Towards an aerospace system of production in Mexico?

In recent years, some well-known aerospace companies have established manufacturing facilities in Mexico, a new comer to this industry. Based on the ILC-PLC theory, the objective of this work is to understand how these firms achieve the production of aircraft parts, which require specialised knowledge, in a country that has not yet developed a strong system of knowledge-producing organisations to support high technology activities. A survey applied to 30 aerospace firms in Mexico, interviews with regional development offices, and specialised magazines are the information sources of this work. The results reveal that these firms are mainly devoted to manufacturing processes, some of which are complex and require firm-external sources of knowledge. When this happens, these firms usually resort to their headquarters. Much investment is needed to create more knowledge-producing organisations targeted to the sector. For this investment to be more efficient, targeting some technical areas could be a good strategy.