OTTAWA – On a press conference at 10am on the first day of this year CANSEC at the EY Center, Boeing announced the completion of a US$749 million Industrial and Regional Benefits (IRB) commitment for the C-17 Strategic Airlift acquisition program.

Boeing Canada Jim Barnes.
Photo: Boeing.

During this briefing, Jim Barnes, Director Canada, Defense, Space & Security and Roger Schallom, Roger Schallom, Manager, Canada Industrial Participation Program, Integrated Defense Systems made public that a year ahead of schedule, Boeing had fulfilled its industrial and technological benefits (ITB) obligations of $749 million in offsets on the four CC-177 Globemaster III strategic transport aircraft delivered to the Royal Canadian Air Force in 2007 and 2008.

Jim Barnes opened the press event by underlining that ‘We (Boeing) deliver on our commitments’.

Robert Schallom reminded that ‘As a result of this program, more Canadian parts are being integrated into Boeing products and opportunities are being presented that can help support healthy growth for the Canadian industry well into the future’.

He also thanked Innovation, Science, and Economic Development Canada (known before as Industry Canada) for supporting Boeing to develop a plan that met small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) and technology sub-requirements and was ‘geared toward bringing long-term value to Canadian industry’.

Boeing’s plan included 61 companies, 21 of which were SMEs located in eight provinces involved in aerospace manufacturing, research and development, engineering software, training systems for a range of its military and civilian aircraft, and other programs.

Companies like Bluedrop and Solace Power of Newfoundland and Labrador, Héroux-Devtek of Longueuil, Québec, and MDA Systems of British Columbia, received work packages in the areas of aerospace manufacturing, research and development, engineering software, training systems, and more.

For Jim Barnes, finding partners has been easier in Canada ‘because of the quality of suppliers available to us’.

In March, Boeing recognized six companies :Apex Industries, Avcorp Industries, Fellfab Ltd., Magellan Aerospace, Messier Dowty (now Safran Landing Systems), and Valiant Machine & Tool—with its annual performance excellence awards.

“We look at Canada for breadth and depth of capabilities,” said Barnes.

Boeing CC-177 ‘Canada One’ First Flight.
Photo: Boeing.

The first of the four CC-177s ordered in February 2007 was delivered in the summer of 2007 and the last arrived in April 2008. The first aircraft was immediately called into service as part of Canada’s disaster relief response to the aftermath of Hurricane Dean in Jamaica in 2007.

Boeing still has ITB obligations for a fifth CC-177 acquired in December 2014 and delivered in March 2015.

In only the five past years, Boeing has injected US$6 billion into the Canadian aerospace industry and continues to add more than US$1 billion in economic value to Canada annually.

Canadian industry already contributes to all Boeing commercial (737, 747, 767, 777 and 787) and defense programs, including the AH-64 Apache, V-22 Osprey and CH-47 rotorcraft, the F/A-18 and F-15 fighter aircraft, the P-8A maritime patrol aircraft, the C-17 Globemaster III airlifter and aircraft trainers. Boeing and Canada continue to grow the partnership through collaboration in research and technology that can help keep Canadian industry competitive in the global marketplace.

Canada has been a customer, a supplier and a partner to Boeing in both the defense and commercial sectors since 1919. Today, more than 97 years later, Canada is home to one of the largest international supplier bases for Boeing including more than 600 suppliers spanning every region of the country. Boeing working with Canadian companies under the government’s IRB program, and the current Industrial and Technological Benefits program, have already completed more than US$6.7 billion in Canada, with another US$2.9 billion in high-value programs currently under way.

Boeing Canada Winnipeg plant.
Photo: Boeing.

As of 2016, Boeing directly employs approximately 2,000 highly skilled Canadian workers at the following locations:

• Boeing Winnipeg in Manitoba employing 1500 in the largest aerospace composite manufacturing center in Canada.
• AeroInfo Systems in Richmond, C.
• Carmen Systems, a division of Jeppesen located in Montréal, Québec.
• Aviall (five customer service centers across Canada)
• C-17 field service support in Trenton,
• Boeing Commercial Airplanes field service offices in Montréal; Toronto, Ontario; and Calgary,
• Medium-to-Heavy-Lift Helicopter (MHLH) field service support in Petawawa, Ontario.
• MHLH parts warehouse in Renfrew,
• Boeing Defense, Space & Security Global Sales & Marketing and MHLH program office in Ottawa,

On the commercial side, more than a dozen Canadian carriers operate Boeing airplanes, including Canada’s leading airlines, Air Canada and WestJet.

