B/E Aerospace and Goodrich have joined the list of aerospace companies making major cuts in workforce and facilities as a result of the 11 September attacks. The lay-offs come amid worsening results across the sector.
Goodrich is to eliminate around 2,400 jobs and to close around 16 facilities by the end of the first quarter of next year, which is expected to save $125 million annually.
The company expects special charges over the next two quarters of $110-130 million.
Goodrich - which reported third quarter sales up 13% to $1.1 billion, and net profit of $89.1 million - says Boeing's evaluation of the 717's future could cause it to take further charges to cover non-recurring engineering costs and inventory related to the twinjet.
B/E Aerospace, the Florida-based aircraft interiors company, will lay off around 1,000 staff, or 20% of its workforce, and close five of its 11 production facilities.
The company has lowered its second-half sales forecast from $450 million to $340 million, after reporting a $356 million turnover in the first six months of the year.
B/E Aerospace says that it will break even on net earnings, excluding planned charges associated with restructuring and writing down assets, in the second half ending February.
Honeywell reported a third quarter loss of $308 million, primarily due to a $668 million charge taken following the failed merger with General Electric. Before 11 September, however, Honeywell says that it had double-digit growth in commercial air transport and regional original equipment sales.
Elsewhere, Textron posted a third-quarter net loss of $330 million as the result of falling business and the additional cost of restructuring, which includes another 2,500 job cuts on top of the 5,000 announced earlier in the year.
But Northrop Grumman is bucking the trend. It forecasts 2001 sales of around $13 billion, growing to around $16 billion next year, following third-quarter earnings of $161 million, up 58% on last year.
The manufacturer's results were boosted by US Defense Department approval for its proposed Newport News Shipbuilding take-over, growing defence sales and the completion of its Litton acquisition.
The Newport News Shipbuilding acquisition, expected to be completed "within a month", makes it the sole US maker of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers.
Sales for the quarter more than doubled to $3.6 billion, mostly due to the Litton takeover and growth in the Electronic Systems and Information Technology (formerly Logicon) businesses.
Source: Flight International
