Aircraft emergency exit marking and cabin lighting systems manufacturer, STG Aerospace, begins 2022 on a high note, thanks to a focus on adding more value to customers.
Despite another tough year for the global aerospace industry, STG Aerospace witnessed good recovery through 2021. It expanded the team, secured launch customer KLM for its latest generation emergency exit system (saf-Tglo® SSUL-X) and introduced a business wide, cross functional Kaizen Council to drive its continuous improvement journey.
Additionally, STG was among the first UK manufacturers to bring its products to life using the ADS Digital Cabin. The digital cabin is an interactive virtual environment which allows potential customers to visualise STG’s solutions within the cabin.
“When the pandemic hit, our industry collapsed,” STG Aerospace CEO, Grant Bennett, said. “90 per cent of the world’s commercial airliners sat on the tarmac as borders closed and passenger air travel became virtually non-existent.
“In order to survive these circumstances, we had to act fast to protect our people and our Company. This included new innovations, such as the ADS Digital Cabin, the development of solutions for new applications and, most importantly, a change in approach.
“Put simply, we have moved from a business which creates products, to one which provides customer solutions. We’ve always offered excellent customer service and guidance. This is now at the forefront of everything we do – and it’s enabling us to solve our customers’ problems. This process has allowed us to pull expertise and innovation from every corner of the business – including design, certification and production.”
STG made significant changes to its health and wellbeing strategy. This included the introduction of an externally provided Employee Assistance Programme to offer 24/7 confidential support, plus virtual coffee breaks, appointing six mental health first aiders and robust on-site safety measures. As well as organising a variety of events throughout the year to raise funds for chosen charity, Orbis, whose mission is to fight avoidable blindness globally.
Grant commented, “Our team worked incredibly hard throughout the pandemic, ensuring that despite the challenges, we didn’t miss a single customer shipment. As these interruptions that disrupted the aerospace industry were bound to take a toll on our employees, we knew we needed a proactive approach.”
Clearly the hard work hasn’t stopped, as STG was granted 12 new patents in 2021, with a further four awaiting submission. These patents support the Company’s continued focus on product development and innovation.
The business has also had success internationally, with the Miami office awarded the ISO9001 accreditation. The team passed the audit with no non-conformities – an exceptional result that the business is very proud of.
“Despite the challenges thrown our way, the STG family has gone above and beyond in 2021. I’m immensely proud that given these challenging times, 15 internal recognition awards were awarded throughout the year. These are where team members have been nominated and celebrated for living our values, or ‘The STG Way’, as we like to call it.
“We’ve shared some great successes through an incredibly tough time and I’m so proud of the way the business has overcome and moved forward. Above all, we’ve kept everyone safe, protected the lives and livelihoods of our colleagues and maintained business continuity throughout the year. We are looking forward to new developments and product launches through 2022, plus many other exciting opportunities.” Grant added.
