Air Force, Army come here to shop

Paul Clinton

Continued military action abroad, in Iraq and Afghanistan, has been a

boon to two local businesses supplying hardware to troops.

In the last two months, Argo-Tech Corp. and Ceradyne Inc. have

announced new contracts expected to add more heft to their bottom

lines, as well as the local economy.

Argo-Tech Corp., a Costa Mesa division of an Ohio-based

manufacturer, has pinned down a deal with the Boeing Co. to supply

pumps, valves and other equipment for the new KC-767 tanker.

“We are growing and we are picking up some jobs here and there,”

said Terry Walker, a company vice president. “It does give us a solid

base.”

Boeing developed the KC-767 as a replacement for the KC-135, which

the Air Force has used since debuting it in 1956. About one-fifth of

that fleet is now out of service and in need of repairs.

Boeing and the Air Force have struck a deal to replace 100 aging

KC-135 tankers with 100 KC-767s. A plan to lease the planes to the

U.S. government has been approved by the White House and Pentagon and

is awaiting approval by Congress.

Argo-Tech finalized a deal with Boeing in March to supply

state-of-the-art pumps and other hardware used by the tankers to fuel

fighters and other planes in mid-air. The company supplies a patented

pump, coupling equipment and valves. The pump cools itself by

recirculating fluid.

The contract should add $200,000 to the company’s top-line

revenue, President and Chief Executive Michael Lipscomb wrote in a

July 15 letter to Rep. Dana Rohrabacher. Lipscomb also urged

Rohrabacher to support the new tanker.

“Our company has made significant investment in developing these

products for the 767 tanker to help preserve our over 200 jobs here

in Costa Mesa,” Lipscomb wrote. “I strongly urge your support of this

program.”

Right now, Argo-Tech supplies four pumps per tanker and could

expand that number to 12, said Steve Karrasch, a senior manager on

the KC-767 project. The plane is assembled in Wichita, Kan. Argo-Tech

also supplied pumps for the KC-135.

“It’s a very reliable pump,” Karrasch said. “They’re making some

changes to the KC-135 pump.”

Boeing has rated Argo-Tech as one of its preferred vendors,

meaning the company delivers the highest quality of products on time.

Ceramics maker Ceradyne Inc., also based in Costa Mesa, has been

feverishly working to fill orders for its ballistic body armor.

On July 17, Ceradyne announced it had pinned down a $7.1-million

contract with the Army for another armor order. The company, which

also supplies plated helicopter sidings, signed several other deals

this year totaling $17.5 million.

The military has used the body armor in Iraq, Kosovo, Afghanistan

and other areas.

* PAUL CLINTON covers the environment, business and politics. He

may be reached at (949) 764-4330 or by e-mail at

[email protected].