BROMONT, Quebec - Bolstered by the growing commercial jet engine market, GE Aircraft Engines' Bromont manufacturing plant is experiencing sharply increased production and higher employment.
The Bromont workforce has grown from 319 GE employees in 1994 to approximately 558 this summer. Since the beginning of 1997, the Bromont plant has hired approximately 100 new workers.
This growth is a sharp contrast to the aviation downturn of the early 1990s, which caused sharp employment and production declines.
The Bromont plant, located in south of Montreal, produces fan and compressor airfoils (blades) for several GE engines, but mostly notably for the CFM56 engine. Produced by CFM International, a 50/50 joint company of Snecma of France and GE, the CFM56 is the world's best-selling engine for commercial jetliners.
Driven by the success of the Boeing 737 aircraft family, for which the CFM56 is the sole powerplant, as well as the Airbus A320 family, CFM International experienced its most successful year ever in 1996 by logging orders for 1,280 CFM56 engines, doubling its order book from 1995.
For 1997, CFM International forecasts approximately 1,000 engine orders. As a result, CFM56 production will double to nearly 930 engines in 1998, compared to the 443 engines produced in 1996. Boeing's new Next-Generation 737 aircraft family, powered by the CFM56-7, is the fastest-selling commercial aircraft in aviation history.
All of this is excellent news for the Bromont plant, which produces compressor blades and vanes for the CFM56. Each CFM56 airfoil "engine set" produced at Bromont totals almost 900 individual blades.
"The great success of the CFM International engine family has been a huge shot in the arm for the Bromont economy," said Philippe Simonato, manager of the GE Bromont plant. "Not only is the plant growing due to the increased production of CFM56 engines, but our production of spare engine parts will also increase as the growing CFM56 engine fleet in service matures."
In addition to the CFM56, the Bromont plant produces airfoils for the GE90 and CF6 engines for GE, as well as components for engines produced by Snecma, the French engine manufacturer and a key GE partner.