A reputation for quality and reliability in an industry that demands adherence to the strictest of standards has propelled LMI Aerospace Inc.’s Savannah facility to unprecedented growth, making them a strong asset to the industrial community and the Savannah Morning News’ 2012 Manufacturer of the Year.
It’s an honor that LMI knows well. Last year, the company’s Savannah facility was named the Georgia Small Manufacturer of the Year at the Governor’s Awards in Atlanta. And, in February, the facility was named Supplier of the Year for 2011 by Aviation Partners Boeing.
Located on Coleman Boulevard, LMI prepares specialty airframe parts for riveting, machined parts and assemblies for nearby Gulfstream Aerospace, a series of large special after-market wing modification kits to Aviation Partners Boeing in Seattle, Wash., and metallic and composite assemblies for Boeing in South Carolina.
With Gulfstream in particular, the company has jointly developed a “just in time” and “point of use” delivery process using LEAN manufacturing practices. Because LMI must be able to provide the required assemblies when and where they are needed, general manager Phil Lajeunesse said, the assemblies are delivered directly to the point of use in Gulfstream’s Savannah manufacturing facility.
The company performs the service so well that for 20 months in a row they have posted 100 percent on-time deliveries to all major clients.
And that, Lajeunesse said, is a direct reflection of the work ethic and attitude of the company’s 55 employees.
“This is just a really great group of people,” he said. “They are both customer and quality focused and do their jobs with integrity and enthusiasm.”
Lajeunesse also credits partners Georgia Quick Start and Savannah Technical College for helping to provide the technical skills and quality training critical to the company’s success.
“Quick Start has created extremely detailed training manuals for each of our processes, making it possible to bring new people on board in a fraction of the time it once took,” he said. “And Savannah Tech’s programs tailored to aerospace are a tremendous training resource for the local community.”
The company started here in 2003 with five employees, building fuselage skin kit assemblies for Gulfstream. Six years ago, it added Aviation Partners Boeing to its client list, producing a kit that supports the installation of winglets on the Boeing 737, 757 and 767. Today, LMI also provides machined parts and aircraft assemblies to both Gulfstream and Boeing.
Meanwhile, LMI’s local presence has grown from 28,800 square feet to 111,400 square feet, the latest expansion completed just last month.
The company just finished building a world-class, $3.2 million high speed machining center in June of this year, using the latest in leading-edge machining technology and adding the high-speed machining of aircraft aluminum to its complement of services.
A second $1.6 million machine is being installed, and an automatic pallet system is on order.
While the company creates value for its customers, it also adds value to the community, said human resources manager Cynthia Cartier-Lewis.
“Team members hold blood drives, food drives, provide assistance to a variety of children’s medical and residential support services and provide funding and team to participate in the bi-annual Rebuilding Together Savannah,” she said.
As the Savannah facility seeks to become a partner with the local community, it also sets an example for its corporate community. The annual Savannah facility food drive that began in 2005, for instance, has grown into a companywide competition in which LMI divisions nationwide compete to bring in the most cans per capita for their communities.
To encourage ongoing education, LMI has developed a companywide “Learning Academy” where all employees receive developmental training in various areas. Additionally, the company reimburses employees for educational tuition assistance and provides scholarships to employees’ children, including STEM scholarships for the pursuit of careers in the science, technology, engineering and math fields.
“Our goal is to be a world-class manufacturing facility,” Lajeunesse said. “But we can only do that with the buy-in of our employee team.
“If we can get our people to act and feel like owners of the company, we all win.”
LMI AEROSPACE
• Local leadership: Phil Lajeunesse
• Business sector: manufacturing
• Local employees: 55
• Website: www.lmiaerospace.com
• What it does: LMI Aerospace Inc. is a leading provider of structural components, assemblies and kits to the aerospace, defense and technology industries. In Savannah, the company fabricates, machines, assembles and kits, aluminum and specialty composite materials for the aerospace industry primarily supporting Gulfstream, Boeing and Aviation Partners Boeing companies.
BEST OF SAVANNAH BUSINESS 2012
Every day through today, the Savannah Morning News will profile companies and organizations that made major contributions to the local business environment in the past year. The Exchange staff chose the honorees — from a list of nominees submitted by local business leaders — utilizing broad criteria, from growth and success to philanthropy and community involvement.
• TUESDAY: Newcomer of the Year — Savannah Slow Ride/Crawler Fabrications
• WEDNESDAY: Business Advocate of the Year — World Trade Center Savannah
• THURSDAY: Comeback Business of the Year — The Coastal Bank
• FRIDAY: Education Partner of the Year — JCB Apprenticeship Program
• SATURDAY: Entrepreneur of the Year — Wet Willies
• TODAY: Manufacturer of Year — LMI Aerospace
COMING JAN. 6
Savannah Morning News business writers Mary Carr Mayle and Adam Van Brimmer provide a look ahead to what to expect in each sector of the economy in 2013 in the Savannah metro area.