HUGH MCATEAR
Northern Ireland has always enjoyed a reputation in the industrial and aerospace business beyond what its relatively small size may have seemed to warrant.
Flying the flag for the industry is the Northern Ireland Aerospace Consortium (NIAC).
Formed just four years ago, it represents an industry with a total annual turnover of £700 million last year and a direct workforce of 9,000.
NIAC chairman Dr Paul Madden says a 2.8 multiple factor applied to the employment tally brings the direct and indirect employment level to around 25,000.
Dr Madden enjoys a dual responsibility – he is also engineering centre manager with TRW Aeronautical Systems, one of the dozen companies represented under the NIAC umbrella at Farnborough.
The NIAC attended its first show at Farnborough two years ago and now counts it as a regular event, along with the Paris airshow, which it attended last year.
Dr Madden says: "We represent almost 100% of the industry and there is a clear commitment from our members to make the necessary investments to enhance our position in the global market."
He concedes there is a demand to bring new blood into the business. Plans are in place to organise career promotions in schools.
Dr Madden adds: "The IT sector has attracted a lot of talent so we are trying to highlight the fact there are other opportunities in the aerospace sector where an engineering career has moves beyond the traditional perception of the business drawn from the heavy engineering business.
"We have a strategic three-year plan which will also look at expanding our participation at other international aerospace exhibitions."
Source: Flight Daily News