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AIA Members Seek Federal Policies To Bolster U.S. Aerospace Competitiveness

FT. LAUDERDALE, FL., August 21-- At a roundtable discussion here this week, aerospace manufacturers asked the Commerce Department and a Florida Congressman to press for government policies that would help aerospace manufacturers to be more competitive globally. The local manufacturers did not seek any form of protectionism but asked Linda Conlin, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Trade Development, Joe Bogosian, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Transportation and Machinery, and Rep. Clay Shaw (R-FL) to aggressively pursue policy that will strengthen the U.S. industrial base.

The discussion was one of a series planned by the Commerce Department for cities around the country to hear the concerns of manufacturers-in this case, aerospace manufacturers-and determine what can be done to ensure that American manufacturing will successfully compete in the global economy.

Bill Lewandowski, AIA's Vice President of Supplier Management, said industry participants on the panel included two representatives from AIA member companies: J. Daniel Becker, Boeing Commercial Airplanes, and Jim Roubian, Heico-LPI Corporation, and two representatives from associate member companies; Jim Swanson, Swanson's Tool Company, and Sam Plummer, Gear Software.

Lewandowski said the manufacturers were emphatic that aerospace suppliers could compete against the lower labor costs of third world manufacturers if the U.S. government helped fund research and development for new technologies that could be applied down the chain to the supplier base. The manufacturers also discussed the pressing need to reform the State Department's antiquated system of export controls licensing and they gave examples of environmental rules that were unfairly administered. They also pushed hard for the government's continued support of the Export Import Bank, saying that the government guarantees for loans granted by the bank helped them compete against overseas competitors.

Lewandowski told the panel that aerospace manufacturing is the largest net exporter of any industry sector of the U.S., with a net trade balance in 2002 of $30 billion. This subject is critical, he said, since the aerospace industry directly and indirectly supports 11 million jobs, generating economic activity equal to nearly 15 percent of the gross domestic output. In addition, he said, the aerospace industry is a significant contributor to our national security. He also noted that aerospace workforce reductions have experienced an accelerated decline-as of June, 2003, aerospace employment fell to 578,000-the lowest level in 50 years.

P.A. Rel 2003-26

08.21.03

-AIA-

Contact: Matt Grimison, AIA
(703) 358-1076
matt.grimison@aia-aerospace.org