1. Ingeniería

Find your place in Aerospace & Defence
on PEI
by Gloria Welton
T
here are 12 aerospace and defence companies
located on PEI. The industry is PEI’s second largest
exporter, and employs about 900 people.
“Depending on individual company plans for growth,
it is forecasted that over 250 more staff will need to
be hired over the next five years,” says Lennie Kelly,
Executive Director of the Aerospace and Defence
Association of PEI.
Aerospace manufacturing, maintenance, repair, and
overhaul is growing faster in Atlantic Canada than
in any other region in the country. The Canada First
Defence Strategy announcement has opened up great
opportunities for industry companies to expand and
for new companies to become established on PEI.
From left: Allan Dale, Business Development, Zack Swick, Design Engineer, Andrew Hall, Engineering Manager,
Fridtof Nansen, Engineering Officer from the Norwegian Majesty’s Ship, Mike Hall, Project Manager, and
Russell Tidbury, Technical Manager. Submitted photo.
Jobs in the sector
• Technicians/Machinists
• Laboratory Technician
• Quality Assurance Technician
• Multiaxis CNC (Computer Numerical Control)
Programmer
• Assembly Technician
• Quality Technician/Inspector
• Sales/Marketing
• Project Manager
• Engineers (mechanical, marine systems,
electrical, software)
• Finance (Controller, Administration)
• Production and Fabrication
• Repair & Overhaul Technician
• Warehouse Support Staff
• Operations Manager
• Management
• CNC Precision Machinists
• IT Analyst
• Human Resource Manager
• Production Planner
• Logistics Coordinator
• NDT Technician
• Customer Support Specialist
• Airframe Technician
• Production Technician
• and many more
To explore careers further, check the career booklet
Find Your Place in Aerospace at
www.aerospacepei.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/
10/aerospace_booklet_FINAL.compressed.pdf
Company profile: Portsmouth Atlantic
Which jobs are hard to fill?
• Machinist
• Engineer
• Controller
• Specialty positions (PLC programmer, PVD Engineer)
• Advanced skills that can’t be taught in-house
• Project Manager
• Management
Training and education available on PEI
• Gas Turbine Engine Repair & Overhaul Technician
- Holland College
• Precision Machinist - Holland College
• Electromechanical Technology Program
- Holland College
• Harvard Business School Leadership Programs
• Outreach Engineering Management (OEM)
Masters degree program
University of PEI Engineering Program
UPEI introduced a full engineering degree program
in 2014.
The province has announced a commitment of $16
million to the new School of Sustainable Design
Engineering.
Construction is expected to be complete by the fall
of 2016.
The new program will focus on mechatronics,
bioresources, and sustainable energy engineering.
For more information, visit www.upei.ca and
search engineering.
For more information about the Aerospace & Defence sector on PEI,
call 902-892-3177. Visit www.aerospacepei.com
eers
i.com/car
ospacepe
www.aer
Recently, Portsmouth Atlantic secured a $1.75
million contract with a South Korean shipbuilder.
This contract will supply air filtration units for a
ship to be built in Korea for the Royal Norwegian
Navy. All the design work for these innovative,
high tech modular units will be done by the
engineering team on PEI.
“Portsmouth Atlantic was established in Canada to
capitalize on the Canadian National Shipbuilding
Procurement Strategy,” says Allan Dale,
Portsmouth Atlantic’s Business Development
Manager. “This is a large government purchase for
the Canadian navy and the coast guard.”
About the staff
There are presently four staff members, three of
whom are mechanical design engineers.
Is it difficult to find engineers in
Atlantic Canada?
“When hiring, we look for mechanical engineers
with a shipbuilding background and an
understanding of the marine industry. In Atlantic
Canada, we have a good pool of qualified people
and solid opportunities in the industry.”
Hiring needs
“Our current staff number is sufficient to handle
the requirements of this contract,” says Allan.
“Although we appreciate potential candidates
wanting to join us, we are not ready to hire just yet.
“In the near future, we might need to hire three
or four people if we get another contract. We will
ramp up our resources when new orders come in.”
The company offers on-the-job training
opportunities for engineering students. “We fully
intend to continue to offer students on-the job
training as we go forward. We want to educate the
next generation coming into the industry.”
For more information about Portsmouth Atlantic, visit www.portatl.com/on-station
For the full interview, visit www.employmentjourney.com and search Portsmouth Atlantic.
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February 2015