Gov. Gregoire connects Washington aerospace suppliers with plane manufacturer

For Immediate Release: July 6, 2012

OLYMPIA � Gov. Chris Gregoire today, continuing her week-long trade mission in Ireland and England, traveled to Broughton, Wales to connect some of the state�s aerospace suppliers to executives at Airbus, and encouraged the plane manufacturer to use Washington state suppliers as it builds its planes.

�Our aerospace supply chain is second to none,� Gregoire said. �And it offers plane manufacturers something no other region can � and that is a complete supply chain. We�ve seen the number of aerospace supply companies in Washington state grow tremendously over the last eight years � up more than 30 percent. And there�s a reason for that. Supply companies know that Washington state is the premier place for aerospace. We now need to ensure that every plane manufacturer knows that so they use these companies, and ultimately help our state create new jobs. Conducting face to face meetings with executives at Airbus will likely open new doors for our aerospace delegates, and ensure that this critical industry continues to grow in Washington state.�

Washington is one of the largest states for Airbus sourcing, with direct purchases amounting to $200 million annually. Top Airbus suppliers in Washington state include Honeywell, Panasonic Avionics, Kaiser Aluminum, Crane Aerospace and Heath Tecna.

Prior to her meeting at Airbus, Gregoire and the delegation toured Electroimpact�s engineering support office. Electroimpact is an aerospace supply company headquartered in Mukilteo, and develops specialized machinery used by Boeing, Airbus and other major aerospace companies to build their products. Airbus has purchased equipment from Electroimpact for many years, including machines and tools for its A380 wing manufacturing facility in Broughton, North Wales.

�Electroimpact is excited and proud to host Governor Gregoire at our UK facility,� said Ben Hempstead, Electroimpact professional engineer and mechanical engineer lead. �We enjoy living and working in Washington state while exporting our products around the globe in addition to meeting domestic needs for Boeing and other customers. We hope the Governor enjoyed her tour and that she and her team take back a message about the global opportunities for Washington suppliers to meet customer demands around the world.

Tomorrow, Gregoire and the entire delegation will travel to London, England, where on Monday, they will open the Washington state pavilion at the Farnborough Air Show, one the largest global aerospace events of its kind. More than 1,400 exhibitors from the aerospace, defense, space and security sectors are expected to showcase and demonstrate aircraft, equipment and technologies. Gregoire and her staff will meet with executives representing more than 25 aerospace companies, highlighting our state�s world-class aerospace training programs, its more than 700 aerospace companies, and its more than 92,000 highly-skilled aerospace workers.

Visit Gregoire�s online travel journal that includes travel notes from the governor and the rest of the delegation, the itinerary and photos of the trade mission. Access the travel journal by following the link on her homepage: www.governor.wa.gov.


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