Reims Aerospace drops staff takeover plan
Strategy Reims Aerospace employees have been forced to abandon their plan to take over the troubled business, after failing to raise the necessary €3 million ($4 million) funding. Its management team is now awaiting local authority approval for a recovery plan it put together with the help of its new shareholder, French financial group Green Recovery. President Gérard Russo says the local commercial court assessing the plan will announce its decision on 19 December, but "has already formed a favourable opinion of the plan". Reims Aerospace, which is in administration, designs and manufactures aerospace assemblies, and counts Airbus and Dassault among its customers. It posted a turnover of €18.6 million last year.
Aeroconseil ditches training business
Divestment Toulouse-based Aeroconseil is selling its ailing ESMA training division to a Chinese investor after two years of attempting a turnaround. "The development strategy focusing on international airlines did not yield sufficiently tangible results to make the outlook any more favourable," says Aeroconseil, which continues to target the Chinese market. The company says a partnership agreement with the investor will allow its ATS International business division to gain access to the Chinese air transport technical services market.
Precision Castparts adds capacity
Acquisition US-based castings and forgings specialist Precision Castparts (PCC) is acquiring privately owned GSC Foundries (GSC), which makes aluminium and steel castings, for an undisclosed sum. The acquisition is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2007, and will give an immediate boost to PCC's earnings. PCC chairman and chief executive Mark Donegan says GSC "will nicely complement our existing aluminium casting operations, enabling us to produce larger components and extend our market reach".
Irkut invests in Airbus/EADS certification
Strategy Irkut is investing $100 million of its own funds into modernising and renovating manufacturing facilities at its main production site, IAZ in Irkutsk, to meet EADS/Airbus supplier standards and target more Airbus programmes. Last year, it won a $200 million order for the supply of components for the A320 family. First deliveries were planned for this year, but have been postponed until mid-2007, says Irkut vice-president Vladimir Sautov. Irkut decided on the investment "to be able to join the... community of parts suppliers to the very popular A320 family, and also A330/A340 and A380 in the future", Sautov says. He adds that talks have begun with Boeing "on their initiative". The US manufacturer is primarily interested in titanium production for the 787, while Airbus orders are limited to aluminium parts.
US aerospace to beat revenue targets
Revenues US aerospace is set to generate $200 billion in revenue in 2008, two years earlier than previously estimated, according to Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) president and chief executive John Douglass. The prediction is based on a strong 2006 revenue estimate of $184 billion, which will be the third consecutive record year if it is met, and a 2007 prediction of $195 billion. AIA's 2006 estimate "would have been even bigger if Airbus hadn't stumbled on A380 and delayed the A350", says Douglass, noting the strong presence of US suppliers in both programmes.
Source: Flight International