Air Canada Boeing 787-8..
Photo: Air Canada.

Air Canada and its low-cost carrier Rouge operate the 787 Dreamliner, 767-300ER, 777-200LR and 777-300ER. Air Canada has 60 Boeing airplanes in its current fleet and orders for 81, including 61 of Boeing’s newest family of single-aisle airplanes, the 737 MAX.

WestJet continues to grow with its all-Boeing fleet of Next-Generation 737-700s and-800s. The Calgary-based carrier added its 100th Next-Generation 737 to its fleet in late 2012 and in 2013 finalized an order for 65 737 MAX airplanes. WestJet also leases four 767 airplanes to fly to Hawaii and London.

In addition, the newly formed low-cost carrier Jetlines, headquartered in Vancouver, started building its fleet in December 2014 with an order for five 737 MAXs.

McDonnell Douglas CF-18 Hornet over Hawaii.

On the military side, Boeing played a major role in the transformation of the Canadian Forces by modernizing 77 of Canada’s CF-18 fighter jets with a two-phase avionics upgrade program completed in January 2014. L-3 Communications MAS was the prime contractor to Boeing and carried out the installation process for this program at its facilities in Mirabel, Québec, and Canadian Forces Base Cold Lake in Alberta. Boeing also provides the Canadian Navy’s all-weather Harpoon missiles, several of the Anik series satellites, and supply chain services to fleet support programs.

In February 2007, Defense, Space & Security signed a contract with the Canadian Department of National Defence to supply four Boeing C-17 Globemaster III aircraft to modernize the country’s defense forces airlift fleet. Boeing delivered all four C-17s to the Royal Canadian Air Force within 15 months of the contract signature. In December 2014, Defense, Space & Security signed a contract with the government of Canada for a fifth C-17, which was delivered in March 2015.

In May 2008, Canada awarded Boeing a $14 million interim contract to provide the Canadian Army with Insitu ScanEagle UAV services, including launch, recovery, maintenance, service support and training. The contract was extended to include installation of UAV capability on Royal Canadian Navy vessels, and all work was completed as of March 2015.

In August 2009, the Canadian Department of National Defence awarded Boeing a contract for 15 Boeing CH-47F Chinooks, designated CH-147, to meet Canada’s domestic and international missions requiring medium-to-heavy-lift helicopters.

Canadian industry is directly contributing to the mission-ready capability of the C-17 and CH-147 through separate 20-year in-service support contracts for the aircraft.

In June 2014, the Canadian Armed Forces received the 15th and final CH-147F Chinook helicopter in Petawawa, Ontario. The CH-147F Chinook is an advanced, multi-mission helicopter. Its primary mission is to transport equipment and personnel during both domestic and deployed operations, but it also provides a vital capability to respond to humanitarian emergencies, such as fire, floods and earthquakes.

Boeing has worked with Canadian companies under the government’s Industrial and Technological Benefits (formerly Industrial and Regional Benefits) program to perform business worth more than $6.5 billion in Canada, with another $3.1 billion in high-value programs currently under way.

In 2002, Boeing initiated the process that led to the creation of the successful Composites Innovation Centre (CIC) in Winnipeg, a not-for-profit composite materials research organization developing new materials and processes for the industry. Through engagement with the CIC, Boeing has provided funding to support the Canadian Composites Manufacturing Research and Development consortium, a teaming of industrial and research organizations across Canada seeking to develop new composite manufacturing processes. In February 2013, Boeing became the founding industrial member of the University of British Columbia’s Composites Research Network, a group working with Canadian scientists to create practical applications of new composite manufacturing discoveries.

Une initiative de Développement économique Canada pour les régions du Québec, le Symposium était organisé par Sous-traitance industrielle Québec (STIQ), Aéro Montréal et le Pôle d’excellence québécois en transport terrestre.

Le but était de réunir une quinzaine de donneurs d’ordre et près de 120 entreprise et organismes afin de se rencontrer et d’évaluer des possibilités d’affaires dans le marché militaire, un marché porteur.

Fort de secteurs manufacturiers et technologiques clés comme l’aérospatial, l’optique-photonique, la simulation et les technologies de l’information, le Québec possède les outils pour tirer avantage des retombées industrielles et technologiques des grands contrats fédéraux en défense et sécurité et devenir fournisseur des plus grands donneurs d’œuvre mondiaux.

Au Canada, les secteurs de la défense et de la sécurité représentent des ventes annuelles de l’ordre de 9,5 milliards de dollars canadiens dont 2,3 au Québec.

