Triumph Composite Systems Inc., of Spokane, says it has won a contract from Boeing Co. worth an estimated $49 million, and plans to hire nearly 60 employees here as a result of that work and several other new contracts its lining up.


The contract with Chicago-based Boeing Co. is for the manufacturing of composite floor panel systems for the new 787 Dreamliner aircraft, says Cody Kardokus, director of sales and marketing at Triumph Composite Systems, which is a unit of Wayne, Pa.-based Triumph Group Inc. The contract covers the next five years, but could be extended to subsequent years as well, Kardokus says.


Triumph plans to start manufacturing the floor panels soon for Boeings new mid-size, long-range jet, and to deliver its first shipment of the components by next April. The company is making other parts for the 787 as well, but this is the first major contract it has received for that aircraft, although it hopes to secure others in the future, he says.


Were very interested in the 787, and we want to be part of that program, Kardokus says.


The Dreamliner, which is the first commercial jet to have half of its primary structure made from composite materials, rather than aluminum, is scheduled to go into service in 2008, he says.


Triumph Composite Systems plans to hire 15 employees by the end of the year at its West Plains plant, and expects to hire another 41 employees in the first quarter of next year, Kardokus says. The company currently employs 445 people here. Its hiring more employees both because of its new contract for the 787 and several others it has secured recently or expects to secure soon, he says. Kardokus declines for now to elaborate on those contracts.


Boeing currently buys roughly 90 percent of the flight-deck components, air ducting, and floor panels made at Triumph Composite Systems plant here. Triumph Composite Systems has been seeking to expand its customer base in recent years, though, he says. For instance, a couple of years ago it started providing parts to Airbus, the European airplane manufacturing consortium.


Some segments are up when others are down, and when one manufacturer is in an upswing, others are in a downswing, Kardokus says. By diversifying our workload, we can remain more stable.


Triumph Group bought the plant here from Boeing Co. in early 2003.


Contact Emily Brandler at (509) 344-1265 or via e-mail at emilyb@spokanejournal.com.