Archived news files for December 2003
Return to Current News

Vantage Plane Plastics Groundbreaking Ceremony a Huge Success
December 1, 2003

On November 19, 2003, Vantage Plane Plastics was the honored guest for a ground breaking ceremony conducted at the Alva Regional Airport (AVK) in Alva, Oklahoma. The event, hosted by the county economic development board, area chamber of commerce, and the airport board, was a true banner waving for this growing company and community. Several state and local dignitaries were present to participate in the ground breaking and provided words of support and encouragement to the company and its leadership.

Newly appointed Division Vice President, Scott D. Brown, addressed those in attendance with heartfelt gratitude and visions of growth. Among the items discussed was the announcement of an agreement with Luscombe Aircraft Company to become their production manufacturer of interiors, an agreement which has been in the works for several months. Mr. Brown stated his enthusiasm about this Luscombe aircraft and encouraged those in attendance to go out on the apron and view the two 11E Luscombe aircraft brought to the field for this event. Next he announced to all in attendance that an agreement which is being worked out with Mooney Aircraft Company had been just that morning authorized for release by Todd Bates, Senior Manager of the Mooney Factory Maintenance Center. Under the agreement, Vantage Plane Plastics would become the only factory authorized manufacturer of interior and exterior Mooney replacement parts. Though still in its early stages, Mr. Brown stated there is a drive to complete the arrangement as early as the New Year. "These agreements mean we are entering a new arena in general aviation and they set the footprint for exciting growth," Mr. Brown said.

The new building, made possible by revenue bonds issued by a city authority, will be located toward the South end of the Alva Regional Airport and will house all of the current operations of Vantage Plane Plastics. Mr. Brown states "the new facility is being built with expansion in mind and will house a state of the art operation." The new twenty-two thousand square foot facility gives the company nearly ten thousand square feet of additional space and places it on an airport. Vantage Plane Plastics intends to equip the new facility with several new items in addition to the existing processes. Perhaps one of the more exciting introductions will be the upholstery shop. The upholstery shop will include carpeting, seat coverings, and upholstered panel assemblies. Future expansion plans have already accounted for the addition of three hanger bays for replacement interior installations. Vantage Plane Plastics has taken customer service in this industry to a new level and being able to provide more and more services is a key part of that service.

To answer the question of why Vantage Plane Plastics has chosen to expand here in Alva, OK, Mr. Brown offered the following;

"Providing superior quality and service are natural parts of rural Oklahoma, and our work force is proud to participate in this industry. Enhancing the processes and equipment with the ideas generated by our work force has added efficiencies which out perform similar manufacturers in larger cities. The refining of our customer service media has been a corner stone in our expansion. With presence of our fully shoppable web site and CD catalog we have advanced our customer access and knowledge significantly. It is our constant updating and expansion of these media that provide confidence in where we are going. Scheduled to release at Sun-N-Fun is a module which allows customers to shop the entire catalog by serial number rather than having to explore each page. The service team we have assembled is committed to customer care and they take pride in their expertise with our products. Perhaps the most critical contributor to this expansion is having a corporate leadership team that is fully supportive of our direction and vision and who had the foresight to purchase this business with growth in mind."

Clearly, this young and aspiring business is making its mark on general aviation and the ground breaking ceremony is one of many mile stones it will achieve. Readers who want to learn more about Vantage Plane Plastics and its parent company can visit the corporate web site, which links to each of its companies, at www.vantageassociatesinc.com.

TOP