Eclipse Aviation Continues To Expand Factory Service Center
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Eclipse Aviation,
manufacturer of the revolutionary Eclipse 500 very light jet (VLJ),
and the Gainesville-Alachua County Regional Airport Authority held
a groundbreaking ceremony today to begin construction of the
Eclipse Aviation factory service center in Gainesville, Florida.
The Gainesville facility will be part of a network of seven U.S.
Factory Service Centers dedicated to Eclipse 500 maintenance and
support.
"We are excited to start building our first facility outside
Albuquerque. Gainesville and the state of Florida have given
tremendous support that will allow us to construct a
state-of-the-art factory service center to serve all of our Eclipse
500 customers including DayJet in the southeast United States,"
said Eclipse Aviation's vice president of Sales and Product
Support, Michael McConnell. "We look forward to operating out of
the Gainesville Regional Airport and bringing economic growth to a
business friendly state like Florida."
McConnell was joined by the Mayor of Gainesville, Pegeen
Hanrahan, Florida State Representative Ed Jennings, and Airport
Authority Chair Jim Stringfellow.
"Having Eclipse Aviation come into our community brings such
great economic opportunities for East Gainesville. This kind of
growth and development is just what East Gainesville needs," said
Stringfellow.
Eclipse Aviation Gainesville Factory Service Center This new
61,000 square-foot facility will be complete in early 2007 and will
initially house 15 Eclipse employees, with the ability to expand to
over 160. The factory service center will consist of 45,000
square-feet of hangar space that can hold up to 12 Eclipse 500
aircraft at a time.
Additional support areas include a 10,800 square-foot maintenance
section and a 5,400 square-foot customer service area. The facility
will accommodate multiple shift operations. Eclipse technicians at
this facility will be able to accomplish all Eclipse 500 scheduled
and unscheduled maintenance, including work on the Pratt &
Whitney Canada PW610F engines.
"This company with customers all over the world will establish
Gainesville Regional Airport Authority as an aviation hub of North
Central Florida and have an economic ripple effect throughout our
entire region. We are investing in technology and infrastructure
for decades to come," said State Representative Jennings.
The $11.2 million construction project was awarded to Scherer
Construction & Engineering of Gainesville, Fla. The project
will receive almost 50 percent of the funding from the Florida
Department of Transportation's (FDOT) Aviation Work Program. The
balance of the project will be financed by Compass Bank of
Gainesville.
"It's so exciting that the Eclipse Aviation factory service
center will be in Gainesville. They are on the cutting-edge of the
aviation industry and we are thrilled that they are bringing new
jobs and investment to Gainesville," said Mayor Hanrahan.
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