Alabama Governor Riley Begins China Trade Mission Focused on Aviation and State Port

April 07, 2008 -- SHANGHAI, CHINA - Alabama Governor Bob Riley spent the first day of his business and trade mission to China focused on helping aviation and aerospace companies in Alabama gain access to the Asian powerhouse’s commercial market.

Governor Riley also toured a Chinese crane manufacturer that has supplied the state docks with cranes in the past and may again in the future.

The Governor began Monday attending the signing of an agreement between Fokker Airinc based in Fairhope and PPI PENG International. Fokker repairs airline hydraulic equipment and has 74 employees at its Fairhope facility. The agreement is designed to help Fokker tap into China’s growing civil aviation and aerospace industry.

Brad Coban, Fokker’s managing partner, said doing so could potentially help the company grow its business by 20 percent and add 10 more employees.

Coban is part of Governor Riley’s Alabama delegation on the business and trade mission. He also went on an earlier trade mission to Europe led by the Alabama Development Office. That trade mission resulted in six new customers for the Fairhope company, Coban said.

“We have gained more business through trade missions than any other fashion,” Coban told Governor Riley during the meeting in Shanghai on Monday.

During his first day in China, Governor Riley also viewed a cockpit window for a 737 manufactured in Huntsville. The Governor met with Sam Davis, senior account manager of PPG Aerospace. The company, which employs 850 at its Huntsville facility, is part of the business and trade mission because it is looking to increase its market share in China.

In addition to manufacturing cockpit windows, the Huntsville facility also repairs the metal frames around the windows. PPG Aerospace recently opened a regional windshield framing facility in Suzhou, China for the company’s Asia Pacific airline customers. That facility uses cockpit windows manufactured in Huntsville.

“Having been a small businessman for most of my life, I know that business begins with relationships. The global economy we are in today makes it imperative that we form these relationships with China,” Governor Riley said during remarks to the delegation of Alabama business and academic leaders that has joined him on this business and trade mission.

Speaking later in the day to a room full of Chinese business leaders and investors, Governor Riley urged them to consider making investments in Alabama. He noted that the state has been successful in attracting international companies because of its quality workforce. “We hope that if and when you decide to look for a partner in the United States, you look at Alabama first,” Governor Riley said. “We have a reputation of doing more than our partners expect.”

Governor Riley also spent the day touring the Shanghai Zhenhua Port Machinery Company at its facility on Chang Xing Island in the Yangtze River. The company is the world’s largest manufacturer of cranes. The Alabama State Port Authority has purchased several cranes manufactured by the company in China and is considering purchasing additional cranes from the company. James K. Lyons, director and CEO of the Port Authority, accompanied Governor Riley on the tour.

This is Governor Riley’s third visit to China. For this latest economic development mission, he arrived on Sunday and is scheduled to depart on Saturday, April 12.

Source: Alabama Governor

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