our formula for
environmentally efficient aviation de-icers
... safe flights in winter
Aviation takes its responsibility in terms of sustainable transition seriously. The sector is making numerous efforts to become more sustainable, both at airports and with airlines. With sustainable de-icing solutions, Proviron is a leading partner for aviation and we ensure that aircraft can take off free of ice and then land on an ice-free runway.
safe take-off and landing… also in winter
We all know how winter weather affects mobility and traffic. At airports, where nothing is left to chance or to the weather, winter weather is rarely a problem. Airports deploy all means for the safety of aircraft during take-off and landing. In line with international sector regulations, each airport has its own winter team and the necessary winter infrastructure.
In the other seasons, the winter team maintains the equipment and checks, among other things, the quality of the stock of de-icing fluids. They thus make sure that the airport is ready for the coming winter. In the winter itself, the winter teams keep the runways open and de-ice the aircraft. They closely monitor weather forecasts in order to respond quickly and replenish stocks in a timely manner.
Proviron develops and supplies products that allow the runways to remain open in winter on the one hand and products that allow aircraft to take off free of ice and snow on the other. It plays a prominent role in Europe in this respect. Both operations are crucial to keep the airport open in winter weather and to minimize delays. In order to keep runways free of snow and ice, airports must pre-emptively adapt their runways and ensure that snow or ice cannot freeze.
de-icing en anti-icing
Clearing and keeping airports ice-free is done in two steps. The first step is called de-icing. This means that an aircraft covered in snow or ice is treated with liquid to make it completely ice-free. This is a very delicate operation because the layers of ice are sometimes not visible.
The second step is the anti-icing. The aircraft is sprayed with a liquid to ensure that the wings do not start freezing again. After all, ice formation on the wings disrupts the aerodynamics of an aircraft. However, in order to give the aircraft a sufficient ‘lift’, the product must gradually slide off the wings as the aircraft moves into higher layers of air. To achieve this, the liquid must have a certain viscosity.
did you know…
… depending on the outside temperature and the type of precipitation, there can be 15 to 60 minutes between de-icing the aircraft and taking off? In jargon, this is called ‘holdover time’. Pilots have to take that interval into account when preparing for their flight.
sustainable innovation
The aviation sector is continuing its commitment to sustainability throughout the entire operational chain. It does so by using bio-based raw materials and ecological alternatives where possible. Increasingly, airports are deploying electric vehicles for the various services they provide to airlines.
With sustainable innovation, we are helping airports with their ‘greening’. Proviron’s R&D department is continuously investigating how we can improve our de-icing products and how we can better respond to different weather conditions with additions to our basic range. Their biggest challenge is to look for greener solutions that are less corrosive.
By using bio-based raw materials for our de-icing products, we reduce their ecological footprint. In addition, we are investigating with some airports the opportunities for recycling the used liquids and producing new liquids with them.
did you know…
… our runway products are also used on roads? We were regularly asked whether we could also make bridges and other road infrastructure frost-free and whether we could minimize the corrosion caused by salts. We can do that! And that’s what we are now doing with Provifrost Safe Road.
excellence in service
You never know far in advance when winter will strike or how severe a cold snap will be. But when it freezes, we feel responsible for the smooth running of airports. Our service to the aviation industry is almost as important as our product range. And we are quite invested in that.
Before the start of the winter season, an airport must be able to demonstrate that the liquids it has in stock are still usable. Our customers send samples to the Proviron lab and we analyze them. To make it as easy as possible for them, we offer airport kits with labels for their samples.
We also continuously monitor weather forecasts via specialized weather agencies. For aviation, it is not only the weather ‘on the ground’ that is important, but also the weather in the different layers of air. Depending on the forecast, we plan our production so that we can guarantee fast deliveries. For airports that are further away, we build up strategic stocks.
Above all, it is important to have sufficient resources at the airport and to be able to deliver quickly when necessary. We therefore have an on-call service that is available 24/7 and is very flexible. After all, sometimes we have to find a solution to supply airports quickly when winter weather causes problems on the road. In Proviron’s more than 35 years of operation, it has always managed to supply airports on time.
social impact
Indirectly, our services and products ensure that people can fly in the winter. We take this task seriously and all our employees are on hand to respond quickly and flexibly to unforeseen circumstances. Where the weather is concerned you never have any certainty, but Proviron does its part in getting everyone who wants to fly in the winter to their destination safely and on time.
* Non-scientific calculation based on assumptions of dosage standards and estimated volumes.
