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Jun. 18--On the eve of the Paris Air Show Sunday, a glamorous reception in the Eiffel Tower boasted a beautiful view of the city. It was hosted by the state of Alabama, which has emerged as Washington's key rival for aerospace business.
Senator Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) and Alabama Governor Bob Riley attended, as did Senator Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), President Barack Obama's personal representative to the Air Show and chair of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee.
Alabama has joined forces with Mississippi and Florida in Paris to promote the emergence of a growing aerospace cluster in the southern U.S., one that threatens to grab new business such as the Air Force tanker contract, and is not above trying to tempt away aviation business already located in Washington State.
The Alabama state delegation in Paris for the show numbered more than 100.
For Washington state, Bill King, Europe program manager for the Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development, led a small delegation of a dozen private companies and state organizations.
Still, said King, "This is twice what we've ever been able to do in the past."
Asked about the stark contrast in marketing power, King said an expensive reception "may not be the perfect solution" for promoting the state. His delegation's one-on-one business meetings have gone well, he said.
At the Washington state stand in one of the display halls Thursday, an impressive Unmanned Aerial Vehicle made by Boeing-owned Insitu in Bingen, Wash., hung from the ceiling.
The stand also displayed drill bits and small precision-cut pieces of cast metal, the products of small companies such as SeaCast, which employs 250 people in Marysville.
SeaCast's director of business development, Ty Ueland, had his marketing style cramped when the airline on the flight over lost his baggage with all his business cards and promotional materials.
Otherwise, members of the Washington delegation seemed content with the opportunities to network at the Show.
"We're not taking orders but we're meeting the right people," said Scott Dean, vice president of operations at Pacifica Engineering in Mukilteo, near Boeing's widebody jet plant.
He said pre-arranged meetings and networking events are essential to a successful Air Show. The big companies have large so-called "chalets" along the edge of the Le Bourget airfield, but those are invitation-only sites and have security staff guarding every door.
"You can't get in," said Dean.
That makes it essential for representatives of smaller companies and state officials to arrange meetings in advance and to network at social events such as the one put on by the U.S. trade group, the Aerospace Industries Association.
The networking goes both ways.
Dean said Mississippi state officials approached him at the Show to lay out the incentives available if Pacifica opened a facility there.
"They are aggressively pursuing companies like ours," Dean said.
Pacifica designs aerospace tooling, the large fixtures that hold structures in place during manufacturing. Its 30-person workforce does the engineering design, but the tooling is actually built elsewhere -- so the company could be highly mobile.
Lately, as Boeing's development programs have been delayed and matured, tooling business from Boeing has dried up. So Pacifica this year made a successful push to win non-Boeing business, including a tooling contract for the new Honda business jet to be built in North Carolina.
"If we have work from Boeing Commercial Airplanes, it's very good to be in Washington," Dean said. "But if we have a contract with (Airbus parent) EADS or Hondajet... it makes sense to have a presence" elsewhere.
He said Boeing's globalization of the 787 supply chain has changed the business. Pacifica has been contacted to make tooling for a Chinese 787 supplier, but "competing for price is going to be tough."
The Washington delegation also included Cyndi Schaeffer, executive director of Edmonds Community College's business and training center.
Why is the community college in Paris? Just like her colleagues, Schaeffer is talking to companies, looking for business.
"We have customized training we deliver to aerospace companies," ranging from courses on leadership to aerospace-specific skills such as drilling composite materials, said Schaeffer.
She said the college sends trainers out to provide companies on-site courses.
That includes company facilities in other states, including Arizona, Florida, Massachusetts and New Mexico. Schaeffer said about 10 percent of the training requests are from outside Washington state.
This year in Paris, has she had any promising inquiries from outside Washington?
Yes, she said. Among others, an aerospace company in Florida needs some training.
Dominic Gates: 206-464-2963 or [email protected]
