The battle for final assembly of the proposed 7E7 jetliner was just the preliminary bout, said John Monroe, a former executive with the Boeing Co.
The real contest starts now, as smaller aerospace companies jockey to become the suppliers that will build the new jet’s nuts and bolts, Monroe said.
Given that Boeing is turning over more of the detail work to its partners, the economic effects of those supplier jobs could very well be greater than the jobs Boeing will add on the 7E7 line, he said.
“If we keep working this thing, then there is so much to be gained,” Monroe said. “Or you could just sit back and be satisfied with 800 to 1,200 jobs.”
Monroe is the point man for the Snohomish County Economic Development Council’s efforts to bring 7E7 subcontracts to the Puget Sound area. One of the group’s first big efforts toward that end starts today as the 60-member Pacific Northwest Aerospace Association begins its two-day conference in Lynnwood. The development council is a co-sponsor of the event.
The council’s mission is simple, said Deborah Knutson, the council’s president: “How can we help make sure that the suppliers that have been supplying to Boeing are still in that category to continue supplying?”
Having Monroe head the effort gives the council “immediate credibility,” she said. Monroe, who retired from Boeing, is a former supplier manager on the 777 program. He’s volunteering his time on the council project.
The stakes are big, Monroe said. He estimates suppliers will end up hiring up to three times as many workers to build 7E7 components as Boeing will need to snap those components together.
The question is where that supplier work will go.
For decades, small aerospace companies around the Pacific Northwest have done business with Boeing directly, Monroe said. That will change with the 7E7. Boeing is relying on its partners to design and build larger sections of the plane. Those “tier one” contractors will be responsible for making their own arrangements for parts, and those companies are scattered from Italy to Japan.
“We’ve got 30-some aerospace companies right here in Snohomish County,” Monroe said. “The only way that they’re going to get their parts on the 7E7 tomorrow is if the tier ones and tier twos know who they are.”
One of Monroe’s big pushes is to make Boeing’s prime contractors aware of all the aerospace expertise that exists in the region – everything from companies that supply wire bundles to those with trained aerospace engineers.
Part of that has involved “aggressively” inviting major 7E7 contractors to attend this week’s trade show, where they can meet with subcontractors, Monroe said.
The council also plans to attend some of the major aerospace trade shows elsewhere. And it’s looking for other ways to tell the bigger contractors about the advantages of locating here.
Many of the tax breaks Boeing got for locating 7E7 final assembly in Washington also will apply to other aerospace companies, Monroe said. The tax breaks apply to research and development spending, to construction of new facilities, and to the purchase of computers and other equipment to outfit those facilities.
Given that, it could be advantageous for a key contractor to set up a satellite facility near Boeing’s Everett plant, Monroe said.
The council has hired a consultant to study the tax breaks, and that report will be made available at this week’s conference, he said. So will a list of available commercial and manufacturing space in the county.
Whether the companies set up shop here or not, they will be sending engineers to Everett for periods ranging from a few months to a few years to work on the 7E7, Monroe said. He said he’s trying to work out ways to make the relocation process easier – finding housing, schools for children and jobs for spouses, and arranging for banking and utilities.
“That’s the one that could bring immediate bucks to the area,” he said. “The manpower buildup that is going to happen is going to happen real soon.”
Reporter Bryan Corliss: 425-339-3454 or corliss@heraldnet.com.
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