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FM AMCONSUL MONTERREY
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3012
INFO RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA PRIORITY 0026
RUEHME/AMEMBASSY MEXICO PRIORITY 4000
RUEHXC/ALL US CONSULATES IN MEXICO COLLECTIVE
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
RULSDMK/DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION WASHINGTON DC
RUEHMC/AMCONSUL MONTERREY 8486

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 MONTERREY 000314 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAIR ECON EINV PGOV MX
SUBJECT: NUEVO LEON'S AEROSPACE INDUSTRY LAYING THE GROUND FOR A BIG 
BLAST OFF 
 
REF: A) 2007 MONTERREY 700; B) MONTERREY 306 
 
MONTERREY 00000314  001.2 OF 004 
 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Summary:  The state of Nuevo Leon is having success 
building on its manufacturing prowess to develop a substantial 
aerospace sector, and now hopes to move into more value-added 
technology.  Nuevo Leon's aerospace industry is now the second 
largest in Mexico, with over $300 million in exports to the 
United States.  Although most of the aerospace companies within 
the state are joint ventures that strictly manufacture 
components, a few have moved into engineering and design.  The 
growth of this industry is largely due to a concerted and 
collaborative effort between the state's public, private and 
academic sectors to develop and promote an aerospace cluster. 
Other contributing factors include Nuevo Leon's skilled 
workforce, large pool of talent, relatively low wages, and 
proximity to the border.  However, in order to compete with 
other states and continue to draw investors, Nuevo Leon needs to 
develop more certified aerospace suppliers, provide greater tax 
incentives and encourage more companies to move towards 
value-added technology.  End Summary. 
 
 
 
The Sky's the Limit 
 
 
 
¶2.  (U) Mexico's aerospace industry is on the move, as its 
global exports grew 54% from 2004 to 2006, rising from $606 
million to $943 million.  According to Bancomext, Mexico is the 
thirteenth exporter within the aerospace industry world-wide. 
Mexico also increased its exports of aerospace components to the 
United States from $500 million to $600 million from 2006 to 
2007, a ten-fold increase.  Mexico's aerospace imports are 
growing as well, up 25.6% in 2006 to $506 million.  According to 
Mexico's Secretariat of Economy, aerospace exports could reach 
$2 billion by 2010.  Though the aerospace industry in Mexico is 
still considered to be in its early stages, it has much room to 
grow.  The U.S. Commercial Service recently ranked Mexico's 
aerospace industry as eleventh in the top 20 U.S. markets in 
2007, up from seventeenth the year before.  Nevertheless, 
Mexican aerospace manufacturers account for only 2% of the total 
US import market of about $25 billion. Bancomext forecasts 10% 
growth in the industry for the next 5 years. 
 
 
 
¶3.  (U) The Mexican aerospace industry has shown large growth in 
players, employment and sophistication.  According to 
Jean-Claude Bouche, an aerospace specialist with Monterrey's 
Technological Institute, the number of companies supplying the 
aerospace industry jumped from 450 in 2004 to 650 today.  The 
number of aerospace manufacturers has also increased, from about 
65 in 2004 to about 180 today.  A little over half of these have 
Mexican ownership, although most are joint ventures.  The 
industry now employs about 22,500, nearly double the 12,500 
employed in 2004.  By the end of the decade that figure could 
grow to 100,000, according to a BizNews article published in 
September 2006.  Mexico's aerospace industry is also becoming 
more sophisticated.  Initially, it focused on manufacturing 
processes, building upon its automotive industry.  However, it 
now produces everything from engine and landing system 
components to video systems and interiors, and it is starting to 
move into engineering design. 
 
