Quick answer: Aviation Technical Services (ATS) is one of two heavy-aerospace anchors at Paine Field — the second-largest aerospace employer in Everett, with about 800 workers across a 500,000-square-foot airframe MRO hangar and a 50,000-square-foot component repair shop. For Snohomish County aerospace suppliers, ATS represents an aftermarket revenue channel that runs countercyclical to Boeing factory production: when new-aircraft deliveries slow, MRO work expands. Suppliers serving consumables, structures, avionics, and rotables can sell into both the Boeing factory and the ATS hangar from the same campus.

For Snohomish County Aerospace Suppliers: How Aviation Technical Services Anchors the Aftermarket Side of Paine Field

If you supply Boeing in Everett, you already know the new-aircraft side of the local aerospace economy. The 737 MAX 10 North Line is activating this summer. The 777-9 program is ramping into a delivery wave anchored by Lufthansa’s just-confirmed Q1 2027 first acceptance. The KC-46 program is delivering on a steady Air Force cadence. That is the side of the business that drives most of the supplier conversations in Snohomish County.

The other side of Paine Field — and the second-largest aerospace employer in Everett — is Aviation Technical Services (ATS). About 800 workers. A 500,000-square-foot airframe Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) hangar at the south end of the airport. A 50,000-square-foot component repair facility next door. The largest single MRO operation on the U.S. West Coast.

For Snohomish County aerospace suppliers, ATS is not a duplicate of Boeing. It is a different revenue channel — the aftermarket — that operates on a different cycle and rewards a different supplier posture. This is the supplier guide.

The Aftermarket vs. New-Aircraft Distinction Suppliers Need to Make

Boeing factory demand is driven by aircraft production rates. When Boeing announces a rate increase — Rate 47 on the 737 line is the public number for this summer — supplier demand follows on a multi-month lag. When Boeing slows or pauses, suppliers feel it on a similar lag in the other direction.

MRO demand is driven by airline fleet utilization, scheduled maintenance intervals (A-checks, C-checks, D-checks), and unscheduled events (in-service damage, corrosion, modification programs). It moves on a different cycle. Notably, when new-aircraft deliveries slow, airlines extend the service lives of existing airplanes — which produces more MRO demand, not less. The aftermarket runs countercyclical to factory production.

That countercyclical property is the strategic value of ATS for a Snohomish County supplier. Selling into both Boeing and ATS smooths your demand curve.

What ATS Buys

The work scope at the Everett ATS campus is heavy MRO on Boeing 737 NG and MAX, 757, 767, 777, and Airbus A320 family aircraft, plus component overhaul on rotable parts. The supplier categories that flow through that scope:

Consumables — fasteners, sealants, adhesives, paints, abrasives. Heavy MRO consumes consumables at industrial scale.
Sheet metal stock and skins — repair work generates demand for replacement structural materials in the same alloys factory work uses.
Composite materials — increasingly relevant on 777 and A320 family work as composite content rises.
Avionics components — line-replaceable units (LRUs), wire harnesses, connectors, and the test equipment that validates them.
Structural assemblies — bulkheads, frames, ribs that come off airplanes and need to be supplied as repair stock.
Rotables — actuators, valves, pumps, generators, APUs, components that go through the 50,000-square-foot component repair facility.
Tooling and fixtures — MRO tooling overlaps with factory tooling but with a heavier lean toward portable, airframe-specific fixtures.
PPE and safety — fall protection, respirators, hearing protection at hangar scale.
Industrial services — non-destructive testing (NDT), specialty cleaning, plating, surface treatment, hazardous materials handling.

The Geographic Advantage Suppliers Should Be Pricing

If your facility is in Snohomish County, you have a logistics advantage at ATS that suppliers in other regions cannot match. Most MRO inputs are time-sensitive — a hangar with an airplane in a check window cannot wait two weeks for a fastener. Same-day delivery from a Snohomish County supplier to the south end of Paine Field is achievable. Suppliers in Texas, Florida, and overseas cannot match that turn.

