Manitoba Aerospace Week

Where vision takes flight << continued from previous page as the mechanically-designed deployable booms. CASSIOPE presently resides at Vandenberg Air Force Base where it is being prepared for launch this month on a Falcon 9 launch vehicle. Magellan Aerospace was an innovator in Canada's space industry, daring to enter into the unknown more than 50 years ago when space exploration was in its infancy. The Black Brant rocket was one of Canada's first space contributions to the world, and a proud part of Magellan's past that has developed into Magellan's thriving space business today. In 2012, the company celebrated the 50th anniversary of the first launch of a Magellan-built Black Brant rocket and commemorated the event by providing a full-scale Black Brant 5C rocket to the Manitoba Museum for the enjoyment of museum patrons and to showcase one of Manitoba's significant contributions to the field of rocketry and space science. This year Magellan will celebrate a special milestone at its propellant plant in Stony Mountain. The Rockwood Propellant Plant is holding a celebration to commemorate the 50th anniversary on Sept. 19. Rockwood is the only privatelyowned propellant plant in the world and has manufactured solid rocket propellant used to power a variety of rockets including the Black Brant, CRV7 and Excalibur. Over the course of 50 years, the Rockwood Propellant Plant has distributed products to customers around the world as well as to NASA, CSA, and the Department of National Defence. Over 150 people have been invited to attend the celebration and to witness the unveiling of a commemorative plaque. "This milestone at our Rockwood plant is a testament to the hard work and dedication our employees have shown over the past 50 years," said Boitson. "This celebration offers the opportunity to acknowledge the important contributions the propellant plant has made to Magellan and to the history of rocketry in Canada." Magellan Winnipeg's largely Manitobagrown engineering team is the foundation of Magellan's space business and has much to celebrate in 2013. Magellan has a longstanding relationship with our local universities and colleges and offers exciting opportunities to graduates transitioning into the professional world. Competitive Edge program helps aerospace companies hone performance I By Holli Moncrieff For the Free Press f you want to improve your performance, you have to compete against the best. It's a principle that has long been accepted by world-class athletes, and now it's being applied to Manitoba's aerospace suppliers. Manitoba's Competitive Edge Supplier Development Program (CESD) was adapted from a similar program created by the North West Aerospace Alliance in England. CESD identifies 11 business processes that are critical to managing a business and becoming an effective and positive supplier for Original Equipment Manufacturers and/or Tier 1 companies. Each company is ranked on how well they are currently handling the 11 processes. Rankings range from learner to world-class. Companies that participate in the program receive mentorship, training, and a detailed picture of exactly where they stand compared to the top companies in the industry. "This program was the main conduit for us to start aligning ourselves with the larger companies and get ourselves up to world-class status," said Mike Easton, president and CEO of Argus Industries. "As a budding aerospace company, we're competing with Boeing. It's hard to get noticed. This is a great way to get relationships going and start speaking the same language." The Manitoba Aerospace Association implemented the program about four and a half years ago. With almost 30 per cent of Manitoba Aerospace member companies enrolled, the program is already showing great success, says John Kliewer, Human Resources Development Officer for Manitoba Aerospace Human Resources Council. "All the companies have advanced. We've seen gains of five to seven points up to 18," he said. "They've moved from what we call Learners to Performers or Contenders." Each company is kept on track with quarterly steering committee reports, along with annual audits and benchmarking sessions. "Benchmarking is a needs analysis – here's what the strengths of your business are and here is what needs improvement," explained Kliewer. "The accountability provides the motivational factor." Easton has seen his company's delivery performance climb from 80 per cent to between 98-99 per cent. "On 1,000 orders a month, that's a pretty good delivery rate. We've landed contracts we never would have been considered for if we weren't in this program," he said. Participating in the program helped Enduron identify opportunities to grow their business. Enduron, a sheet metal company that works on detail parts, will be moving into the hydraulic and pressure tube business as well. "We had an inkling that this market was out there, and we're really excited. This is a new direction for us," said Richard Klassen, Enduron President. "We're looking forward to the next benchmarking." Klassen was eager to participate in the program to resolve long-standing problems and learn to communicate more effectively as an organization. "The program had been pretty carefully thought-out. They had answers to just about all of our questions," he said. "It solved problems that had been lingering around here a long time, and it helped us understand the keys to our success. It opened up communication and has given us a common language." Standard Manufacturers joined the program just over two years ago. Even though Standard is far from a new company – they've been in business for Above: Michael Easton from Argus Industries, Kim Gretschmann from Standard Manufacturers. Photos by Darcy Finley for the Winnipeg Free Press over 30 years – Kim Gretschmann, VP of Operations, says it was helpful to learn where they stand in the industry. "It's a relatively fast track to understanding where you are and where you want to be. It gives you training to get everyone on the same page right away – it's a good roadmap for success," she said, adding that the mentorship component was particularly helpful. "One of the biggest things the program did was help us achieve uniformity across the company. Everyone's in the know on where it is we want to be so we can move forward as a team. Our reactivity is less, and people are more focussed." Micropilot also joined the program two years ago. Micropilot has been in business for 19 years and has 20 employees. "It's important to have some system of assessing your performance. It made a lot of our processes much more rigorous and disciplined," said Howard Loewen, President of Micropilot, who has noticed his staff takes more ownership of their work and has become more involved in decision-making. "For a relatively modest expenditure, you get the benefit of a lot of smart people. A new set of eyes helps you see things in a different light." To learn more about the CESD Program contact the Manitoba Aerospace Human Resources Council at 204-272-2952 or visit www.manitoba-aerospace.mb.ca. Manitoba Aerospace Week September 9 - 13, 2013 13

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