Boeing's Dreamliner Has Positive Economic Effect On Contractor

Greene County, NY, particularly the town of Coxsackie, may be seeing a future down-tick in its unemployment rate with DynaBil Industries' plans to add 137 people to its 200 employee workforce over the next five years, according to the(Albany) Business Review.

The company's $10 million expansion plans also include adding 50,000-square feet of building space to its 65,000-square foot manufacturing facility, according to the company. DynaBil has a payroll of $8 million, with a current workforce up from 150 just a year ago.

The secret to this expansion? One word: Dreamliner.

DynaBil has contracts to supply parts for Boeing's 787 "Dreamliner," as well as for the Blackhawk helicopter, the military's workhorse in Iraq and Afghanistan, said DynaBil President Hugh Quigley.

"We've been at it for 30 years now and it is the best cycle I've ever seen," Quigley said.

Each Dreamliner that Boeing sells includes $150,000 worth of titanium parts built by the Coxsackie aerospace company. DynaBil hopes to increase that amount to $200,000, said Quigley.

The 787 is the first aircraft constructed mainly of composite materials, which will account for 50 percent of the construction by weight. Because composite materials react chemically with aluminum, metal parts in the plane are being constructed of titanium when they come in contact with composites, Quigley explained.

DynaBil's specialty is making titanium parts; about 15 percent of the Dreamliner parts are aluminum.

"If they (Boeing) deliver 10 airplanes a month, that is $2 million a month (to DynaBil), $24 million a year" Quigley said.

DynaBil's sales reached $26 million in 2006 and Quigley hopes they will be at $35 million for 2007.

"DynaBil hit a really nice sweet spot and we are really busy," Quigley said.

The company also makes more than 100 parts for the UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter, used by the military to transport troops around Iraq and Afghanistan.

 The Army, with 1,500 of the aircraft in its fleet, put 240,000 flight hours on its Iraq-based helicopters in 2005. The number of flight hours increased to 334,000 in 2006, and is expected to hit 400,000 hours in 2007.

The increased use of the Sikorsky-built Blackhawk means more wear-and-tear on parts and more work for DynaBil, Quigley said. Sikorsky is also building 120 new UH-60s this year.

DynaBil has developed a way to make the helicopter less vulnerable to attack from heat-seeking, shoulder-fired, anti-aircraft weapons with a new exhaust pipe that directs exhaust from the Blackhawk's turbine engines upwards into the downwash from the rotor blades.

Two prototypes are being tested by the Army now. "It would blow us off the map if they decided to replace all the exhausts," Quigley said.

DynaBil also makes parts for Lockheed Martin, Vought Aircraft, Bombardier, Bell Canada, Israel Aircraft Industries, and Spirit Aerosystems.

Because DynaBil is located in an Empire Zone — state-designated areas that qualify included companies for certain benefits - DynaBil is eligible for $6 million in tax credits, incentives, and other benefits over the next 10 years, according to the Greene County Department of Planning and Economic Development.

The physical expansion of the DynaBil plant will occur gradually over the next five years. The company may grow into a nearby building, as well as build new space, Quigley said. 

DynaBil Industries, founded in 1977, started from meager beginnings, renting a local garage of about 2,000 square feet.

FMI: www.dynabil.com, www.boeing.com/commercial/787family, www.sikorsky.com