Expansion Possibilities Great for Rockford Aerospace Industry
AAR facility and Rock Valley College give industry a lot of room to grow
Kaney Aerospace’s new 27,000 square foot facility allows the 9 year old company to meet their customers manufacturing and engineering needs under the same roof. Kaney's expansion is a prime example of the growth the aerospace industry is seeing here in Rockford, and officials say when you throw in the new AAR facility being built at the airport, the opportunities are endless.
"The marriage of our airport facility, the marriage with heavy maintenance of aircraft, and the marriage of putting all that together with the Rock Valley College decision to greatly expand and improve their airframe and power plant mechanics school is a match made in heaven," Jeffery Kaney, CEO of Kaney Aerospace said.
The AAR facility will create about 550 new jobs according to the Rockford Area Economic Development Council, something Kaney says just adds to the great foundation of work already done in the industry in Rockford.
"The foundation has been built from the turn of the century all the way into present day, means that these jobs are good paying jobs that are going to be around for a long time and that have the opportunity to expand." An expansion Kaney believes is only the beginning for the forest city.
"It just it comes from the intentionality of our community going out and saying 'let’s promote the aerospace industry here in Rockford,'” Kaney added. “(And) I’ve seen, we're seeing the fruits of our labor and we're not done yet."