It took time just like in any other project, but they are here now.

Amongst those involved in economic development, both young and not that old, there’s a popular saying: “promotion is not a speed race, it is an endurance race” -which applies in many things in life.

Yes, anyone who understands the subject knows that for a new company to invest in another country is not like selling a used car. And no, it would sometimes take years s for an investment to happen -at least 1 or 2, no exceptions- and that’s just considering what’s right in front of our eyes.

No one knows exactly how long it takes for a company to make its internal plans, projections, decisions. They start all their research process and you don’t fit out until much later. The bottom line, it is a long cycle.

Castle Metals was one of these cases.

Castle Metals is part of a conglomerate called AM Castle, a U.S.-based company headquartered in Oak Brook, a Chicago suburb.  With over 120 years of experience and over 55 plants worldwide, Castle mainly supplies the oil and gas industry, as well as the aerospace industry.

They were invited to Baja by their client, Collins Aerospace -formerly Goodrich and UTC Aerospace Systems.

Goodrich wanted their supplier to be as close as possible, and since the negotiations took years (dating back to 2008) to materialize, they had time to analyze different scenarios.

They looked over several cities and even though the possibility of starting through a logistics company that would control their inventory, warehouse, and so on (the famous “3PL”) also crossed their minds, they realized they would have to operate it themselves, with their logo on the building.

Goodrich served as the host during the process. They introduced them to everyone: the government, the developers, the shelters. Since they already had an operation in Monterrey, there was not much need to explain the “ABC’s” of doing business in Mexico; there wasn’t a need for the developers to make a great sales pitch, it was simply a matter of making themselves available and offering a good service.

Several went to see them at his plant in Paramount, CA and they were always, always willing to receive. Although there was not much news to share for those who wanted to speed up the project, they always opened the door. Likewise, in the events and expos that they participated in, they were always willing to give the State a space in their agenda (such was the case of the “Farnborough” or the “Paris Air Show”).

Even with the fact that they were already oriented to Baja, they took on the task of familiarizing themselves with the local environment.

Little by little, they began to see growth in the installed industry, especially that which represented an additional market for them and that was attractive to them. They even saw opportunities in the automotive industry.

Nowadays Castle Metal has an operation of approximately 40 employees, dedicated to providing different services and metal products (cutting, heat treatment, machining; aluminum, carbon, stainless steel, etc.); and in their own words “they are impressed with the caliber of the people”.

As shared in the local paper “La Cronica” back in 2012