The new Spirit AeroSystems composite manufacturing facility at Glasgow Prestwick was officialy opened by Scotland’s First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon MSP yesterday (28th February).
The facility will make Spoilers for the Airbus A320 family which will take advantage of advanced composite technology from Spirit’s research and development portfolio.
Scott McLarty, Spirit AeroSystem’s senior vice president of Airbus programs said: “This is the result of a three-year journey to secure production of the spoiler in the UK,” adding “This new facility allows us to utilize innovative technologies like the Spirit-developed Resin Transfer Molding (RTM) solution to better meet the needs of our customer.”
Opening the site, Ms Sturgeon said “Spirit AeroSystems exemplifies how investment in research and development drives innovation and creates high quality jobs.
“Today’s opening provides Prestwick with a world class composite manufacturing facility and increases Spirit’s ability to secure additional work on the next generation of greener aircraft. It is a tribute to the vision, expertise and hard work of everyone working at Spirit and a significant day for Ayrshire and Scottish manufacturing.”
Based in Wichita, Kanas Spirit AeroSystems designs and builds aerostructures for both commercial and defense customers across the globe. Aside from the US and UK, Spirit AeroSystems also has sites France and Malaysia.