WASHINGTON, Sept 10 (Askume) – The head of aerospace and defense giant RTX (RTX.N) said on Tuesday that finding qualified workers for aerospace plants is “a problem” as global supply chains remain strained in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. “The challenge is that workers are a key issue”.
“The supply chain has not recovered yet,” Executive Chairman Greg Hayes said at the Global Aerospace Summit hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce. RTX is studying alternatives to its roughly 2,000 Chinese suppliers in case geopolitical tensions suddenly escalate, he said, adding that RTX is ensuring all of its critical parts are dual-sourced.
RTX is reviewing its options regarding Chinese suppliers.
“We’re trying to mitigate geopolitical risk – well, today we have 2,000 suppliers in China. What if this happens, we don’t know what will happen if this happens,” explains Hayes. “So again, we’re working proactively, not by recalling suppliers or pulling out of China, but by making sure we have options when something bad is discovered.”
A Chinese attack on Taiwan would force the US government to impose sanctions on China, which could have a significant impact on US companies. After Russia invaded Ukraine, RTX stopped purchasing from Russian suppliers.
There are 14,000 RTX suppliers worldwide.
“We monitor them every day, not only on their delivery performance and quality, but also on their financial health and their employees,” Hayes said. “Even today, finding qualified people to develop some of these products is still a challenge. There are significant challenges and I’m concerned that even though demand improves, the situation is not improving.”
(The title in paragraph 2 of this article has been changed to Executive Chairman, not Chief Executive Officer.)