Le Symposium visait deux objectifs : placer le Québec, ses entreprises et centres de recherche dans le collimateur des donneurs d’ordres mondiaux et de sensibiliser les entreprises du Québec par le biais de présentations, de conférences, de plénières et d’ateliers, aux enjeux et tendances de ces marchés.

Richard Blanchet.
Photo: Philipp Cauchi.

La journée fut engagée dès 8h15 par les mots de Richard Blanchet, président du STIQ, Vincent Dugré, vice-président aux opérations au Pôle d’excellence québécois en transport et en l’absence de Suzanne Benoit, Présidente-directrice générale d’Aéro Montréal, Martin Lafleur, directeur principal, innovation, défense et sécurité nationale.

Martin Lafleur.
Photo: Aéro Montréal.

Comme le déclara d’entrée de jeu, monsieur Lafleur, ‘permettre aux entreprises aérospatiales québécoises de se positionner sur le marché de la défense et de la sécurité est une priorité pour Aéro Montréal’.

En matinée, un premier panel porta sur la manière de préparer son entreprise à réussir sur le marché canadien de la défense et de la sécurité avec des représentants de Services Canada et d’Industrie Canada.

En parallèle se tenait un second panel, lui portant sur les capacités de soutien aux entreprises présenté par un dirigeant du Ministère de la défense et un autre de la Garde côtière canadienne.

Mike Greenley.
Photo: CAE.

Au déjeuner, devant un auditoire de plus de 180 personnes, Mike Greenley, vice-président et directeur général, CAE Canada, brossa un court portrait de son entreprise avant de démontrer l’importance de réussir sur son marché national afin d’aller à l’international. Il rappela les origines de sa société fondée à Montréal en 1947 et qui compte maintenant 8000 employés dans le monde dont 3000 au Québec et dont le chiffre d’affaires a atteint les 2,5 milliards de dollars. Mais monsieur Greenley ne voulait pas faire un ‘pitch’ à la gloire de sa société mais expliquer comment elle a pu grandir et passer d’un PME à un géant de la simulation grâce à l’interaction de l’état canadien. Comme beaucoup d’entreprises canadiennes de l’aérospatiale, ses origines remontent à la Seconde guerre mondiale. Dès 1939, le gouvernement canadien tirant profit des grands espaces vides du pays, a établi un programme de formation des équipages d’aéronefs du British Commonwealth d’une valeur de 2 milliards de dollars de l’époque, les trois-quarts financés par le Canada, l’équivalent de 200 milliards de nos jours selon monsieur Greenley. En l’espace de deux ans, plus de 150 aéroports furent construits qui servirent de base à de nombreux aéroports civils actuels. La formation se réalisa essentiellement sur des avions durant la Guerre bien que dès 1939 le premier simulateur, un Link provenant des États-Unis apparut son apparition. En 1947, les fondateurs de CAE purent tirer avantage de toute cette activité. Dans les années 1950, son premier client fut le gouvernement canadien pour des simulateurs destinés aux Avro CF-100 Canuck puis aux Lockheed CF-104 Starfighter. Avec le soutien du gouvernement fédéral, des simulateurs de CF-104 de CAE furent vendus dans cinq pays. De cette expérience, CAE a pu se tourner vers le marché des simulateurs civils. Tout comme CAE, selon monsieur Greenley, les PME doivent utiliser la panoplie des services offerts par le gouvernement fédéral pour financer la recherche, partir à la conquête de nouveaux marchés extérieurs, financer et garantir les ventes. Pour lui, ‘si une PME fait ses preuves chez elle, cela l’aidera à l’étranger’. Ce fut le cas avec les contrats de formation destinés aux équipages des Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules et des Boeing CH-47F Chinook des Forces armées canadiennes, octroyés dans le cadre des retombées industrielles régionales (IRB-RIR), qui ouvrirent des portes à l’étranger.

De plus toujours selon Mike Greenley, 15% des dépenses totales de CAE est représenté par les achats de biens et services auprès des PME canadiennes ce qui permet à ces dernières de rejoindre la chaîne d’approvisionnement de l’entreprise de Saint-Laurent.

En début d’après-midi, un premier panel porta sur la recherche et le développement et le marché de la défense et de la sécurité et un autre en parallèle sur comment convaincre les donneurs d’ordre qu’une entreprise est un acteur clef pour l’atteinte de leurs obligations de retombées industrielles.

En deuxième partie d’après-midi, quatre panels furent tenus en parallèle couvrant respectivement l’aérospatiale, le terrestre, le naval et le C4ISR ou Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance.