FDH Aero’s expansion fuelled by contract wins and long-term partnerships
Amid rising global demand for aircraft orders, supply chain specialist FDH Aero is growing its presence across Europe and Asia to meet demand. Chief operating officer, Jason Lewis explains what’s driving the company’s global expansion.
A global leader in supply chain solutions for aerospace and defence companies, FDH Aero, which has its roots in California, currently operates across 14 countries. Having recently launched its hardware division in April of this year and celebrated multiple contract wins in recent months, the company is on a global expansion drive across Europe and Asia.
In addition to opening a Center of Excellence in Bremen, Germany last summer, FDH is expanding its Singapore facility to better serve customers and support growth across Southeast Asia. The company has also established a new sales office in Bengaluru, strengthening local inventory and support for customers throughout India.
“What has really positioned us as a global leader for our partners in the industry is the relationships we’ve developed, the contract wins with our supply base and the long-term strategic partnerships we have created in growth regions,” explained Jason Lewis the company’s chief operating officer.
Regional fulfilment
FDH Aero’s ability to respond to customers as rapidly and efficiently as possible has been a key driver of its growth. “Having a local presence and being strategically positioned by region across the globe means that we can respond to challenges and deliver solutions for our customers at pace,” Lewis noted.
With a local presence across the Americas, as well as in Europe and Asia Pacific, FDH now features distribution centres based within each of those regions to support its customers. “From a commercial perspective this expansion enables us to provide day-to-day support for multiple customers, while our supply chain team works with our global network of suppliers to ensure rapid delivery for customers,” he added. It’s about providing better inventory visibility, faster fulfilment and stronger technical support, all tailored to regional demand.
Boosting business in Bremen
The opening of FDH’s facility in Bremen in July 2024 marked a milestone for th company, tripling its warehouse capacity in Europe and enhancing global supply chain capabilities. Adding that FDH is already an established solutions partner for Airbus’ helicopters, defence and space, Lewis added that FDH’s expansion in Bremen will build on its relationship with Airbus to supply a broader range of critical components, while strengthening its role in supporting the manufacture of new aircraft to meet global demand.
By integrating local expertise and a broad inventory FDH is “able to support streamlined procurement and simplify the supply chain,” driving long-term success for all customers.
Lewis added, “We’ve also maintained a local presence in France and expanded our reach with Airbus’ helicopters through our Center of Excellence at FDH’s headquarters in Commerce, California.
Global supply chain challenges
Addressing the ongoing global supply chain challenges currently affecting the industry worldwide, Lewis expressed a positive outlook. He affirmed that such hurdles create valuable opportunities to support customers. “Lead times continue to be a concern, however FDH is actively collaborating with customers to deliver critical components through long-term agreements,” he said.
The company’s reorganisation into electronics, hardware and defence aftermarket divisions – which began in 2023 with FDH Electronics – is also helping to simplify the supply chain for customers and suppliers, delivering streamlined solutions that combine global scale with local expertise.
Lewis also highlighted the benefits of initiatives such as FDH’s Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) which allows the company to position inventory directly at the customer’s production line. “This ensures they don’t have to worry about having fasteners on hand to build their products,” he explained. “In addition to that, we are strengthening our strategic relationships with suppliers to gain supply chain and lead time advantages. This enables us to ensure our customers benefit from consistent, trustworthy, reliable support.”
