US aerospace supplier Rockwell Collins Inc expects total 2008 commercial jet orders to come in between 1,000 and 1,500, the company's top executive said on Friday.
That's down sharply from the roughly 2,750 combined orders reported by Boeing Co and Airbus, a unit of France's EADS, for 2007 but a rate the industry can sustain over the longer term, said Clay Jones, Rockwell Collins' chief executive.
"It's actually healthy to get to that steady state," Jones said in an interview on the sidelines of a meeting of the Business Council in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. "Because if you get the kind of order rates we've seen the last three years, it does build a healthy backlog; but now the backlog has gotten so big that getting into the market is hard. It's like you waiting for a car or a TV for three years."
Jones also said the company is in talks with Boeing about financial consideration related to the effects of the delay in the launch of the 787 Dreamliner. Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based Rockwell has said the delays could reduce its cash flow by $70 million to $80 million this year, though it would expect to recoup that money next year.
"We're in talks with Boeing about whether we get any consideration for that," Jones said. "It's going to be a tough conversation, obviously, because they've got their hands full. We should know by the end of this quarter what they are going to do."