Cooksey Communications
Ross Perot Jr. and Jim Irwin, center (L-R), join company officials and civic leaders for the grand opening earlier this month.
Aircraft Spruce & Specialty Co. and its sister company Aero Performance marked the grand opening of its new 38,000-square-foot distribution center inside AllianceTexas.
Aircraft Spruce & Specialty Co., opened in 1965, is a supplier for aircraft builders, owners, pilots, and aviation businesses. Aero Performance, founded in 2002, is a leading distributor for aviation product manufacturers, including parts to corporate operators, flight schools, military and government customers nationwide.
“We’re honored to be in the aviation hotbed that is AllianceTexas,” said Jim Irwin, president of Aircraft Spruce & Specialty Co. “My parents founded Aircraft Spruce in the basement of our family home in 1965, selling only aircraft grade spruce.”
Jim and Nanci Irwin assumed leadership of the company in 1980 in Fullerton, California. Their three sons represent the third generation of family management.
In addition to the Irwins, Roanoke Mayor Carl E. "Scooter" Gierisch joined Ross Perot Jr., chairman of Hillwood, developer of the 27,000-acre AllianceTexas, at the March 8 ribbon cutting. Additionally, more than 400 customers, industry leaders, and guests of Aircraft Spruce and Aero Performance were in attendance.
Hillwood Construction Services was the general contractor on the new distribution center, which replaces a 10,000-square-foot facility in Fort Worth where the company operated since 2014.
“North Texas has long been synonymous with aviation and aerospace excellence, with major industry players such as Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, Bell Textron, American Airlines, Southwest Airlines and Boeing’s Global Services all calling Dallas-Fort Worth home,” said Perot. “And it’s great to see a family-owned company like Aircraft Spruce continuing its growth at AllianceTexas.”