Embraer’s New Executive Jet Assembly Facility

He also casually mentions that in December 2011 when operations and flight tests were completed on the first Melbourne-made Phenom 100 pushed out the door, all operating requirements were met and there were zero discrepancies, no squawks. He says that the Phenom had met their expectations and set the bar for quality.

We also had an opportunity to look at the paint hangar and other employee spaces and common areas. The huge negative-pressure paint hangar was exceedingly clean. The employee café and restrooms were just as bright, colorful, and clean and organized as the production floor.

I mentioned my observations of the café and restrooms to Krull and he says that represents Embraer’s commitment to a culture of respect for its employees and to ensure that Embraer is a great place to work. As we toured the Embraer campus, Krull pointed out the common areas including ball courts, walking paths, and covered sitting and eating areas.

To paraphrase several of the Embraer Executive Jet executives: “We are American first and foremost but aviation is a global business. We work for a global company that is very successful, has a culture of inclusion and cooperation, builds beautiful products, has competitive compensation rates, and creates great places for us to work.”

Maggie Laureano, vice president of human resources, states that one of the corporate goals was to create a happy workplace at the Embraer campus in Melbourne.

After touring Embraer’s Executive Jet Campus and visiting with the employees, my mental model of our industry changed considerably. My hope is that the Embraer culture and the facility in Melbourne become the model for future aviation workplaces. I saw quite a few assemblers that looked quite happy working in a quiet, clean, air-conditioned building on small, beautiful jets. AMT

Charles Chandler has a Master’s of Science Degree in Adult and Occupational Education with a major in Human Resources Development.