Engineers fly forward with jet deal
A YORKSHIRE engineering company has won a £4m contract with the world's biggest supplier of aeroplane landing equipment to work on the Eurofighter jet.
Burdon Engineering has won the five-year deal with Messier-Dowty, a global leader in the design, development, manufacture and support of aeroplane landing gear systems.
The firm's landing gear is used on more than 19,500 aircraft, which make more than 35,000 landings every day.
Burdon, based in Stokesley, North Yorkshire, will work on landing systems for the Eurofighter, also known as the Typhoon, and is investing in new machinery following the contract win.
The deal, which will see Burdon move into a new sector of the aerospace industry, also means the company will work on the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner as well as the Airbus A340 on behalf of Messier-Dowty.
Burdon has also worked for clients including Rolls-Royce, Aston Martin, Caterpillar, and Volvo Aerospace.
Barry Hindson, Burdon's managing director, said: “By investing in the very latest technology Burdon is able to compete for the best contracts in the market place and this is one we are certainly delighted to have won.
“Every time we win a contract like this it is good news for us in terms of credibility within the aerospace industry and good news for the local economy.”
The Eurofighter Typhoon is made by European Air Defence Systems. The aircraft has a top speed of 1328mph – just under twice the speed of sound.
Eurofighter is being used by the Royal Airforce, the German Luftwaffe and the Italian and Spanish Airforces. Austria has bought 15 typhoons and Saudi Arabia has signed a £4.43bn contract for 72 of the combat craft.
Burdon is presently undergoing a £20m expansion programme that will bring an extra 85,000 sq ft of buildings for manufacturing, office, warehousing and assembly space.
The company also expects to recruit a further 150 staff over the next five years.
