Page 33 - Innovation Delaware 2018

Delaware Technology Park and the STAR (Science, Technology & Advanced Research) Campus, both a part of the University of Delaware, but both also having strong business and government support.
And don’t overlook the growing companies that have been around for a decade or longer, and specialize in materials technologies from biotechnology to aerospace engineering.
For example, ILC Dover’s technology has been used in the Mars Rover, but has also helped New York City
mitigate the effects of flooding — a growing concern for coastal cities as the climate changes.
Meanwhile, Micropore’s ExtendAir product allows the extension of oxygen supplies in critical situations, and has been used to help Navy SEAL divers breathe more easily.
It just goes to show that Delaware is rich in cutting- edge manufacturing and materials technology, and that this diverse industry is continuing to grow. ID
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million in a few years,
with between 340 and 350 employees,” many of them highly skilled, says Sundin. The company now employs about 75 engineers. Additionally, Sundin says, “The people who power the private aircraft market are starting to increase their discretionary spending,” another strong source
of revenue for ALOFT.
In addition to its ability
to produce various flight systems for aircraft, the privately held company
is also a major outfitter
for aircraft interiors. “We provide everything from
ROBERT SUNDIN
Although the domestic market constitutes the major income stream for ALOFT, Sundin says the company also does work in Europe with Airbus and in Canada with Bombardier. In fact, Sundin has considerable experience with foreign producers himself, having worked in executive positions with Dassault, a French aircraft manufacturer, for 10 years and with Bombardier for more than 20. He laughs that in a job interview he had pronounced the latter’s name English style — “bom-ber-DEER” — rather
than the correct French pronunciation, “bom-BAR- dee-ay”
While recruiting is competitive for experienced technicians and engineers, Sundin says that his main stumbling block is not in attracting recruits to rural southern Delaware, but just keeping abreast with the industry-wide demand for people who can fill these positions.
“We are fortunate in
that we have been able to attract the people we need,” he says. “And we are able
to support our customers’ needs around the world.” ID
design to installation to maintenance,” Sundin says, noting that, “It generally costs about $3 million to $5 million to refit an aircraft.”
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