 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Nuevo Leon is now the second largest aerospace cluster 
in the country, knocking the state of Sonora into third place. 
According to Luis Cabeza, Director of the Center for the 
Development of the Aerospace Industry in Nuevo Leon (CEDIA), 
there are now 20 companies linked to the aerospace industry, up 
from 12 in 2004, with exports to the U.S. totaling about $320 
million.  In comparison, Baja California has 32 aerospace 
companies, and Sonora has 16 firms.  Baja California's companies 
are primarily manufacturers, and only two provide engineering 
and design services,  Cabeza reported that there are 30 Nuevo 
Leon companies nearly ready to enter the industry.  For a 
company to fully compete within this industry, it must be 
certified by Nadcap (National Aerospace and Defense Contractors 
Accreditation Program).  Currently there are only 3-4 Nadcap 
certified companies in Nuevo Leon.  There are now about 3 
aerospace companies in Nuevo Leon that are considered to be E&D 
(engineering and design); Frisa, ICKTAR and ATM Group.  On the 
other hand, one of Nuevo Leon's biggest E&D aerospace companies, 
EG Corporation, recently stopped manufacturing aerospace 
components. 
 
 
MONTERREY 00000314  002.2 OF 004 
 
 
 
 
Shooting for the Moon 
 
 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Since the start of his administration, Governor Jose 
Natividad Gonzalez Paras has been pushing Nuevo Leon to move 
from manufacturing to a knowledge-based economy (reftel A).  For 
the aerospace cluster, the Citizen Advisory Council was 
established in 2004 to bring together the public, private and 
academic sectors to promote the aerospace industry in Nuevo 
Leon.  In October 2007, Nuevo Leon founded the Center for the 
Development of the Aerospace Industry (CEDIA for its initials in 
Spanish).  CEDIA is sponsored by the state government, the Nuevo 
Leon Secretariat of Economic Development (SEDEC), and 
prestigious local university Monterrey TEC.  CEDIA provides 
consulting services to existing and potential aerospace 
companies, and facilitates training and certification for local 
companies, such as Nadcap certification.  A Productive Joint 
Aerospacial Center (CAP) was also created to support and promote 
small to medium sized providers in Nuevo Leon and the 
northeastern region.  CAP is also sponsored by Nuevo Leon, 
SEDEC, and Monterrey TEC.  It offers discounted lab experiments 
in its facility at the TEC, and offers continuous education and 
certificates of training.  Finally, Nuevo Leon last year passed 
a law for investment and state promotion that would allow for 
the provision of tax incentives to key strategic industries, 
including aerospace. 
 
 
 
¶6.  (U) The federal Government of Mexico has enacted various 
programs to encourage nationwide development of the aerospace 
industry.  The GOM offers income tax credit on projects 
involving R&D, immediate capital investment deductions, income 
tax deductions and trade facilitation programs for export 
oriented companies, and payroll tax credits.  Another boost to 
the aerospace sector came with the passage of a U.S.-Mexico 
Bilateral Aviation Safety Agreement (BASA) in September 2007. 
This agreement will promote aviation safety, enhance cooperation 
and increase efficiency in matters related to civil aviation. 
The Mexican Association and Council of Aerospace Education 
(COMEA) was created in 2007 to build the human capital necessary 
to develop the industry.  It is made up of 12 public and private 
academic institutions.  More recently, another missing component 
to the industry was added with the creation of a national 
aerospace industry association known as FEMIA in November 2007. 
FEMIA is composed of aerospace companies in Mexico, such as 
Honeywell, Bombardier, General Electric, and Goodrich, among 
others, and one of its first objectives is to promote a tax 
incentive program.  Finally, Mexico is also in the process of 
creating AEXA, a national space agency similar to NASA. 
 
