Aeromet expands relationship with Boeing with record-breaking set of orders
copyright: Monty Rakusen
Aeromet International, supplier of airframe and aero engine components, has expanded its relationship with airplane manufacturer Boeing by securing the biggest set of orders in the company’s 40 year history.
Aeromet has been awarded an extension to its existing long-term agreements covering the supply of parts for the Boeing 737, 767 and 777 airplanes. In addition to the extension of existing contracts, Aeromet has secured a new contract to supply parts for the 777X, Boeing’s next generation airplane which is due to enter service in 2020.
Aeromet specialises in aluminium and magnesium cast parts, employing 260 staff at sites in Worcester, Rochester and Sittingbourne. It supplies aerospace and defence customers with a range of airframe and aero engine components including fuel system components, wing tips, doors and heat exchangers.
Simon Holliday, Aeromet’s Managing Director, said: “This agreement builds upon Aeromet’s 17-year relationship with Boeing and is a natural extension of a partnership that has seen the companies operational, engineering and quality teams collaborate on projects that have developed innovative solutions for complex parts. This win is a great example of what is possible for Aeromet when we focus on providing customers with innovative solutions and fantastic service.”
The 777X contract award is the latest example of Aeromet’s unique capabilities. In this case new parts will be made using A20X®, Aeromet’s proprietary aluminium alloy. A20X®, which was developed and patented by Aeromet, is the strongest aluminium casting alloy on the market.
The Aeromet deal was cemented following a UK suppliers’ trip hosted at Boeing’s commercial airplane production facilities in the Washington State in 2016 which was supported by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and the Department for International Trade.
“Boeing and the UK aerospace industry have a long, mutually beneficial history,” said Sir Michael Arthur, President, Boeing Europe and Managing Director of Boeing U.K. and Ireland. “In the past year we have expanded our outreach to local suppliers to better prepare them to compete and win Boeing work. Aeromet’s recent contract award is evidence that together, Boeing and UK companies continue to win the marketplace.”
Business Minister Jesse Norman said: “These new orders from Boeing bear testimony to Aeromet’s commitment to investment in R&D. This is a great example of how industry and government, through the Aerospace Growth Partnership, are working together to tackle barriers to growth, boost exports and create high value jobs.”
Key to Aeromet’s success is support from the government-backed Sharing in Growth (“SiG”) programme. Endorsed by Boeing, SiG is designed to raise the productivity and competitiveness of the UK aerospace supply chain. The productivity improvements achieved as part of this programme were key to Aeromet securing an extension to its existing contracts in the face of global competition, according to Holliday.
Established in 2013 with £50 million from the Regional Growth Fund and endorsement from Boeing, Airbus, BAE Systems, Bombardier, GE, GKN and Rolls-Royce, SiG has already helped secure contracts worth just over £1.6 billion for the first 37 firms on the programme, equivalent to around 2600 UK jobs. Ultimately the programme’s goal is to safeguard 10,000 UK jobs.
Said SiG’s CEO Andy Page: “We are really delighted by Aeromet’s achievement. It is without doubt proof that SiG’s four year transformation programmes deliver and sustain improvements so that UK firms can compete for the continuing huge growth in the aerospace sector. SiG is already helping 50 companies achieve their aim of an average 50% increase in productivity.”
