The critical aerospace and defense industries touch the lives of every American directly or indirectly every day. That vacation flight to Florida, the helicopter transport of a patient to a hospital, high-level business and political deals made on private jets and the protection of our country by military aircraft all depend on safe air travel.
Innovation and technology have allowed America to be a leader in the combined aerospace/defense industry that will reach $439 billion in revenue by 2027, according to analyst IBISWorld. Parts manufacturing is a large portion of that, and technology is intertwined. Green is home to several aerospace companies with national and global recognition.
Collins Aerospace
The next time your plane is flying through an ice storm, you can probably thank Collins Aerospace, an RTX business, for keeping you safe. The company develops products that prevent ice from forming on planes during flight.
Under the right environmental conditions, “an aircraft can collect ice very quickly once it is in the air,” says Kevin Schramm, general manager of the Collins Aerospace facility in Green that supplies the necessary protection for commercial, military, business, general aviation and rotorcraft markets.
The global company, a leader in technologically advanced and intelligent solutions for aerospace and defense industries, also provides potable water for use on aircraft.
Collins in Green is “a heavy engineering facility that is half technical,” which allows the company to take ideas through research and development to new product introductions, according to Schramm. One of those innovations is a new carbon nanotube that meets sustainability goals and that will help aircraft engine design obtain better gas mileage. The innovation is expected to be available in the late 2020s and early 2030s.
“One of the very unique things about our site in Green is that we have one of the few icing wind tunnels in the world,” says Schramm. “It allows us to prove very quickly that our solutions work.”
Schramm is proud of the company’s connection to local talent and its collaboration with several state universities in Ohio to provide internships that may lead to fulltime employment. Collins employees can choose to make Northeast Ohio their home or take advantage of worldwide opportunities.
Kovatch Castings
It also helps if the plane you are on stops once it reaches the end of the runway upon landing. Kovatch Castings wants to make sure that happens. The company “provides investment castings to the aerospace industry,” according to Thomas Planz, president of the company, which can be traced back 50-plus years and has been in its Green location since 1991.
Those castings include the all-important braking parts, structural parts, linkage balls, fuel system castings and more for components needed by the commercial and defense industries. Kovatch works with steel, aluminum, cobalt, nickel, copper and other alloys to make parts needed by manufacturers.
Because Kovatch Castings is a supplier to the defense industry, following additional governmental requirements is necessary to run the company, according to Planz. That includes extensive cybersecurity precautions and employee clearances that involve citizenship requirements and strict drug-free mandates.
“Finding materials these days isn’t as much an issue as finding employees, and that doesn’t necessarily mean trained employees,” says Planz, noting the defense industry’s restrictions. “Also, like many companies today, finding people who want to work in manufacturing, especially a foundry where it can be 150 degrees, can be difficult, but it also provides opportunities. Recently, we gave a tour to the mayor and his staff and have met with the city and state about hiring. That gave us good leads and clarified to the city what we are looking for and need, which in turn can help residents.”
Kovatch Castings is involved with America Makes and works with 50 companies as part of a consortium. (America Makes is a Department of Defense-funded program that accelerates the adoption of additive manufacturing and increases U.S. manufacturing competitiveness.)
The company is part of two programs to develop new technologies. One involves printing ceramic molds that may possibly eliminate several time-consuming and expensive parts of the casting process.
In 2019, Kovatch became an employee stock ownership plan member, a move that has benefited both the business and its workers, according to Planz. The company president is also a promoter of the community in which he has lived since 2019.
“I like Green. It’s a good blend of urban and rural living and is close to larger cities, including Akron and Cleveland,” he says, adding that is also an advantage for his employees and clients.
Stark Industrial
Two decades ago, Stark Industrial began its relationship with the aerospace industry. The company created metallurgical samples and created products that helped strengthen aircraft components, including jet engine airfoils.
“More recently, we have become involved with more outer space work and satellite parts. There seem to be satellites going up on a daily basis now, and we are seeing a growth in other orbital systems,” says Jonathan Wilkof, vice president of Stark Industrial and a third-generation member of the family-owned business. “It used to be if you wanted to go into space, you went to NASA. Now, it’s everyone and everything. Before, if you wanted to build a satellite, you had to design it and every single one of its components.”
Today, different manufacturers make engines, thrusters, commercial instruments and other pieces needed for space flights, according to Wilkof.
Stark Industrial, described as a contract manufacturer of precision metal parts and custom measuring instruments, also has the honor of working with the Maurice J. Zucrow Laboratories at Purdue University, which has the largest academic propulsion lab in the world. Stark Industrial creates parts for their projects that include hypersonic and supersonic engineering and more.
“Our staff got into aerospace 20 years ago because there were so many young startups, and we were able to get in on the ground floor,” says Wilkof. “A small company like us definitely has a place to compete in the aerospace arena. Obviously, I am not going to compete at the highest levels, but there are so many opportunities and so many innovative ideas available.”
Wilkof praises Green’s safety forces, government and community leaders who maintain the city’s accommodating nature, appearance and infrastructure — things that mean a lot to the reputation of his company. And although he’s content with being in the community, would Wilkof ever consider space travel?
“I think getting the perspective from space would probably be one of the most spiritual experiences of my life. It would be a different frame of reference,” says Wilkof. “I’d like to do it if it were ever possible for me.”