 
 
The Right Stuff 
 
 
 
¶7.  (U) Nuevo Leon has several advantages that have helped to 
propel its aerospace cluster, principally its large supply of 
skilled workers.  Thanks to its success in developing an 
automotive cluster, Nuevo Leon has a large pool of skilled 
manufacturing workers with transferrable skills.  Nuevo Leon 
also has a large pool of talent since the state is home to 93 
colleges and universities, among them Monterrey TEC and the 
University of Monterrey, as well as the reputable state school 
Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon (UANL).  The TEC has a 
program with the University of Arizona to offer a Master's 
degree in International Logistics, in response to the increasing 
demand for aerospace components made in Mexico, and UANL 
introduced an Aeronautics Engineering Program last summer. 
Nuevo Leon also boasts 5,000 engineering graduates per year. 
Nuevo Leon educates 11% of all engineering graduates in Mexico, 
and in 2006 40% of all students were engineering or technology 
majors.  Nuevo Leon also has the competitive advantage of lower 
wages compared to the U.S., although these tend to be higher 
than in neighboring states.  Lastly, Nuevo Leon's proximity to 
the border makes it attractive to U.S. aerospace companies 
looking to open a plant in Mexico. 
 
 
 
¶8.  (SBU) A good example of Nuevo Leon's success in the 
aerospace industry is the company Frisa.  Previously known as 
Frisa/Wyman Gordon, this company started off as a joint venture 
 
MONTERREY 00000314  003.2 OF 004 
 
 
between the Mexican company Frisa and the U.S. company Wyman 
Gordon, until Frisa bought out Wyman Gordon in 2006.  Currently, 
Frisa is considered to be the second largest titanium and nickel 
rings producer.  It began as a manufacturing company but has 
since moved into engineering and design (E&D).  According to 
Eric Gonzalez, Sales Engineer, Frisa is 'not competing as a 
[company in a] low-cost country,' but has become a world class 
competitor which exports 100% of its products to the U.S. and 
Europe.   All its engineers are homegrown from Monterrey and 
employee wages are comparable to those in the U.S.  Gonzalez 
predicted Frisa would have 100% growth in 2008 and 35-40% annual 
growth in the next four years. 
 
 
 
¶9.  (SBU) Another success story is the relatively recent arrival 
of MD Helicopters, an American company headquartered in Arizona 
which opened a plant in Monterrey in September 2006.  MD 
Helicopters plant assembles fuselages and is expanding 
production from 28 fuselages in 2007 to 68-69 this year, at 
least one per week.  Ignacio Tamez, HR Manager, noted that MD 
Helicopters came to Monterrey because of the lower labor costs. 
Tamez also noted that, although it currently only assembles 
fuselages, they are moving to make their tools in-house.  The 
plant has 5 engineers, all from the U.S.  Note.  Frisa also 
started off using foreign engineers before recruiting locally. 
End Note. 
 
 
 
¶10.  (SBU) Ketema is a company from the neighboring city of 
Saltillo, Coahuila, (45 minutes away from Monterrey) that can 
contribute to the Nuevo Leon aerospace cluster.  Ketema Senior 
Aerospace opened its plant in 2000, and is a UK aerospace 
company which produces engine structures, fluid control systems 
and pressure control.  It is the only one-stop shop in all of 
Mexico, meaning it can manufacture and provide treatment for all 
the parts it assembles.  According to General Manager Aldo 
Rodriguez, despite having a branch office in San Diego, Ketema 
chose Saltillo over Baja because it found the workforce on the 
border to be unstable.  It also found Saltillo to have good 
recruiting sources.  All the plant's employees, including its 
engineers, are from Saltillo.  In addition, Rodriguez reported 
that the Saltillo industrial park, where the plant is located, 
offered good benefits, such as a Shelter Scheme that handles 
payroll administration and applicant screening among other 
things.  He also noted that salaries in Saltillo are a little 
lower than those in Monterrey. 
 
 
 
Monterrey, We Have a Problem 
 
 
 
¶11.  (SBU) Despite the proliferation of aerospace companies in 
Nuevo Leon, a growing issue is the lack of suppliers.  Not only 
are there insufficient companies to provide the products and 
treatment needed, very few are Nadcap certified, as is required 
by most U.S. aerospace companies.   Heat treatment companies are 
especially needed.  Tamez of MD Helicopters reported that they 
have to rely on their U.S. corporate office to make and treat 
the pieces the plant then assembles, which can be very 
inefficient.  He noted that there have been times when the plant 
was down up to 20 days waiting for these pieces to return from 
the U.S.  Currently, there is only one Nadcap certified company 
in Nuevo Leon that provides heat treatment, Procesos Termicos. 
However, the lack of suppliers is an issue not only for Nuevo 
Leon but also for other states with aerospace clusters. 
 
