If you want on or off my aerospace ping list, please contact me by Freep mail.
Posted on 09/16/2005 1:43:43 PM PDT by Righty_McRight
SEATTLE, Sept. 15, 2005 -- The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] and Jade Cargo International, the first cargo airline in China with foreign ownership, have completed a firm order for the carrier's purchase of six Boeing 747-400ER (Extended Range) Freighters.
The airplanes, with a list price value of $1.3 billion, are scheduled for delivery beginning in 2006 through January 2008. Jade Cargo, based in Shenzhen, China, plans to begin operations in 2006. The airplanes were recently included on the Boeing Orders and Deliveries Web site, attributed to an unidentified customer.
"China is a key manufacturing center for the world, producing a number of high-value goods that are good candidates for air shipment," said Dr. Rudolf Tewes, general manager -- Jade Cargo International. "The highly efficient and industry-standard 747-400ER Freighters will allow us to capitalize on the growing China market and provide the best start for long-term profitability."
Boeing projects in its World Air Cargo Forecast 2004/2005 that the air cargo industry will grow at an average annual rate of 6.2 percent over the next 20 years, significantly higher than passenger traffic. The forecast also projects that China's domestic air cargo market is expected to grow annually at a rate of 10.6 percent, the world's highest growth rate.
"This is a great move for Jade Cargo to enter the early stages of the rapidly growing China cargo market," said Rob Laird, vice president, China Sales -- Boeing Commercial Airplanes. "We look forward to a long-time partnership with Jade Cargo International, working together to help them build a successful air cargo operation."
The 747-400ERF has a maximum takeoff weight of 910,000 pounds (412,775 kg), a maximum payload of 248,600 pounds (112,760 kg) and a maximum range of 4,970 nautical miles (9,200 km). The airplane's distinctive nose door allows increased revenue by accommodating high-value outsize shipments and, with the side door, provides superior efficiency and flexibility in ground operations.
Jade Cargo International, founded in October 2004 and the first joint venture airline of its kind in China, is owned by Shenzhen Airlines Company Limited, Lufthansa Cargo AG and DEG - Deutsche Investitions - und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH, a subsidiary of KfW-Bank Group.
Along with destinations within China, the airline plans to serve additional Asian, European and American destinations.
About Shenzhen Airlines (SHZ): Shenzhen Airlines, Co., Ltd., began operations in September 1993. It commands a fleet of 32 Boeing 737 aircraft and employs a staff of 2,700. The airline operates on more than 80 routes between Shenzhen and destinations such as Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan, Nanjing, Harbin, Chengdu and Haikou. Based in the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone, the Chinese carrier ranks highly in terms of load factor, earnings and capacity utilization.
About Lufthansa Cargo: Lufthansa Cargo AG is world leader in the international airfreight business. In 2004, the logistics services airline flew more than 1.75 million tonnes of freight and mail, logging 7.9 billion revenue tonne-kilometers. The cargo carrier employs a workforce of around 5,000 people worldwide. Its core activities focus on airport-to-airport business. In its global route network, Lufthansa Cargo serves about 450 destinations with a fleet of 19 freighters and by utilizing the belly capacities of more than 300 Lufthansa passenger aircraft. The bulk of its cargo business is trans-shipped through Frankfurt, Europe's biggest cargo airport.
About DEG: DEG - Deutsche Investitions - und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH is one of the largest European development finance institutions for long-term project and company financing. For more than 40 years, it has financed and structured the investments of private companies in developing and transition countries. Its aim is to support the establishment and expansion of private enterprise structures so as to contribute to sustainable economic growth and lasting improvement in the living conditions of the local population. The company invests in profitable and sustainable development projects in all sectors of the economy, from agriculture and infrastructure to manufacturing and services.
###
Contacts: Bob Saling, Boeing Seattle, +1 (206) 766-2914, e-mail: bob.saling@boeing.com Leslie Nichols, Boeing Everett, +1 (425) 342-0447, e-mail: leslie.m.nichols@boeing.com George Liu, Boeing China, +86 (10) 6539-2299, e-mail: george.liu@boeing.com
Assuming the Machinist's Union strike is over by then.
747 PING
If you want on or off my aerospace ping list, please contact me by Freep mail.
Now, they just need to get that strike settled!
Getting the strike settled appears to be more difficult than just settling economic issues and benefits. Check out the IAM union website and the news articles on the bottom of the middle column.
http://www.iam751.org/
http://www.businessweek.com/print/magazine/content/05_39/b3952115.htm?chan=gl
I worked at Boeing during 2 strikes. It's always a pain in the ass for the company and the union. They always find some middle ground after a couple of months. I'm guessing this will be no different. Only this time, the union is in a somewhat stronger position. Boeing will capitulate. Personally, I'd prefer them to bust the union.
