Aircraft tooling maker to expand, add jobs

Aircraft tooling supplier Raptor Manufacturing is expanding and adding jobs.

The 5-year-old company plans to have a $2.1 million, 33,580-square-foot building constructed for it at 2252 S. Hoover, and add 12 jobs in the next five years.

The 28-employee company founded by Kevin Payne received Wichita City Council approval Tuesday for up to $3.6 million in industrial revenue bonds and a 63.5 percent property tax abatement for five years, which is renewable for another five years.

The 12 new jobs will have an annual average salary of $57,250, according to city documents.

Raptor’s new building will be developed by Allen Williams of RAW Investments, and leased to Raptor. Raptor plans to invest $900,000 in new machinery and equipment.

Raptor was started in 2012 and manufactures tooling for aerospace companies. It is a supplier to Textron Aviation, Spirit AeroSystems, Ducommun, Gulfstream and Lockheed Martin. The tooling it manufactures include assembly fixtures, trim tools, hot form dies, hammer dies and holding fixtures, according to a news release from the Greater Wichita Partnership.

Payne said in the partnership’s news release that he expects the new building to be completed in late 2017 or early 2018.

“We have the opportunity to grow because we deliver high-quality, on-time solutions and products to our customers,” Payne said in the release. “Now we’re looking forward to hiring more people and providing even more to customers.”

This story was originally published June 20, 2017 at 10:55 AM with the headline "Aircraft tooling maker to expand, add jobs."