Boeing has broken ground on the site of the future Boeing Sheffield facility, where the company will make components from local materials for Boeing aircraft.
The new fabrication facility, the result of an investment of more than £20 million, is part of a broader plan by the company to ‘vertically integrate and begin in-house manufacturing of key actuation components and systems’ in the US and the UK to enhance production efficiency and reduce cost in its supply chain.
The new UK facility, Boeing Sheffield, will manufacture spur gears, shafts and housings from materials that are sourced in the UK in the giants first manufacturing facility in Europe, supporting global growth and competitiveness for the world’s largest aerospace company and enabling access to UK talent and capability. Boeing Commercial Airplanes facility in Portland, Oregon, US, will also produce actuators and assemble actuation systems for these models as a new work statement.
Sir Michael Arthur, president of Boeing Europe said:
“The UK provides Boeing with the talent and infrastructure we need to grow and maintain a high level of productivity and quality to meet our significant order book. We are proud to expand our relationship with the UK still further with Boeing Sheffield.
Our decision to start manufacturing high-value components in the UK is a step-change in our engagement and a further example of Boeing’s commitment to grow here, supporting the UK’s long-term prosperity.”
Boeing Sheffield will employ approximately 30 people, including 18 apprentices, when it opens in 2018 as part of BCA’s Fabrication operations and will work closely with Boeing Portland for complex machining, gear systems and flight controls.
The company’s expenditure with the UK aerospace industry in 2016 was £2.1 billion and the company supports an estimated 16,500 jobs in the UK supply chain.
A sop to UK after buying nine P-8s for $3.2+ billion, 100% US content.
LM offered a MPA based on the C-130 with 80% UK content.
Has nothing to do with that at all
The UK has huge expertise in aerospace and Boeings presence in Sheffield is not new. They have been involved in Advanced manufacturing for years there.
This is a result of the local talent being nurtured through various programs
Bursting with good news today. Good to see. Thanks.
Good see Boeing is trying to kill off competition to the 737MAX, Boeing’s cash cow, the Bombardier Aerospace CS airliners, whose NI ~ 3,500 employees make the CFRP wings.
Boeing want US to impose a US 219% tariff on the 75 Bombardier CS100 a/c ordered by Delta.
You can see what a great friend to the UK Boeing is. The only pressure Boeing understand is profits.
If the UK Goverment had any backbone they would cancel the order for the Boeing P-8.
Nick – well I think we can safely assume Canada will not be buying F-18s or F-35s now and they have already cancelled interest in the P-8 Poseidon. They are not messing about. This is just dumb short sighted pork barrel US politics and we are caught as collateral damage. I was pleased to see TM stand with Trudeau over this but not surprised at the outcome. Having said that this is a formal ‘request’ and not a decision. That will come in 2018.
We should not be surprised as the USA did this to Airbus over the KC-46 with Boeing the beneficiary and it did it to Westland over the 23 Merlins ordered for ‘Marine One’ with again Boeing (through owning Sikorsky) being the beneficiary. Again.
So maybe as you say we do need to point out to Boeing that Canada shares our Monarchy, they are part of the Commonwealth and have been our longest and greatest ally so when you harm them you harm us. A sort of NATO concept. We should now put a ‘hold’ on the P-8A Poseidons and research what I believe we should have done before and that is fit our own kit (as LM wanted to do) into an A320 (where we make the wings and landing gear etc) or a CS300 where we also make the wings and fuselage. The latter would be a rather pointed finger in their corporate eye and I suspect we could get aircraft a bit quicker as well. Especially if we attach a Typhoon order to be partly assembled in Canada with it. $2.2 Bn is a big deal even for Boeing.
The USA is gradually detaching itself from reality and overly keen to use protectionist moves and corporate muscle to bully others. We must not give in to bullies even if it comes with a cost because to not stand up will cost us more.
It’s Boeing playing hardball after Bombardier. They make a lot of money from HMG this is there way of making sure it stays that way.
Its just being reported that both Defence Secretary Fallon and PM Theresa May have signalled clearly to Boeing and the US Administration that what they are doing regarding Bombardier will jeopardise our Defence spending with them. Boeing are currently building 50 new, and re-manufacturing a further 38, Apache helicopters, 9 new Poseidon aircraft and are in line for new Chinook orders. Current order book is worth over £5 Bn
We cannot stand by and leave Canada alone and we need to use what muscle we have to protect UK (and Canadian) jobs from Boeing’s aggression. It is especially daft as the row erupted over a Delta Airlines order for the Bombardier aircraft while Boeing don’t even make an aircraft of that size and were not in contention.