New Embraer facility in Fort Worth wins 2024 Impact Award

New Embraer facility in Fort Worth wins 2024 Impact Award

Published on January 07, 2025

This year, the new Embraer maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility in Fort Worth was recognized by Business Facilities editors by awarding it a 2024 Impact Award for Advanced Manufacturing.

These awards showcase corporate relocation and expansion investments that are having, or are expected to have, a significant impact on the communities in which they are located. Economic development organizations submitted entries for projects announced or taking place between September 2023 through 2024.

This is Fort Worth's second year in a row to win an Impact Award for a project, having won in 2023 for a new Siemens manufacturing facility.

"Our 2024 Deal of the Year winners represent billions of dollars in capital investment and thousands of jobs for the communities in which these companies and their suppliers will operate," said Anne Cosgrove, Business Facilities editorial director. "We congratulate the economic development teams that worked to bring these projects to fruition."

Project background

In October, Embraer - a multinational aerospace corporation and the third largest producer of civil aircraft worldwide - announced its significant investment in Fort Worth through the creation of a new MRO facility, which will increase the company's capacity to serve their growing U.S. market of E-Jet customers by 53%.

Embraer has committed to a capital investment of $57 million, including $42 million in real property improvements and $15 million in business personal property. The project is expected to generate more than $1.2 million in gross net new taxes for the City of Fort Worth, and create 250 full-time jobs by late 2029.

"We have a longstanding relationship with the state of Texas and look forward to our partnership with Hillwood at Alliance, and the opening of this new service center will create hundreds of highly skilled jobs in a vital segment for the aviation industry," said Carlos Naufel, president and CEO of Embraer Services & Support, as part of the project announcement.

"This recognition in Business Facilities is more proof that the Fort Worth economy continues to build momentum," said Robert Allen, president and CEO of the Fort Worth Economic Development Partnership. "At the Fort Worth Economic Development Partnership, we worked closely with Embraer's team to make this happen. We believed that Fort Worth's robust aerospace and defense sector was the perfect place for Embraer. We are happy they agreed to make the move. And we are excited to see the lasting impact this will have on the industry and Fort Worth's continued growth."

Embraer's new facilities will be located at a 16-acre greenfield site in Fort Worth's AllianceTexas corridor - a 27,000-acre master-planned, mixed-use development by Hillwood that is one of North Texas' most formidable economic engines, having generated an estimated $119.8 billion in regional economic impact over the past 35 years.

Embraer expects to begin operations in 2025 within an existing hanger near Alliance Airport, while Hillwood constructs a second state-of-the-art hanger nearby, which should be complete by 2027.

"We are excited to welcome Embraer, a global leader in aviation, to Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport and North Texas," said Ross Perot Jr., chairman and CEO of Hillwood, when the project was announced. "This new facility will bring 250 high-quality jobs to Fort Worth and North Texas, further strengthening our region's role as a key hub for aerospace innovation while ensuring that Embraer can efficiently support its expanding fleet of commercial jets in the U.S. We are proud to be a part of this exciting new chapter in their growth."

Building momentum in aerospace and defense

Fort Worth is one of North America's leading aerospace and defense hubs, and is home to more than 600 aerospace and defense companies - including heavyweights like Lockheed Martin and Bell. The six-county Fort Worth region also employs more than 23,500 individuals in the sector.

"Denton County is proud to support the Embraer project, recognized with the 2024 Deal of the Year Impact Award in Aerospace," said County Judge Andy Eads. "This award reflects the power of regional collaboration and the project's significant impact on our local economy and community. We congratulate Fort Worth on this well-earned recognition and celebrate the partnerships that made this achievement possible.

The application for the Business Facilities Impact Award also noted Fort Worth's momentum in the aerospace industry. When the application was submitted in November 2023, the city's recent project wins included the expansion of GE On Wing Support Inc., AVX Aircraft Company's new headquarters at AllianceTexas, in addition to Embraer. These projects collectively represent more than $120 million in capital investment, and will bring more than 350 jobs to Fort Worth.

"It's exciting to see the Embraer project receive this notable recognition from Business Facilities, which builds upon Fort Worth's well-established foundations in aerospace and aviation," said Robert Sturns, director of economic development for the City of Fort Worth. "We're grateful to the company and to our local partners for their collaboration to make this state-of-the-art MRO facility a reality."

The Fort Worth team is also grateful to Mayor Mattie Parker, District 10 Councilmember Alan Blaylock, City Manager David Cooke, and City of Fort Worth Aviation Director Roger Venables for their support on the Embraer project.

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• Business & Economy
• District 10