defense applications. It offers design development, technical document-based manufacturing and comprehensive non-destructive testing (NDT).
