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10 Questions

with Leslaw Kuzaj
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September 26th, 2007 issue

COURTESY PHOTO
General Electric's Leslaw Kuzaj says turboprops are affordable and reliable, and the segment will grow.
THE KUZAJ FILE

Job title: Regional executive for Central Europe, General Electric
Nationality: Polish
Former positions: National executive, Poland, GE
Education: Krakow School of Economics

Last month, GE Aviation, a division of General Electric, one of the world’s largest companies, announced that it had purchased Walter Engines, a Prague-based manufacturer of turboprop plane engines. GE Aviation traditionally produces jet engines used to power fighter planes and commercial aircrafts like the 747. Leslaw Kuzaj, GE’s regional executive for Central Europe, talks to The Prague Post about the company’s move into the turboprop market and its increased interest in the region.
➊ What prompted GE’s acquisition of Walter Engines?
Walter Engines will expand GE’s presence in the small turboprop segment of the aviation market, which is an excellent growth platform in emerging regions such as India, China, Russia and Brazil. Prior to the acquisition, we had little to no presence in this segment.
We’re committed to investing in technology, and this acquisition will allow Walter Engines to access our advances in aviation, including 3-D aero design and advanced materials.
➋ Can you tell me a bit more about these technologies?
GE Aviation invests more than $1 billion [19.6 billion Kč] annually in research and development, which includes advanced materials like composites, ceramic matrix composites, titanium aluminide, etc. We can leverage these new materials into Walter Engines’ designs to create more durable, lightweight parts.
➌ And aero?
The 3-D aero technology — short for three-dimensional aerodynamic design techniques — comes from advances in computer technology that enable our design engineers to accurately model airfoils in three dimensions, rather than in traditional two-dimensional views. This allows them to see what happens as air flows over a blade, which lets us identify when the traditional shape of a blade creates turbulence in airflow. By subtly altering the blade’s curvature, turbulence can be dramatically reduced.
➍ Are you going to keep Walter Engines’ operations in Prague?
The company will remain in the Czech Republic and we’ll also retain the brand name for a number of reasons: It has a tradition in the Czech Republic and we want to maintain its high brand recognition and quality associations.
➎ What types of planes currently use Walter Engines’ turboprops?
Their M601 turboprop engine family has more than 1,500 engines in service on over 30 aircraft types. And, in addition to manufacturing and overhauling turboprop engines, Walter manufactures high-precision machined parts for the aviation industry with customers worldwide.
➏ Why would customers choose a turboprop versus a jet engine?
Turboprops tend to power smaller aircrafts, and in emerging regions the utility turboprop is very affordable and reliable. Because of that, we believe this segment will continue to have strong growth in the coming years.
➐ On a broader note, there have been increased concerns about aircrafts’ carbon emissions. Is GE Aviation working on this problem?
Absolutely. Over the past several years, GE Aviation has invested hundreds of millions of dollars to make our engines more environment-friendly. We’re focused on not only reducing noise but also emissions of GE aircraft engines.
Across GE’s engine models, we’ve improved the process by which air and fuel are mixed in the combustor to produce much lower emission levels on various commercial aircrafts, from jumbo jets to the new regional jets. We’re currently readying the GEnx, which is our next generation aircraft engine, for use in aircraft such as the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and the 747-8 Intercontinental. The GEnx uses the latest materials and design processes to reduce weight, improve performance and lower maintenance costs. Its emissions will be as much as 95 percent below current regulatory limits.
➑ As small-plane travel continues to grow, especially in emerging regions, are there advances in safety GE would like to see happen from either aircraft makers or regulatory bodies?
Safety is the No. 1 priority for GE as well as aircraft makers and regulatory bodies. We fully support any measures that can improve safety in the industry. However, we don’t have any specific advances that we would like to see happen.
➒ Beyond GE Money, GE hasn’t been very visible in the Czech Republic. What operations do you have here?
GE has more than 25,000 employees in Central Europe. All six of GE’s businesses are present: commercial finance, industrial, infrastructure, health care, money and NBC Universal. GE Energy Eastern Europe, which is part of our infrastructure business, is also based in Prague. We view this region as strategically important to the overall success of GE — that’s why you’ll continue to see more and more activity in the region from our company.
➓ This summer, GE’s CEO visited the Czech Republic. What prompted his visit?
Jeff Immelt regularly visits different locations in Europe and this was not the first time he has paid a visit to Prague.
I can tell you that we are constantly evaluating opportunities all over the world, including in this region. I can also reiterate what Mr. Immelt said in June: that it is time to invest in high-tech industry that has the potential to serve growing global markets.
Want your manager to answer our 10 Questions? Send a message to Paul Voosen at pvoosen@praguepost.com


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