11.9 Sample Student Work: Proposal

Cerulean Tech

1200 Wingspan Drive.

Arlington, Texas 76018

(817) 718-6018 Fax: (817) 718-8000

Email: cerulean.tech@techleaders.net

www.ceruleantech.com

July 1^st, 2025

Keith Crawford

Spirit Airlines

4039 Rock Quarry Rd. Suite 600

Dallas, Texas 75211

(817) 345-6623

Subject: Proposal No. F-0087 for Cerulean Tech

Dear Keith Crawford:

Cerulean Tech respectfully submits the following proposal to implement digital twin engine surveillance at your manufacturing facility in Wichita, Kansas. Our company has been a global frontier for preventative aerospace parts surveillance since 2005, collaborating with many of the top commercial airlines, including Delta and American Airlines. Our dedicated engineers have pioneered the use of digital twins and sensors for continual monitoring solutions, and our advancements have redefined industry standards.

Background

The COVID-19 global pandemic was a challenging time for airlines, with a severe decrease in the number of flights available for customers. In 2024, Spirit Airlines focused on increasing profits and maintaining the public status of an ultra-low budget commercial airline, while technical issues grounded over 20% of your fleet. The use of PW1100G Pratt & Whitney jet engines grounded 40 of your 200 aircraft alone. Pratt & Whitney jet engines are a common engine choice in the airline industry, as they are fuel-efficient turbofan (GTF) engines that cut fuel consumption by around 15% while maintaining low emissions (Cameron, 2023). Research has shown that during the manufacturing process between 2015 and 2021, the powdered metal used in production has been contaminated, which led to cracking in stage 1 and 2 disks of the high-pressure turbine (Garbno, 2023). Premature engine maintenance and the resulting recalls of the PW1100G engines have had a substantial impact on the financial standing of the company. Complications in flight availability, delays, and operations have resulted in customer dissatisfaction, threatening the public position of Spirit Airlines.

Our company offers a variety of digital twin part management solutions that can identify engine issues as they begin, allowing for earlier maintenance as needed and fewer grounded flights. Our digital twin technology is partnered with sensors and can be integrated into your existing AeroSystems manufacturing facilities. Current maintenance and engine repairs for PW1100G engines take over 60 days to repair, plus the waiting time for the maintenance response. The resulting ground time can be upwards of 300 days (Hardee, 2025). When maintenance issues are identified earlier, the damage inflicted on parts is typically minimized. With our proposed upgrades, maintenance issues may be identified earlier, and post-repair inspections may be expedited, getting planes back on the tarmac faster.

Based on the provided facilities layout and technologies listed in your call for proposals, we present a digital twin package consisting of digital twin implementation and sensor installation, with a subcontracted physics engine through COMSOL.

Proposed Approach and Work Plan

The proposed workflow for developing and deploying a digital twin system to detect powder-metal defects in aircraft engines follows a structured 12-week plan. The project begins with integrating flight data into the digital twin platform (Jul 21st -August 4th) and conducting a historical analysis of past engine failure and inspection data (July 28th -August 8th). In parallel, neural network training is performed using the historical data of past Spirit Airlines (e.g. turbine inlet temperature, exhaust gas temperature, oil pressure, fuel flow, torque, N1, N2, ambient temperature, static pressure) (August 5th –22th), while the core digital twin infrastructure is built to track engine-specific operational history (August 5th –15th). A physics-based modeling engine, provided by COMSOL on August 20th, adds fatigue simulation capabilities to enhance prediction accuracy. Model testing using real flight data takes place from August 25th –29th, followed by final tuning and validation of the prediction engine (September 1st –6th). An alert system for identifying engines at risk of microcracks is implemented between September 8th –12th. The system is then deployed on a limited number of aircraft for initial testing (September 15th -October 10th), with final review and performance evaluation conducted from October 13th –17th.

Our chief engineer, Michael McKinley, will oversee a five-member software team. The software team will primarily focus on the data integration and digital twin training of both historical data and current PW1100G engines on A320neo aircraft. Senior Engineer Melissa Sanchez will oversee the COMSOL model testing team, composed of one certified mechanical engineer and one aerospace engineer. Project Liaison Arina Orlova will oversee the collaborative efforts between Cerulean Tech and Spirit Airlines, ensuring a smooth program transition upon completion.

