Fueling Your Career with JiET-A | Aviation Pros article Rockford aerospace manufacturing cluster Academia, business, and community leaders work together to develop industry growth. Rockford’s cluster of companies is one of the leading aerospace employment centers in the country. Winnebago County is home to five major tier-one aerospace service providers: B/E Aerospace, GE Aviation, Esterline, UTC Aerospace Systems, and Woodward. Together they provide design, manufacturing, assembly, inspection, testing, repair, and software services to all major aircraft manufacturers, including Boeing and Airbus. These companies may be competitors yet are interdependent because of their common need for services and supplies. One critical need is manpower, a vital component necessary to run the Rockford aviation manufacturing engine. Currently more than 6,500 employees in the aerospace industry sector work in the Rockford MSA, making it the “6th in the nation in terms of concentration of aerospace production employment and one of the largest in the nation in overall aerospace employment.” Despite that, manpower shortages could be a limiting factor for its future growth. Jeff Kaney, Rockford business owner and entrepreneur, states that because of recent company headquarter moves, mergers, and acquisitions, much of the local senior management who served on community development committees moved away. To fill that leadership void, the visionary and former Rockford Area Economic Development Council (RAEDC) president, Janyce Fadden, formed a coalition of local leaders from academia, government, and business. Its charter was to develop a tier of support organizations to address manpower and other needs of the Rockford MSA aviation companies, attract new companies, and increase the wealth of the community through aviation job creation. Janyce Fadden explains, “Aerospace wages are double the average Rockford-area per capita income. By growing our aerospace cluster, we increase the wealth of our community by adding more high-paying jobs.” There are three functioning organizations now in place to help achieve these goals and strategies.
Posted on: Thu, 22 Aug 2013 20:34:14 +0000
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