PNAA’s Inspire Award honors businesses and individuals in the aerospace community that have shown exceptional creativity in working with schools to share the activities of manufacturing in an overall effort to cultivate interest and skills leading to aerospace careers.

Founded in 1957 as a vocational school for students with disabilities, today Orion Industries is proudly providing career pathways to individuals with barriers to employment, such as learning disabilities, low incomes, homelessness, and mental health concerns. With headquarters in Auburn, Washington and an additional facility in Mukilteo, Washington, Orion Industries believes that everyone should have the opportunity to work and that it has a responsibility to serve its community. Orion Industries’ nationally recognized Transitional Employment Model uses operations in its aerospace manufacturing division, Orion Aerospace, as a platform to teach people job skills through a combination of classroom instruction and paid training, including mentoring and internship programs.

In addition to providing training, Orion Aerospace, the manufacturing business, supplies funding for Orion Industries to advance its social mission. Orion Aerospace is an award-winning manufacturer of precision structural assemblies and parts for aerospace and defense clients all over the world. It provides a full suite of manufacturing services, from assembly to precision custom milling, as well as wire harnesses and cable assemblies to the major OEM’s and Tier 1’s. Orion Aerospace has received eight consecutive Boeing Performance Excellence Awards and is a three-time recipient of the Global Boeing Supplier of the Year Award.

Orion Industries’ record of successful placement of individuals in the workforce is impressive.  In 2019, Orion provided paid, on-the-job training to 372 people and placed 125 into living wage jobs. Of the people Orion served in 2018, 96% were living at or below the federal poverty level and 82% of those served had one or more disabilities. Over the past 10 years Orion has supported over 2,300 people in its training programs and have placed almost 1,000 people into careers.

When the Covid-19 pandemic forced schools in the state of Washington to shift to remote learning, Kristina Pressley, Orion’s Human Resources Manager, spearheaded the effort to organize Orion’s Learning Pod.  Kristina and Orion’s staff formed a cooperative to provide a safe supervised space and learning resources for children of employees. Orion’s Learning Pod consists of 20 children from 13 families and 6 school districts. Nikki Malcolm, PNAA Chairwoman, notes “Orion’s out of the box thinking created a way for their employees to be at work and relieve some of the stress that parents are facing with homeschooling and working a full-time job.”

At the organizational level, Orion has a simple belief: good jobs change lives. Orion devotes itself to its program participants and strives for excellence in everything it does. It offers hope and creates paths to employment through building esteem, mentoring, training, education, community services, and successful businesses.