That advantage is not theoretical. Many ATS purchase orders go to local distributors precisely because the campus is on the same airport, on the same Airport Road, in the same county as the supplier base that grew up around Boeing. If you are a Snohomish County aerospace supplier and you have not built a relationship with the ATS purchasing function, you are leaving same-day-delivery margin on the table.

The Workforce Picture

The 5,200-worker aerospace shortage in Snohomish County affects ATS the same way it affects Boeing. Suppliers who help solve workforce — apprenticeship programs, training partnerships, recruiting pipelines, contract labor for surge periods — have a relationship-building lever at ATS that strict component sales do not always offer. Workforce-adjacent suppliers should be in that conversation.

How to Get Into the ATS Supply Chain

ATS, like other large MRO operators, runs a procurement function with vetting requirements: quality system audits, AS9100 or AS9110 alignment for relevant categories (AS9110 specifically governs MRO suppliers), FAA-aligned documentation practices, and on-time delivery histories. A Snohomish County supplier already qualified to Boeing’s standards is positioned to qualify at ATS with relatively modest incremental work — but you have to actually run that incremental qualification process.

Practical first steps:

Map your current product lines against the ATS work scope (737/757/767/777/A320 airframe MRO, plus component repair).
Identify which of your Boeing-qualified product lines have direct MRO equivalents.
Confirm AS9110 if you serve MRO end-customers; AS9100 alone may not be sufficient for MRO supplier status.
Build a same-day-delivery pitch around your Snohomish County address. That is your real edge.

What 2026 Means for ATS Suppliers

Two things put ATS in a particularly useful position for suppliers right now:

Lufthansa just confirmed first 777-9 delivery slips to Q1 2027. Slips like that often correlate with airlines extending the in-service life of existing widebodies — which means more MRO demand on 777-200, 777-300, and 767 platforms. ATS sees that demand directly.

The 737 MAX 10 North Line is activating this summer. New airplanes flow into airline service over the following years and become MRO inventory roughly five to seven years after delivery. That is a multi-decade tailwind, not a one-quarter event.

For a Snohomish County supplier, the rational read is: build the ATS relationship now, while the strategic visibility is high and competitors elsewhere may be focused only on the Boeing factory side.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is ATS the same as Boeing?

No. ATS is an independent commercial MRO operator at the south end of Paine Field. It does heavy maintenance on airplanes already in airline service. Boeing builds new airplanes at the north end of the same airport.

What aircraft programs does ATS support?

The Everett facility services Boeing 737 NG and MAX, 757, 767, 777, and Airbus A320 family aircraft, plus rotable component repair across those fleets.

What quality certifications matter for ATS suppliers?

AS9100 and AS9110 are the dominant quality system certifications across aerospace and MRO supply chains. AS9110 specifically governs MRO suppliers; AS9100 is the broader aerospace standard. Suppliers serving MRO end-customers should map their certifications against both.

Why is MRO countercyclical to new-aircraft production?

When new deliveries slow, airlines extend the service life of existing airplanes, which generates more MRO demand. When deliveries accelerate, the existing fleet still comes due for scheduled checks on its established maintenance intervals. The two cycles tend to offset.

How big is ATS in the Snohomish County aerospace economy?

ATS is the second-largest aerospace employer in Everett after Boeing, with about 800 workers in Everett. Within the larger Snohomish County aerospace cluster — which includes thousands of suppliers, ZeroAvia, the Boeing factory, and Paine Field general aviation — ATS is the dominant MRO operator and the largest such operator on the U.S. West Coast.

Where do I start as a new supplier interested in selling to ATS?

Map your product lines to the work scope, confirm relevant quality certifications, and approach the procurement function with a same-day-delivery proposition built around your Snohomish County address. Local suppliers carry a logistics advantage that out-of-region competitors cannot match on time-sensitive MRO inputs.

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