ASAP Fasteners Blog

The Harris Corporation is an international communications and information technology company. They got their start in 1895 when brothers Alfred and Charles Harris developed a revolutionary automatic sheet feeding printing press. After merging with Radiation, Inc. in 1967 the company began developing antenna and integrated circuits to be used in the space race. In 1974 the name was changed from Harris Automatic Press Company to Harris Corporation. The headquarters was also moved from Cleveland to Melbourne Florida. Today the company earns roughly $5 billion in annual revenue and employees over 14,000 employees.

Just this year in 2014, Meggitt PLC, a British aerospace business, was awarded a contract to supply their newest advanced braking and monitoring system for the Gulfstream G500 and G600, the staple of the Gulfstream aircraft portfolio. The multi-million dollar contract for the business jets stipulates that Meggitt provide advanced wheels and compact carbon brakes. This new technology features carbon composite heatsink material and anti-oxidant coating that will optimize the weight and reliability of the brakes. Both the G500 and G600, which boast a range of 5,000 to 6,200 nautical miles and a max operating speed of Mach 0.925, can attribute their performance to Meggitt, which is supplying brake-by-wire control systems and high performance braking for both aircraft as opposed to conventional pedal braking.

In August of 2013, Rockwell Collins agreed to acquire Arinc, a manufacturer of commercial flight systems, for $1.39 billion. The announced deal came out a time when the US government is make drastic budget cuts in defense spending, a move which has affected many of the largest US defense contractors. The acquisition is intended to subsidize the losses that Rockwell Collins was taking from budget cuts by moving its business away from government work and into commercial work. The move will also greatly augment the company’s aviation information management offerings. By the year 2014, commercial business is expected to total 54% of Rockwell Collin’s total business.

Spirit Aero Systems Holdings Inc., one of Boeing’s major suppliers and also a first-tier aero structures manufacturer, just reported higher-than-anticipated quarterly profit. Thanks to higher margins, the company was able to raise its full-year profit forecast once again as major customers and aircraft manufacturers around the world are increasing production. Shares of Spirit Aero Systems rose by 5% and company revenue rose by 12.6% percent, bringing total revenue to $1.69 billion in the third quarter. Spirit shares also rose to $3.35-$3.45 per share from $2.90-$3.05 per share, with total estimated revenue increased to $6.8-$6.9 billion

Founded in 1927 and headquartered in Vero Beach Florida, Piper Aircraft, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of general aviation aircraft. Piper Aircraft is the only general aviation manufacturer to offer a complete line of aircraft worldwide. They offer modern, efficient, reliable, and time-tested aircraft from single-engines up to six-place turboprop aircraft. Piper Aircraft is owned by Brunei Ministry of France and is a member of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association. Piper Aircraft aviators are single and twin engine aircraft. The models that Piper offers include M-Class, Twin Class, and Trainer Class. The single-engine M-Class series such as the Meridian, Mirage and Matrix offers individuals and businesses elegant performance and value.

In February of 2014, Enstrom Helicopter unveiled its newest product on opening day of the Heli-Expo 2014. The TH-180, which is a low-cost scaled-down version of the company’s currently widely-used FX-280 three-seater, will launch with an approximate price tag of $365,000. This two-seat, piston-powered training aircraft is powered by a 210-hp Lycoming HIO-390 engine and is expected to incure costs of only $175 per hour to operate while burning less than 12 gph of fuel.The aircraft will also feature a Lycoming engine governor as well as an electric clutch switch. Compared with the larger and more expensive FX-280 model, the TH-180 boasts more versatile landing gear and a frame that is 500 pounds lighter, amounting to about $2,250 total pounds in gross weight.

Cessna Aircraft, a general aviation and aircraft manufacturing corporation, has been making upgrades as of late to its newest aircraft, the Cessna Latitude. Improvements of 370 km in range as well as a 9% reduction in take-off roll for the Citation Latitude have contributed to its edge over the next closest competitor, the Embraer 450. Altogether, this midsize jet boasts a range of 2,700nm and has a take-off distance of 1,118m. The announcement of these recent improvements mark the third range increase for these jets in the program’s history so far.

Founded in 1949 and headquartered in Lake Mills, Wisconsin, Hamlin Electronics is an independent company that specializes in sensor technology. They provide standard products and custom solutions to a wide range of leading global manufacturers in the automotive, industrial, and consumer product industries. Over the years, Hamlin has supplied prominent manufacturers including Delphi, Mercedes Benz, Siemens, Bosch, Temic, Autoliv and Visteon.

Founded in 1929, the Curtiss-Wright Corporation was created from the merger of the Curtiss Aeroplane & Motor Company and the Wright Aeronautical Corporation (of Orville and Wilbur Wright fame, the brothers responsible for the world’s first successful flight). Now a publically traded company of considerable breadth and resources, the Curtiss-Wright Corporation took in a fiscal year 2013 revenue of over $2.5 billion and is staffed by a workforce of 10,000.This year, effective as of January 2014, the company substantially consolidated and restructured their business segments.

