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At an awards ceremony last evening (Nov. 13), the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada (AIAC) announced the 2018 winners of three industry awards recognizing achievement and excellence in Canadian aerospace.
Viking Air Ltd. received the 2018 James C. Floyd Award, and the winners of two new Industry Excellence Awards were also recognized: Dr. John MacDonald, co-founder of MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates received the Lifetime Achievement Award, and Mannarino Systems and Software received the Small Business Innovation Technology Award.
“The winners honoured at yesterday’s awards ceremony highlight the lasting impact that Canadian innovation and ingenuity has had on global aerospace achievement,” said Jim Quick, president and CEO of AIAC. “Each of our winners’ achievements are recognized around the world and continue to change the aerospace and space industries each day. On behalf of AIAC’s board and members, I thank Viking Air, Dr. MacDonald, and Mannarino Systems and Software for their commitment to Canadian aerospace, and I am proud to congratulate them on their recognition last night.”
About the winners:
James C. Floyd Award – Viking Air Ltd.
Viking Air Ltd. is the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for several legacy de Havilland and Canadair aircraft types, including the iconic Canadian Chipmunk, Beaver, Otter and Twin Otter aircraft. Their 400-series Twin Otter modernized the globally-renowned Canadian design and relaunched it as a powerful twenty-first century aircraft, an achievement that cemented Viking’s role as a major Canadian aerospace manufacturer.
Viking also recently acquired the entire Dash 8 program from Bombardier. Once completed, Longview Capital, Viking’s parent company, will become North America’s largest turboprop aircraft manufacturer with close to 2,000 employees in Victoria, B.C., Calgary, Alta., and Toronto, Ont. Committed to Canadian supply chain development and manufacturing innovation, Viking epitomizes Canadian aerospace excellence and achievement.
Named after the chief designer of the Avro Arrow, the James C. Floyd Award recognizes visionary individuals or teams whose outstanding achievements have to the success of the Canadian aerospace industry. The 2018 award was sponsored by Bell Helicopter Textron Canada.
Industry Excellence Award, Lifetime Achievement – Dr. John MacDonald
Dr. John MacDonald is the co-founder of MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates, which is known today as MDA, a Maxar Technologies company, and has a pan-Canadian workforce of nearly 2,000. His vision of a technology company in British Columbia to help stem the outflow of talented engineers and scientists from the province served as a catalyst for the high technology sector in B.C., which today employs over 100,000 people.
In addition to his industrial leadership, Dr. MacDonald served as an adviser to governments in Canada and abroad on science, technology and industrial policy. For his extensive contributions to this country, he was named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1988.
Through these achievements, Dr. MacDonald has created a lasting legacy and has contributed to making Canada a world leader in space technology.
The Lifetime Achievement award is presented to an individual whose distinguished lifetime achievement through the exploration, development or utilization of aviation, space, or defence have led to their wide recognition as a “champion” of aerospace industry. Winners are celebrated for their outstanding leadership, commitment, promotion and consistent contribution to the continuous development of aerospace in Canada. The 2018 award was sponsored by Rockwell Collins.
Industry Excellence Award, Small Business Innovation Technology – Mannarino Systems and Software Inc.
Over 20 years, Mannarino Systems and Software Inc. grew from a one-man consulting firm to a company employing 60 engineers and analysts, providing safety-critical engineering services to a multitude of customers throughout North America and recently in South America and Australia.
In 2016, it was awarded the first ever service-based Design Assurance Organization for airborne software and electronic hardware by Transport Canada Civil Aviation–a worldwide first for a service-based company. In 2017, it was awarded Lockheed Martin Aerospace’s largest ever offset investment into a Canadian SME, enabling it to develop and commercialize its own proprietary airborne software products and complement its existing engineering and certification services offering.
Today, Mannarino Systems and Software has established itself as a world-class engineering services firm specializing in the aerospace, defense, space, simulation, power generation and rail industries, and as a software product company.
The Industry Excellence Award for Small Business Innovation Technology recognizes a business whose advanced or innovative technologies have contributed to making Canada a strong and rapidly growing innovation economy and made a positive impact in the industry and community. The 2018 award was sponsored by Bolloré Logistics.
