WHITEHALL - Given the state of manufacturing in Michigan, this has to be considered good news. Eighty workers are going to be hired at Alcoa-Howmet Castings in Whitehall when full production ramps up by 2007 on the Airbus A380 contract. They will be making engine turbine blades for the jetliner.

And those employees, once they are hired, will have job security that would seem to be unprecedented in the early years of the 21st century. They, and those who follow them, will be working on the Airbus contract for the next 20, 30, maybe even 40 years according to Alcoa-Howmet Castings Aerospace Sector Vice President Michael Pepper.

The development work began about18 months ago. Parts for the A380 are already being produced and delivered. The A380 is scheduled to fly for the first time at the Paris Air Show next year. "The first revenue airplane is the year after that," he said. "We will begin to ramp up production from there. By 2007-2008 we should be at full-rate production on the A380."

About half of the engine blades that will be produced in Whitehall at full-rate production will go into new engines. The other 50 percent will be spare parts.

"This business is the longest lifecycle business that I have ever been a part of," Pepper told MiBiz. "We make parts today for engines that were designed, developed and started flying in the early 60s. We still are making parts for those turbines today. So looking ahead to 30 or 40 years of production on the A380 is absolutely realistic."

Airbus executives were part of the celebratory luncheon Oct. 18 along with representatives of The Engine Alliance and Rolls Royce, companies to which Alcoa will be supplying engine components for the A380.

Airbus North America Chairman Allan McArtor addressed the unusual promise of security offered by working on the new contract. "Many of you will retire building the A380 as will any new hires coming on board today."

Alcoa-Howmet Castings in Whitehall earned the contract for the A380, according to McArtor because "it is a center of manufacturing excellence that is unmatched in the aerospace industry. That is what brings us here to partner with you."

The assurance of new jobs and continuing work at the Alcoa-Howmet Castings facility is the latest positive announcement in what has been a very good year. More than 300 employees have been hired at the facility in 2004. The multiplier effect of those new jobs is one that cannot be ignored.

Whitehall Mayor Emery "Mac" Hatch opened the luncheon by addressing the importance of Alcoa-Howmet to his city. "Alcoa-Howmet is Whitehall," said Hatch. "You are our economic base." Montague Mayor Henry Roesler Jr. added his voice to that chorus. He told the audience, "You are what makes this area viable."

Airbus, headquartered in France, has manufacturing operations in France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain and the United States. Despite its ability to manufacture components and subsystems around the world, 50 percent of the A380s components and subsystems will be made in the United States.

"While outsourcing is an issue for so many today, we are delighted to be among the companies that are ‘in-sourcing’ high technology jobs," said McArtor. In fact, Airbus spends more than $5 billion annually in the United States. That equates to around $15 million a day. "And we thank you for that," said U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra during the luncheon.

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This article appeared in the November 1, 2004 issue of MiBiz, read by upper management executives in West and Southwest Michigan. Print subscriptions are free to qualified individuals who are employed in West and Southwest Michigan. For further information about MiBiz Network, visit www.mibiz.com.