Welcome to PD's Parachute Maintenance & Repair Department, affectionately known as PMD. PD is one of the few canopy manufacturers that has an "unhorse" maintenance department for canopy repair, and/or regular maintenance for their customers' use after they purchase their product. Some may offer maintenance and outsource this to local riggers to perform these services in their name. The parachute maintenance department(PMD) at PD is made up of ten people: three repair specialists/sewers, two incoming inspectors, one rigger, one final inspector, and there's also one liaison, one supervisor, and one manager. We can do just about any repair needed in PMD.
If you need some repair work done this is the place your canopy will come.
Each and every canopy that comes through our door is given a thorough inspection. Trained inspectors start with your lines and slider and then go over each skin of your canopy. Our goal is to document the current condition of your canopy to include any damage, defects, and deficiencies in order to fully inform you, the owner, of what we find. This allows both you and PD the opportunity to determine the most appropriate work to be done to make it ready for continued service and gives you the confidence to know that it’s in the best condition it can be in.
Here are some of the more frequently asked questions about our PMD department:
How much will the inspection and repair cost? The cost of inspection is $25.00 for sport canopies, $30.00 for tandems. Relines range from $235.00 to $310.00 for sport canopies and $365.00 for tandems. Repairs other than relines are priced on an individual basis depending on the location and complexity of the repair. Our customer service liaison will contact you immediately after the inspection and explain what needs to be done. We will not do any billable work without your approval. A full maintenance and parts price list can be found here.
How much time are we talking about here? Well, this all depends on how much work your canopy requires. We are a first come first served operation. (First in First out -FIFO) If it’s a reline ONLY, and we have the lines in stock your canopy requires, you are looking at 3-5 days plus shipping time. If we have to order the line set, the time extends by 3 days. (So plan ahead and get it in when it will be the most convenient for you!)
If the canopy requires extensive repairs, the time in house will be determined by the amount of repair parts that have to be made, the time involved in the actual repairs, and the volume of work ahead of yours.
Also, when our customer service liaison(CSL) calls you, be prepared to let the CSL know when you need to have it back, the dates of the big event or boogie and we will do EVERYTHING we can to get it back to you on time. If you send in your canopy and we call back with the status which requires additional work to bring it up to speed, remember we want you to be as safe as can be and we are only alerting you so you can make an informed decision. We enjoy talking to you about your canopy, your DZ, your experiences (good and bad) with your PD canopy, so please call or email us and let us answer any questions.
How much time will it take if I need a test jump? You are a skydiver - you know what’s needed: good weather, and an airplane. When the weather is bad – nobody is able to jump. Then when the weather turns good – EVERYBODY wants to jump making it difficult to get as many slots as we need to get in all the test jumps we need to make in a given day. We will definitely keep you posted on the progress and as always – feel free to contact us with your comments, concerns or questions. We will do all we can to help.
Do I need to send my risers? Need to, no. Typically all we need is the parachute, slider, and lines on the connector links. However, if you are sending in your parachute for an opening issue it is best if we get the risers and deployment bag with bridle. This will allow us to evaluate all that goes into the opening of your parachute. In other words, we evaluate the entire deployment system.
In fact, for an opening issue it is best if the canopy is all packed up in the bag as you would for the next jump. If we find something wrong with the canopy, we want to fix it. If there is some incompatibility of equipment or organization of packing, we want to help determine what that is so you can fix it. The bottom line is that if you are not experiencing the openings appropriate for that canopy, we want to help rectify that situation.
Simply disconnect the risers from the harness, pull the pilot chute from the pouch, open the main container, and move the bag, risers and pilot chute right to a shipping box and send it in. If you do send these additional items to us, they are inventoried in and out to make sure nothing gets misplaced.
How do I ship it to you? Your choice. You can send it to us any way that is best for you as long as it is accompanied by a Maintenance and Repair Form. Without that information we simply cannot serve your needs appropriately. Please help us to help you.
Our typical return shipping method is Federal Express 3 Day Saver. We will ship via UPS when appropriate. We do not care to use the postal service at all. Their service level and track record do not meet our standards. (If you require PD to use the postal service you will assume full responsibility.)
We hope to serve you, our customer, with the best service we can provide. Our goal is to get you back in the air as quickly and safely as we can.
We welcome feedback in any form good or bad to support@performancedesigns.com. If we have not served you well please let us know so we can do better in the future. If we have served you well let us know that too so we can pass that on to the men and women who work diligently and conscientiously to keep your parachutes in great working order.