 
 
¶12.  (SBU) Another potential disadvantage is the lack of 
government financial support.  Although both the federal and 
Nuevo Leon governments actively promote the aerospace industry, 
industry sources complain that there has been more talk than 
investment.  Despite Nuevo Leon's recent investment and 
promotion law, the amount of incentives actually offered is 
limited and not as generous as in other states.  In fact, both 
Frisa and MD Helicopters reported that, although Nuevo Leon has 
been very supportive, they were not offered any tax incentives. 
Meanwhile, other states are starting to offer more attractive 
packages, to Nuevo Leon's detriment.  Last year, Bombardier 
opened a plant in Queretaro.  Initially, it had considered 
opening one in Nuevo Leon and was heavily recruited by CEDIA. 
In the end, Bombardier chose Queretaro, apparently because it 
was drawn by the federal government's decision to create an 
 
MONTERREY 00000314  004.2 OF 004 
 
 
Aerospace Supplier Park there offering free 49-year land leases 
and infrastructure costs.  Bombardier also joined up with a 
Canadian university to open an aerospace school in Queretaro. 
Queretaro has become a player, moving from one aerospace company 
in 2004 to six now, and three are firms with engineering and 
design (E&D).   With the addition of Bombardier and its 
aerospace school, Queretaro is well-positioned to develop an 
aerospace cluster that offers more value-added technology. 
 
 
 
¶13.  (SBU) Nuevo Leon must also compete with aerospace clusters 
in Baja California, Sonora, and Chihuahua, among others.  In 
all, there are nine clusters (with at least 5 companies), 
including Nuevo Leon.  Baja California is the largest and has 
the advantage of being closest to California, home to many U.S. 
aerospace companies.  Among the companies that have opened up 
shop in Baja are heavy-hitters such as Honeywell, General 
Dynamics, Tyco, and Delphi.  Sonora, still considered by many to 
be the second biggest aerospace cluster in Mexico, also has the 
advantage of being close to California.  It has a growing 
reputation among the U.S. aerospace industry developed by the 16 
aerospace companies there, most of which are American. 
Chihuahua is another strong competitor with 10 existing 
aerospace companies, including Honeywell and Lockheed Martin. 
In a high-risk industry such as aerospace, where investors tend 
to follow the products, companies that have proven successful 
are bound to attract others.  The big prize will go to whichever 
state manages to land the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer 
Embraer.  Embraer representatives traveled to Mexico in the Fall 
of 2007, and the Nuevo Leon Secretary of the Economic 
Development assiduously recruited them as potential investors. 
To date, however, there has been no word as to when or where 
Embraer will touch down. 
 
 
 
Comment: Will Nuevo Leon Achieve Escape Velocity? 
 
 
 
¶14. (SBU) Comment.  Nuevo Leon's aerospace cluster is clearly 
developing and, like the rest of the country, has much room to 
grow.  Nuevo Leon would do well to follow Frisa's example in 
promoting itself not as a low-cost country, but as a world 
competitor.  However, in order to continue to compete with other 
aerospace clusters, Nuevo Leon needs to develop more suppliers 
and to encourage existing and future companies to move towards 
engineering and design, developing a true aerospace cluster.  In 
addition, Nuevo Leon will have to put its money where its mouth 
is and offer more incentives to lure future investors.  The 
current approach of relying primarily on the private and 
academic sectors to promote and develop this industry in Nuevo 
Leon has been effective in laying the ground for an aerospace 
cluster, but it may not be sufficient to sustain it.  End 
Comment. 
WILLIAMSON