bobdina
08-20-2009, 11:38 AM
Tinker cuts ribbon on facility in old GM plant
By Rochelle Hines - The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Aug 19, 2009 15:20:48 EDT
OKLAHOMA CITY — Tinker Air Force Base officials showed off Monday the new addition to the Tinker Aerospace Complex inside the shuttered General Motors Assembly Plant.
Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., was on hand for a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house at the addition, where workers will repair and maintain Air Force and Navy aircraft engines such as the TF33 and the F-117.
The 76th Maintenance Wing operations and other defense missions will be housed at the facility. Several operations already have moved into the building, and the 76th Commodities Maintenance Group began transferring its sheet metal shop into the building last week.
About 100 employees work in the building now, and about 800 will be housed there by the end of the year, officials said. Because of an increased workload, the 76th Maintenance Wing will hire 500 new employees.
State officials are keenly interested in keeping open Tinker, the state’s largest single-site employer, with about 25,000 workers.
Since acquiring the old GM plant, the Air Force has spent about $22 million on renovations, including lighting, reflective floor coverings and other upgrades.
“We are looking forward to moving additional workload into Building 9001 and the flexibility that the facility brings to the [Air Logistics Center] for meeting the current and future needs of our primary customer — the war fighters,” said Col. Randall Burke, plans and programs director for the center.
By Rochelle Hines - The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Aug 19, 2009 15:20:48 EDT
OKLAHOMA CITY — Tinker Air Force Base officials showed off Monday the new addition to the Tinker Aerospace Complex inside the shuttered General Motors Assembly Plant.
Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., was on hand for a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house at the addition, where workers will repair and maintain Air Force and Navy aircraft engines such as the TF33 and the F-117.
The 76th Maintenance Wing operations and other defense missions will be housed at the facility. Several operations already have moved into the building, and the 76th Commodities Maintenance Group began transferring its sheet metal shop into the building last week.
About 100 employees work in the building now, and about 800 will be housed there by the end of the year, officials said. Because of an increased workload, the 76th Maintenance Wing will hire 500 new employees.
State officials are keenly interested in keeping open Tinker, the state’s largest single-site employer, with about 25,000 workers.
Since acquiring the old GM plant, the Air Force has spent about $22 million on renovations, including lighting, reflective floor coverings and other upgrades.
“We are looking forward to moving additional workload into Building 9001 and the flexibility that the facility brings to the [Air Logistics Center] for meeting the current and future needs of our primary customer — the war fighters,” said Col. Randall Burke, plans and programs director for the center.