He said that becoming certified takes administrative time that he does not normally have . “ It ’ s hard to find time to hunt for work and bid on projects normally .” In this case , he said he had the time to work on it , because new orders were slow .
However , being freed up to work in AS9100 was one thing , but lying awake at night worrying about financials was another . “ We received some grants and loans , which helped quite a bit .” But he said he has a family of seven , and “ We still had to put food on the tables .”
Just like most small business owners , keeping work in the pipeline is critical , and for many it dried up during the pandemic — even for the big players .
But Aaron said that the certification paid off immediately , as the first customer following certification gave them a big order .
Other than the certification though , how does a small operation in Sumas , Washington compete ? Aaron said that he gets incredibly involved in trade groups . “ It ’ s a rare bird for someone to show up at my doorstep and buy something . Large corporations don ’ t have to do a lot of outreach .” But for TNT Aerospace , Aaron said , “ I attended a lot of Zoom meetings in 2020 .” Otherwise , he said he goes to PNAA ( Pacific Northwest Aerospace Alliance ), AFA ( Aerospace Futures Alliance ) and PNDC ( Pacific Northwest Defense Coalition ) association meetings .
“ Nothing in this business just comes to you . I set up the dominos in 2020 and am now working to knock them down ,” he said with a laugh . He said that credentials like AS9100 , “ don ’ t normally come in a box this small ,” referring to the size of his business .
With five employees , the question is not how many people you have to produce it , but that you can get it done . “ The certification gave us an air of legitimacy and it set us apart . The competition ( other small machine shops ) were not punching above their weight ; we were ,” Aaron added .
28 NORTHWEST AEROSPACE NEWS