More engine work heading Standard Aero’s way
Overhaul facility repatriated here from Netherlands
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/06/2009 (6014 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
STANDARD Aero is repatriating an engine overhaul facility from the Netherlands to Winnipeg, a move that will boost its Manitoba workforce by 50 by the time it’s completed at the end of 2010.
Manny Atwal, general manager for the Winnipeg-based aerospace company’s Pratt & Whitney Canada division, said it decided to move the heavy repair and overhaul services for the PW100 engine to its complex near the Richardson International Airport because it already services a comparable engine, the PT6, here.
“The PW100 product requires similar expertise to repair and overhaul (to the PT6).
By combining the two programs, you get a bigger presence in North America, which is the world’s largest aviation marketplace,” Atwal said, noting both engines are used to propel turboprop aircraft.
The announcement comes two days after Standard Aero inked a 15-year, $850-million deal to repair, service and overhaul engines for WestJet’s 737 aircraft. This agreement will boost the company’s workforce by 250 people by 2012.
Coupled with the Netherlands move, Standard Aero’s Winnipeg workforce will hit 1,550 within three years, an all-time high.
Atwal said the appreciation of the euro in recent months made it increasingly difficult for Standard Aero to compete in the international marketplace out of the Netherlands. The relatively lower value of the loonie offers its Canadian operations a competitive advantage, he said.
Atwal said it’s too early to say exactly how the new hires in Winnipeg will shake out but it’s unlikely many people move across the Atlantic Ocean for the work.
“It’s a very big deal to move people from the Netherlands to Canada. The intent is a lot of those positions will be filled by the Winnipeg pool of people,” he said, noting the transition will begin within three to six months.
Most of the positions are mechanical in nature but there are also jobs in customer service and program management, he said.
Standard Aero’s Dutch facility in Tilburg will still employ between 35 and 40 people but all major repair work will be brought to Winnipeg, Atwal said.
geoff.kirbyson@freepress.mb.ca