Market leading aerospace firm is really taking off The Prestwick- based firm now boasts 300 employees and an ever expanding client base
Collins Aerospace is the market leader in the design, manufacture and maintenance of complex aircraft nacelle systems, which are the aerodynamic structures that hold and attach jet engines to airplanes.
The company supports customers from 15 worldwide locations, eight of which, including Prestwick specialize in the maintenance, repair and overhaul of those nacelles – streamlined casings.
“The nacelle is an incredible technical challenge” explains Andy Hodge, General Manager of Collins Aerospace, Prestwick Service Centre.
“It has to be durable enough to operate next to the aircraft engine, withstanding vibration and extremes of heat and cold, while being lightweight to support aircraft fuel efficiency and reduced emissions.
“Airport noise regulations also mean that the nacelle has to provide aircraft noise reduction through the use of acoustic technologies.”
This wide range of technical requirements mean that the Collins Prestwick team constantly faces a range of different challenges.
“Prestwick is the engineering headquarters for customers in the Europe, Africa and Middle East region,” said Hodge.
“We support planned maintenance needs but in some cases where components are removed for unscheduled repair, the Prestwick team has to react by designing and implementing complex technical fixes inside short periods of time.”
The challenge, however, does not stop at a technical level, with Prestwick supporting aircraft from more than 50 airlines.
“Our airline customers operate on a 24/ 7 basis and our business is scaled to meet this demand with commercial teams and technicians often working from customer locations to provide worldclass service.”
While the Prestwick Service Centre now encompasses over 250,000 square feet of workspace, more than three times larger than the pitch at Hampden Park – its origin was more humble.
“When our first Prestwick base was established in 1997, the facility was a small hangar rented from British Aerospace and staffed by a team of 20 people,” said Hodge. “Since then we’ve enjoyed continual growth and marked some major milestones.
“We moved to our current purpose- built facility in 2004, then due to continued rapid growth we doubled the size of the building in 2008 to cope with demand.
“Last year we exceeded 300 employees on- site for the first time.”
While much of Prestwick Service Centre’s success has been based on supporting the maintenance needs of aircraft currently in use by the major airlines, Hodge is also focused on future growth.
“Prestwick has made significant investment to ensure that we can support the next generation of aircraft entering service.
“We now boast one of the largest aerospace autoclaves in Europe to support the massive next- generation nacelles on the latest aircraft from Boeing and Airbus, and have been active in providing high levels of staff training.
“Research and development projects also play a major role in our success, ensuring that our team works in an efficient, innovative and safe manner.
“Last year we celebrated 22 years of Collins Aerospace Prestwick Service Centre and this year we signed a new contract with a major customer that runs to the year 2044,” concluded Hodge.
“In such a dynamic industry as aerospace, this is unprecedented.
“It’s a clear vote of confidence in the capabilities of our people, our investment in the future and the longevity of our Prestwick facility.”
“Our success is a reflection of our people.
“Our culture is more than a collection of words.
“It is who we are and how we work.
“This, in alignment with our purpose and values, makes Collins Aerospace an amazing place to work.”
The Collins Aerospace Prestwick Service Centre is currently recruiting for a range of positions.
If you want to take your career higher, visit the careers page at www. jobs. collinsaerospace. com for a variety of exciting roles.
We now boast one of the largest aerospace autoclaves in Europe Andy Hodge