Qualifications

Since our founding in 2005, we, Cerulean Tech, have prided ourselves on hiring the best in the field. Our team is composed of certified professionals and experts in the aerospace industry. Our software engineers are certified through the Institute of Certification of Computing Professionals, with many additional certifications such as Certified Software Quality Engineer (CSQE) and Certified Project Management Professional (CPMP).

• Cerulean Tech provides the following high-quality professional services
• Aerospace engineering
• Aircraft mechanic
• Digital twin technology
• Machine learning
• Real-time data acquisition and analysis
• Engine performance monitoring

After analyzing our results, the estimated costs are $942,000. A detailed list is provided below:

(Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2024)

This project management estimate is based on full-time professional services (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2024). The cost of maintenance, materials, and repairs is based on the cost of any potential fixes needed and the constant maintenance for the digital twin interface. The total cost of maintenance, material, and repairs is as shown (Thomas, 2024). The sensor analysis cost estimate is based on the combined cost of the creation of digital twins that use the sensor data of multiple sensor tools on a plane to provide the best way to find any potential issues. With sensor tools such as pitot pressure, fuel flow, exhaust gas temperature, turbine inlet temperature, and many more being taken into account in the sensor analysis cost estimate.

Profit Analysis

The impact of flight groundings significantly reduces the number of flight hours averaged per aircraft in the A320neo fleet. By reducing the average ground time of repairs from 300 days to a potential of 14 days, more flight hours will be possible. This would allow for more flights, fewer scheduling issues, and happier customers.

(Based on “Spirit Aviation Holdings” reports 2023, 2024, 2025)

In terms of the A320neo aircraft, 44% of the 2023 fleet were these airbuses, rising to 47% in 2024, and projections of 57% in 2025. This data was used to determine percentages of reported operating revenue each year due to these flights but did not consider the overall company net profits/losses, as this would require an in-depth independent review by your company. Estimated profits due to A320neo flights in 2023 were based on our findings, please review the following preliminary analysis of profits based on improvements due to the digital twin system alone.

Based on an estimated increase of 128% per year, there is a potential for 1.06 billion increased Profits in 2026, 1.38 billion in 2027, and 1.76 billion in 2028.

Authorization

Backed by a team of certified engineers and experienced technicians, we believe that Cerulean Tech is primed to deliver advanced solutions for streamlining engine surveillance.

If you would like to move forward with the proposal outlined above, please sign and return this document no later than July 9, 2025. If you have any questions regarding this proposal or the implementation process, please reach out to our office via phone or email.

Sincerely,

Arina Orlova

Subject Matter Expert and Project Liaison

Melissa Sanchez

Senior Engineer

Michael McKinley, P.E.

Chief Engineer

Nazrawi Adamu

Cost Strategist

Veronica Schramm

Proposal Coordinator

By signing this authorization page, Spirit Airlines agrees to move forward with Proposal No. F-0087 for Cerulean Tech subcontracting.

By_____________ on this day, _________

       (Printed Name)                                  (Date)

_______________________ _______________

Signature Position/Job Title

References

Cameron, D. (2023). Pratt & Whitney Engine Problems Lead Some Airlines to Reduce Flights. Wall Street Journal – Online Edition, N.PAG.

Garbuno, D. M. (2023, November 17). The Global Impact of The Pratt & Whitney Engine Issues. Simple Flying. https://simpleflying.com/global-impact-pratt-whitney-engine-issues/

Hardee, H. (2025, March 4). Spirit Airlines compensated $150m for ongoing Pratt & Whitney engine issues. Flight Global. https://www.flightglobal.com/fleets/spirit-airlines-compensated-150m-for-ongoing-pratt-and-whitney-engine-issues/162043.article

Spirit Airlines, Inc. – Financials – Quarterly Results. (2024). Spirit.com. https://ir.spirit.com/financials/Investor-Updates–Fleet-Plan/default.aspx

Thomas, D. (2024). Economics of Digital Twins: Costs, Benefits, and Economic Decision Making. https://doi.org/10.6028/nist.ams.100-61

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2024, April 3). Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. https://www.bls.gov/oes/2023/may/oes493011.htm

This Collaborative Proposal is derived from work completed in COMS 2302 for Communicating strategically in the workplace: A resource for engineering and science students Copyright © 2025 by Arina Orlova, Melissa Sanchez, Michael Mckinley, P.E., Nazrawi Adamu, and Veronica Schramm licensed under CC-BY license, unless otherwise noted.