Amphenol Corporation, a major manufacturer of electronics, fiber optic connectors, cables, and interconnect systems, saw stock prices reach a 52- week high of $100.26 as of August, 2014, due mainly in part to the announcement of a two-for-one stock split. This continued the uptrend in share prices that have been consistent for all of 2014 and on track with the long-term earnings growth expectation of 10.5%. The stock split will be paid out as a stock dividend, which each shareholder receiving an additional share.The move, which is strategic in nature, is expected to increase stock liquidity and lead to more trading. As of late the, the company has been reporting record earnings and revenues.

Faber Fluid Fittings is a division of Faber Enterprises, Inc., a manufacturer of aerospace components founded in 1947 and based in Canoga Park, California. Faber Enterprises is a subsidiary of SPS Technologies, LLC. Certified to AS 9100-B and ISO 9001: 2008, with NADCAP AC7112 accredited fluid systems, the company is a leading designer and manufacturer of aircraft fluid fittings (including AS, MS, NAS, and AN varieties).The company also produces fittings specific to standards of major aerospace companies including: BAC from Boeing, ABS and NSA from Airbus, and 7D from Boeing/McDonnell-Douglas. Used in hydraulic, fuel, pneumatic, and ECS applications, the company provides a broad range of both standard and proprietary fittings rated for operating in extreme pressures (over 5000 psi) and abundant vibration.

Established by Bruce Cheng in 1971, Delta Electronics Incorporated is a business segment of the electronics conglomerate Delta Group. Based in Taipei City, Taiwan, the company began mass producing power switches in 1983. Since then, the company has grown enormously with fiscal year 2013 revenues totaling approximately $6 billion. Originally a power supply and brushless DC fans manufacturing house, Delta has greatly broadened the scope of its endeavors to become a comprehensive solutions provider with activity in industrial automation, cloud computing, medical equipment, smart homes, electronic control, digital displays, lighting, and communication systems. With 54 research and development sites (which receive 5-6% of annual revenues), over 4,900 patents, and over 7,500 engineers, the company is dedicated to developing emerging energy-efficient technologies and renewables.

Airborn Incorporated designs and manufactures high-reliability electronic components including connectors; cable and electro-mechanical assemblies, flexible circuits, and power supplies and is a Tier 1 supplier to world-wide electronics OEMSs. Founded in 1958, Airborn got its start creating electronic connectors for military and aerospace uses, industries requiring resilient and dependable components.The privately-held, 100% employee-owned company has since expanded its product portfolio to include a full suite of electronic design and manufacturing capabilities for a range of applications including: the aerospace, avionics, storage and networking, defense, semiconductor instrumentation, medical, energy, industrial, and the automotive industries.

Many people will recognize the brand name Honeywell, both a household name for consumer products as well as well-respected name in the aerospace, engineering, and commercial industry by major corporations and world governments. However, it is a lesser-known fact that Honeywell was acquired by the huge multinational corporation Allied Signal in 1999 in a deal valued at around $13.8 billion. Allied Signal was an American aerospace, automotive, and engineering company that gained prominence in 1985 via the merger of Allied Corp and Signal Companies. These companies were primarily involved in the chemicals, aerospace, oil, gas, and automotive industries.

Grimes Manufacturing Company was one of the very first aircraft lighting design and manufacturing company. Now owned Honeywell Aerospace, Grimes Manufacturing Company continues to revolutionize the aerospace industry. This blog will give you some background information on the founder of Grimes Manufacturing Company.Warren G. Grimes is known in history as the "Father of the Aircraft Lighting Industry." In 1898, he was born in rural Montgomery County, a few miles from where the Wright Brothers had lived and worked to develop the very first flying aircraft. Living almost his entire childhood as an orphan, Warren Grimes did not have much adult guidance.

For over a hundred years, The Boeing Company has been a reliable and major contributor to the US military and many allies abroad. Boeing’s defense unit has been highly successful in the fighter jet market, particularly with their F/A-18 fighter jets that have been at the core of all US military branches for several decades. To this day, F-18 fighter jets are still being used in US airstrikes in northern Iraq and Syria against ISIS militants. Even the F-15 Strike Eagle, a multi-role strike fighter, has proven to be superior in both air-to-ground and air-to-air combat over the past three decades.This aircraft is also still in use in combat operations.However, Boeing is starting to be faced with the prospective of a much less brighter future than it has enjoyed for years. Production of the F-18 could end as early as 2017, with the production line of the F-15 also scheduled to end by 2019. In its place, the Pentagon has moved forward with development plans for their newest next-generation fighter jet, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, spearheaded by Lockheed Martin.

Headquartered in Fullerton, California, Aerofit, Inc. is an in-house designer and manufacturer of precision aerospace components specializing in high/low fluid pressure fittings and fasteners. Founded in 1968 by engineer Robert Peterjohn, Aerofit got its start by manufacturing metal port seal fittings for the McDonnell Douglas C-10 three-engine wide-body jetliner.In 2004, the Peterjohn estate sold the company to Jordan Law and Dave Werner, formerly of fellow Fullerton firm Kaynar Technologies. Today, Aerofit counts NASA, the U.S. Department of Defense, the Defense Logistics Agency, the Department of the Air Force, and the Department of the Navy among its client base. Aerofit, Inc. is a member of Consolidated Aerospace Manufacturing, LLC (CAM)—a group of manufacturers concentrating in producing fittings, hardware, and fastening components for the commercial and military aerospace markets. With CAM, Aerotek finds itself in good company. The member companies of Consolidated Aerospace Manufacturing, LLC are as follows: