Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group Chooses Abbotsford as North American Office Hub

Aug. 12, 2014
Canadian Customers to Benefit from Stronger In-Country Presence, Focus on Expanding Services, Strategic Partnerships

ABBOTSFORD BC - Marshall Aerospace Canada, part of Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group, has increased its in-country presence and strengthened its commitment to focused new business development in North America, with the purchase of a 4,343 ft2 building at Abbotsford Airport in British Columbia.

The building will become Marshall’s Canadian head office, out of which the company’s comprehensive Air, Land and Sea engineering and maintenance capabilities will operate to serve current and future military and civil contracts and customers. The Abbotsford base will also act as Marshall’s base for strategic growth in Canada and North America.

Marshall first established a presence in Canada in 2006 and has traditionally shared office space with partners in the sector to maximize work on collaborative contracts. With potential growth in Canada’s aerospace sector as a whole expected to surpass 2013’s direct revenues of $25.1B CDN, Marshall determined a formal presence was required to capitalize on new opportunities.

“Our business has grown substantially in Canada in recent years, because we deliver on our promises and our customers can trust us,” said Derek Gilmour, President of Marshall Aerospace Canada. “This investment is testament to the hard work of the team and I would like to thank our customers for their continued patronage and we are excited about the new projects that we will be working on that will represent the broader capabilities of Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group here in Canada.”

Steve Fitz-Gerald CEO of Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group, based in the UK, agrees: “This is an exciting chapter in our 105 year history and reflects our unwavering commitment to deliver innovative engineering solutions in Canada, a country with a rapidly growing aerospace market.”

Marshall Aerospace Canada is recognised for its ability to deliver on time, to specification and to cost. Its capabilities include engineering design, support engineering, the provision of personnel and managed work packages, and training. Marshall Aerospace Canada is a Department of National Defence (DND) accredited design and technical organisation, authorised to perform a variety of airworthiness functions on Canada’s legacy C130 Hercules fleet.

The new office in Abbotsford can accommodate up to 35 personnel, the majority of which will be engineers and technical staff. This office will further consolidate Marshall Aerospace Canada as an integral part of Marshall’s United Kingdom global operations, where Marshall is a Design Authority for a number of platforms, and has fully approved procedures and practices in place that allow the company to undertake and certify OEM-type work on a variety of components, systems and structures. Currently, Marshall supports more than 10 air forces around the world. 

Additional quotes:

Member of Parliament for Abbotsford, Ed Fast –

“I welcome Marshall Aerospace Canada’s decision to open their head office here in Abbotsford. Through the support of our government, Abbotsford has been able to attract world-class aerospace companies and new commercial opportunities. In turn, these investments are creating new jobs, economic growth and long-term prosperity in Abbotsford.”

B.C. Minister of Finance and Abbotsford West MLA Michael de Jong

“British Columbia’s government is committed to supporting the growth and expansion of the aerospace industry in our province, and Marshall Aerospace’s decision to locate its Canadian head office at Abbotsford Airport is both a welcome and exciting addition to that expansion. The fact that Marshall Aerospace chose Abbotsford as its North American headquarters is further confirmation that Abbotsford Airport is fast becoming renowned as an international centre for the development of aerospace technology.”

Abbotsford Mayor, Bruce Banman

“We are pleased to welcome Marshall Aerospace to their new facility at the Abbotsford International Airport,” said Abbotsford Mayor Bruce Banman. “City Council is committed to supporting the growth of the aerospace industry in Abbotsford and seeing an international player like Marshall put down roots here will surely enhance the success of our local industry.

Abbotsford Airport Authority Chair, Dave Holmberg –

“We are very excited to have Marshall Aerospace on board, they have some great plans for future development and their business goals and vision align well with the Abbotsford Airport and the Province of BC.  We know Marshall Aerospace will be a great addition to the expanding aerospace industry in our community and province.”