Why do you think the union should be busted? I am not IAM, but whatever the machinists get, it gets passed on to the professionals and nonrepresented employees including management.
This strike started out on emotional grounds, they said that management didn't respect them, didn't address the issues they wanted. The economic package looked good. But that is often their case for a strike: lack of respect.
I understand both views: management and labor. I know the professional union will be looking for that sweet spot, where the Company will still make a fat profit for the shareholders, but share enough profit with the workers. The machinists union sometimes appears illogical.
If it wasn't for a strong union, big business would walk all over the worker, wouldn't they? White collar workers have leverage, they can move to better jobs, but blue collar workers don't have that mobility. They often have such menial jobs, so getting preceived respect is something they require.
But the idea of busting the union? What would it be like then? Labor unions fought to give us the 8-hour day and safe working conditions. We often forget the value of the traditional American labor union and how it helped shape our history and freedoms we enjoy in the workplace today.
I've seen the efficiency of non-union shops versus union shops. I worked at Boeing for 9 years. I declined to join SPEEA (engineers union). Many of my friends and my brother in law are in the IAM and are on strike.
I've seen numerous cases of Boeing trying to fire a union memeber. Unless they break security regulations, it's a very difficult task. The union protects their lazy workers. I don't like seeing 20% of the people doing 80% of the work.
They have a legal right to unionize, but most unions, including the IAM, have become more detrimental than useful, in my opinion.
"Boeing projects in its World Air Cargo Forecast 2004/2005 that the air cargo industry will grow at an average annual rate of 6.2 percent over the next 20 years, significantly higher than passenger traffic. The forecast also projects that China's domestic air cargo market is expected to grow annually at a rate of 10.6 percent, the world's highest growth rate."
This is really going to be a boom industry in the near future. Converting all the 47's to freighters and combi's is going to be big and will open the market to new sales of the 787. Looks like this will work out well for Boeing. Is Airbus on the cargo band wagon yet, I wonder? They're still trying to figure out how to build competitive Tankers, LOL.
You're right about the union creating lazy workers, especially in the IAM. They don't even have incentives to work harder. Promotion is all based on hire-in date. They do try to keep good workers during layoffs, I have seen that happen. SPEEA is a closed shop now, too. You have to join or pay an agency fee (same dues as union) or be a Beck-objector and can pay dues to a charity of choice.
My brother was a union machinist in the midwest and now a nonunion machinist, and he walks on eggshells all the time now. Some people, who are not productive, can find any means to continue their charade, but it seems like management is putting more language into the contract to correct that. I know in SPEEA, you can get laid off as "designated" meaning you have no recall rights. So the situation is being corrected.
I know people in professional nonunion jobs, very highly productive people, where their employment could be terminated by a whim of a manager who didn't happen to like their mood that day. Is that any better?
Good observations.
I am one of those professionals who can be terminated on a whim of my boss. But that's now how successful companies are run. Good bosses know that they need to keep productive employees. Bad bosses usually don't have much opportunity to fire people, since people will generally get the heck out of Dodge rather than work for a flake. So the system works better that way, IMO.
And my conseravtive philosophy tells me that a company should be able to hire/fire at will.
Good point. Good take on the successful business world. But that is a perfect world, too. Is it necessarily conservative philosophy to hire/fire at will? I have a conservative philosophy, so I wonder.
But, you know, Boeing is very successful and it still works with its unions. I wonder how that happened? I think if management is smart, they can use unions to their advantage.
For example, because of all the scandals going on there, they wanted all employees to sign an ethics commitment. Many employees refused, but the union supported it, so union members complied. It worked well for the company.
The company has a strong cohesive workforce in its union membership that the Company can use to its advantage, if it is smart. I know some engineering management leaders that are doing just that. I think both sides benefit. It might be really hard to bust the union, so maybe it is smarter to work with it? Don't know what's best.
It doesn't seem like outsourcing is a big issue anymore, imo. It is here to stay. There's nothing stopping that train.
I'm hopeful that it will evolve into what you want, since Boeing will likely not bust the union.
Hiring and firing at will is covered by the freedom of association, in my view. I don't want to have the obligation, as an employer, to hire transexuals and poofers, for example.
Good insight. So many things seem to go full circle, don't they? Or ebb and flow.
Outsourcing goes to areas where the labor is cheapest, but then those areas start demanding higher wages and better living conditions, and production finally comes right back to this country because of the better infrastructure to distribute the goods and services.
I have seen that with manufacturing. Quality is often very poor in the third world countries, so those products are starting to come back the U.S.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.