Features MRO
DART acquires Canam Aerospace and Cargo Net Innovations

Sept. 9, 2008, Piney Flats, TN – DART Helicopter Services (DHS) has acquired Canam Aerospace Inc., and purchased a 50 percent interest in Cargo Net Innovations, DHS President & CEO Jeff Shapiro announced today.  The global helicopter accessories provider will leverage the companies’ combined cargo hook/net and long line expertise to develop and introduce new products.
 
“The DHS charter is to provide accessories that make flying safer, more efficient, and more effective,” Shapiro said. “These strategic investments strengthen our position as a one-stop resource to meet the needs of rotorcraft operators worldwide.”
 
President Bruce Fraser will continue to provide leadership for the two Vancouver-based companies. “Working with DART as a distributor of our products has been positive for Canam,” Fraser said. “We’re taking that partnership to a new level now — with exciting opportunities to expand our product offerings and grow.”
 
Together, Canam and Cargo Net Innovations offer an array of products, including: long line cargo hooks, bag automated transporters, primary hooks, carousels, long line nubbins, swivels, shock absorbers, logging grapples, synthetic long lines,  and cargo nets for a variety of helicopter models. The equipment is used in applications ranging from logging and construction to seismic exploration.
 
DHS offers thousands of parts and accessories for AgustaWestland, Bell, Eurocopter, MD, Robinson, Sikorsky, Schweizer and Hiller helicopters. Revenues in 2007 grew more than 250 percent from 2006. The company has 14 locations worldwide.
 
With an exclusive focus on designing, marketing and selling helicopter accessories, DHS has adopted a unique and successful approach to its business by focusing on designing solutions. Specifically, DHS products are better engineered, with more innovative features and higher quality than competitive offerings. Additionally, DHS is the sole source for certain products, such as floats with integrated life rafts, for example.
 
DHS was founded in 2004 as a worldwide manufacturing, engineering and marketing force that also allows small suppliers to distribute their products through a collective resource. DHS is favored by operators for having myriad products available through a single source. Today, DART markets and distributes products and accessories of its own design and from 15 other manufacturers.
 
About DART: DART Helicopter Services LLC is a privately held sales and marketing company whose primary focus is creating sales networks for aerospace manufacturers who benefit from DART’s global marketing network and sales channel and for rotary-wing operators seeking a comprehensive product line and superior customer support. DART Helicopter Services, along with its subsidiaries Apical Industries Inc. and Geneva Aviation Inc. and its affiliate DART Aerospace Inc., owns nearly 400 STCs and manufactures more than 500 products. With its highly trained and knowledgeable North American and international sales team, DART Helicopter Services distributes more than 1,500 aftermarket products to more than 120 countries worldwide.