Alcoa 1996 Annual Report Download - page 11

Aerospace
A Well-Timed
Expansion
Three years ago, aircraft build rates were stuck in a downcycle, well off
their 1991 peaks. Writing in Alcoa’s 1993 annual report, L. Patrick Hassey,
president of Aerospace/Commercial Rolled Products, forecast that airplane
deliveries would be picking up starting in 1996 and strengthening still
further over the next several years. He also noted a longer term growth
trend in revenue passenger miles, averaging 5% to 6% a year.
So far, the forecasts are proving, if anything, conservative. Build rates are
on course for a 44% increase in 1997 and further gains next year. In the
meantime, having anticipated the turnaround, Alcoa’s aerospace business
unit has dramatically expanded heat-treating capacity for sheet and plate.
Ready for the Turnaround
■In April of 1996, Davenport (Iowa) Works started up the largest vertical
heat-treating furnace in North America, tripling the plant’s capacity for
wide fuselage applications.
■A new horizontal plate heat-treating furnace will begin production next
month, raising the plant’s aerospace heat-treating capacity by 50% and total
heat-treated plate capacity by 30%.
■Hassey characterizes this $75 million expansion as giving Alcoa’s aerospace
customers “the most sophisticated, comprehensive heat-treat facilities and
the broadest capabilities in the world.”
■Also in 1996, a fuselage sheet polishing and processing center was opened
in Hutchinson, Kansas, offering aerospace customers just-in-time, cut-to-
size, and electronic interface capabilities on a 24-hour basis.
Internet activity on the
Plymouth Web site. The
Prowler’s aluminum body and
closure panels are made from
Alcoa sheet and extrusions and
are attached to an aluminum
frame manufactured at Alcoa’s
new Northwood, Ohio plant.
New Headquarters Going Up.
Construction is under way for
Alcoa’s new corporate center
on Pittsburgh’s North Shore.
Foundation and garage are
complete. By late spring, the
main structure will be in place
and work will be starting to
create a riverfront park facing
downtown Pittsburgh. Antici-
pated completion date of the
six-story building is June 1998.
Old Headquarters Recycled.
Alcoa has offered its present
corporate headquarters
building in Pittsburgh to the
community, as a center for
economic development. The
44-year-old landmark will
house government, private, and
academic agencies involved in
all aspects of regional planning
and growth.
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