PANAMA CITY — Northwest Florida is about to enter the race to bring hundreds, if not thousands, of jobs related to the Airbus factory under construction in Mobile, Ala., to the area.
The International Aerospace Industry Forum for Northwest Florida Leadership kicks off Monday in Hamburg, Germany, with 35 business, education and community leaders from Bay, Walton, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Escambia counties. It is the first time the economic development leadership from the five counties have worked together to organize an overseas trip to try to bring new business to the region.
“I’m very excited about the statement that Northwest Florida is going to make during this two-day event,” said Nathan Sparks, executive director of the Okaloosa County Economic Development Council. “I think we’re going to send a strong message to the folks in Germany that we’re serious about their business.”
More than 1,000 people are expected to work at Airbus’ final assembly plant in Mobile when it becomes fully operational in 2018.
But that’s just the start. Dozens of subcontractors who supply pieces and parts to the factory are expected to employ thousands more.
There still is not a good estimate on how many jobs the Airbus suppliers are likely to bring to the Southeast.
Airbus itself has not said where it wants or expects its suppliers to locate, only that they must make deliveries to the plant within a prescribed time frame.
“Mississippi has already been over. Mobile took 90 people to Hamburg earlier this year,” said Neal Wade, executive director of the Bay County Economic Development Alliance. “We’re behind. We can’t wait. I believe 2014 is actually the key year for us to get in the competition for some of these suppliers that are going to be coming here when (Airbus’ plant) opens in 2015.”
The two-day forum is split into a series of meetings Monday and a tour of Airbus’ factory and operations Tuesday. Monday’s meetings will feature Stefan Berndes, director of aviation for the Federal Association of the German Aerospace Industry; Alexander Bothmann, deputy director of Enterprise Florida’s Germany office; and Walter Birkhan, director of Hamburg Aviation.
“This is a really exciting event,” said Jennifer Conoley, the economic development representative for Gulf Power. “We’ve been focused on the aviation, aerospace industry for many years in Northwest Florida, so I’m really excited to see us be aggressive this year.
“We are competing for jobs with high quality companies and global economies,” she added. “Being in Germany and hearing from these European speakers will really help us understand what it will take to be competitive on an international economic development front. It’s going to be great for them to put a face on Northwest Florida and our five-county region.”
A few members of the delegation, including Sparks, Wade, and Steven Jaeger, director of the Walton County Economic Development Alliance, arrived in Hamburg last week to attend the Airbus Supplier Forum to meet with suppliers, visit some of their operations and start to build relationships.
“We’re not going over there to win a project from the beginning,” Wade said. “We’re going in there to introduce ourselves and to get in the competition. I want them to look in Mississippi. I want them to look in Alabama. I just want to make sure they’re looking in Northwest Florida as well so that we’re in the competition.
“Our goal is to meet with as many of these companies as possible and to begin the dialogue and networking so we can continue to get to know them,” he added.
WHO IS GOING?
More than 30 people from Bay, Walton, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Escambia counties are attending the International Aerospace Industry Forum for Northwest Florida in Hamburg, Germany.
Below is a near-complete list of the delegates:
- Michael Beedie, Fort Walton Beach city manager;
- Kimberly Blair, Pensacola News Journal reporter;
- Kim Bodine, Gulf Coast Workforce Board, Bay County;
- Patti Bonezzi, career and technical adviser for the Okaloosa County School District;
- Greg Britton, CEO of Fort Walton Machining;
- Dan Busse, dean of workforce education at Pensacola State College;
- Jennifer Conoley, economic development representative for Gulf Power;
- Dave Dawson, University of West Florida’s Innovation Institute;
- Mike Diehl, SunTrust Bank, Walton County;
- Greg Donovan, director of Pensacola International Airport;
- Tamara Fountain, city of Pensacola;
- Ron Garriga, director of campus operations at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University;
- Janice Gilley, government and community relations instructor at the University of West Florida;
- Wayne Harris, Okaloosa County commissioner and executive director of the Crestview Area Chamber of Commerce;
- Ashton Hayward, mayor of Pensacola;
- Bill Imfeld, Walton County commissioner;
- Steve Jaeger, director of the Walton County Economic Development Alliance;
- Scott Keller, professor of supply chain management at University of West Florida;
- Kellie Jo Kilberg, president and CEO of the Walton Area Chamber of Commerce;
- Ann Leonard, career technical director for Bay County;
- Scott Luth, senior vice president of economic development for the Pensacola Chamber of Commerce;
- Parker McClellan, deputy executive director of the Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport, Bay County;
- Pam Northrup, University of West Florida;
- Thomas Reichherzer, assistant professor at University of West Florida;
- Steve Rhodes, CEO of CHELCO;
- Dusty Ricketts, business editor of the Northwest Florida Daily News;
- Dan Rowe, president and CEO of the Panama City Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau;
- Ken Shaw, Florida State University in Bay County;
- Nathan Sparks, executive director of Okaloosa County Economic Development Council;
- Tracy Stage, deputy director of Okaloosa County airports;
- Linda Sumblin, executive director of the Workforce Development Board of Okaloosa and Walton Counties;
- George Touart, Escambia County manager;
- Gene Valentino, Escambia County commissioner;
- Neal Wade, executive director of the Bay County Economic Development Alliance;
- Bob Walton, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University;
- Rob Williams, DJ with News Radio 1620, Escambia County.