Textron Aviation (NYSE: TXT) plans to add as much as 180,000 square feet of space to its parts distribution operations facilities, the company announced Monday at the 2022 National Business Aviation Association’s Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition (NBAA-BACE), in Orlando, Florida.
The facilities are based at the company’s headquarters in Wichita, Kansas, and will allow the company to expand the range of support it provides for its customers.
Textron Aviation said the expansion, which comes at a time when an increasing demand for private and business jets has led to supply chain disruptions, would increase parts availability across its vast aircraft fleet of Cessna, Beechcraft, and Hawker products.
The company will begin building the facility this month and expects it to be completed by the end of 2023.
“Customers expect us to have parts available to keep them flying, and this expansion will allow us to more efficiently support our customers’ parts needs,” said Kriya Shortt, senior vice president, global parts and distribution for Textron.
The company also said the new space would allow it to build inventory for some of its upcoming models, including the Cessna SkyCourier and Beechcraft Denali. Textron will also be able to control its business relations with customers directly. Customers will have a dedicated lane to drop off or pick up parts in person and opportunities for consolidated shipments.
Presently, the Wichita location has room for more than 120,000 parts and employs more than 350 people to support distribution operations. It is one of Textron Aviation’s seven distribution centers and 17 stockrooms around the world.
Satellite Service Center in Dallas
Separately, Textron Aviation also announced today that it would open a new satellite service center at Dallas Love Field. The new 12,000-square-foot facility will have more than 20 technicians to support customers onsite.
The move also comes as the company looks to boost the support it provides its growing list of customers. Textron said the location would strategically support Cessna, Beechcraft, and Hawker owners and operators locally and those in transit. It would also complement Textron’s unscheduled Aircraft on Ground (AOG) customer services, it said.
“Dallas is an expanding market for locally based customers flying Textron Aviation aircraft, in addition to a large volume of transit customers doing business in the area,” said Brian Rohloff, senior vice president for customer support at Textron Aviation.
The Dallas Satellite Service Center will boost Textron Aviation’s footprint in Texas as it joins factory-direct service centers in Houston. Textron also said the Dallas facility would be the operations hub for nine mobile service units.
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