Family Values
This exponential expansion is understandable when one realizes that fast growth is a Gauld family tradition. Gauld is the oldest of five biological brothers, but his parents, who worked in Canadian public service, also became foster parents in a generous, self-sacrificing act that added children to their home big-time. “There were up to like 10 kids at a time in our home. My parents were always compassionate and helping out the next of kin and the like, so we were brought up with those values of helping others. Because of my parents, I want to make my family, my company, my community, and even my planet better,” says Gauld.
Gauld left that full house to find himself in college. “I was searching a little for my future and mission in life. I started and fizzled out in a few subjects, but then discovered industrial engineering and got my master’s degree from Polytechnique Montréal.”
After graduating, Gauld stayed in “The Paris of North America” to build Camaros for a couple of years at General Motor’s Montreal plant before it closed shop. Afterwards it was on to Peugeot automotive manufacturing in the original France. Then he and his wife, Valery Lapointe, decided it was time to move back to Canada after their third child was born. Gauld became the maintenance manager for Pratt & Whitney Canada in Saint-Hubert, Quebec. After working in aftermarket strategy there, he founded Optima Aero and started building his company from the basement up.
Building often requires patching holes. “We’re filling holes in the rotorcraft space by providing serviceable parts from helicopters. Our vision is to be the leader in extending the economic life of helicopters by reusing the most possible assets we have,” Gauld explains. “We’re cleaning up the yard, basically, by harvesting legacy parts and reducing the carbon footprint related to manufacturing new parts.”
600 Times
Reducing carbon footprints has become a cliché among corporations, but for Gauld, it’s a motivating force that drives his business. He explains, “In cooperation with my alma mater, we’ve created a calculator that estimates carbon reduction related to reusing parts in aviation and in general.” He says the calculator estimates — and this makes ears perk up — that reusing parts reduces carbon emission by 600 times the weight of the part. “For example, manufacturing a new one-pound part from raw materials emits 600 pounds of carbon into the environment throughout the mining and manufacturing process; when we reuse that part, we avoid those carbon emissions,” Gauld explains.
While this calculated conclusion gets attentive ears, Gauld realizes reducing carbon emissions is not music to every ear. “Now obviously, we work in Texas and realize there is some pushback against such carbon savings by thinking they are not that valuable or important, but what I’m saying is why not make the best use of our resources and assets; that’s low-hanging fruit. It’s better to have a clean backyard than a dirty backyard.”
Fantastic Four
For the still skeptical, Gauld makes a value proposition on behalf of his company. “There’s four values that we provide to the industry: cost reduction by buying less expensive serviceable parts; parts availability in this age of supply- chain challenges; increased cash flow for our customers by buying assets from them; and carbon reduction by making the best, most efficient use of existing assets,” he says. To reinforce this best-use philosophy, Optima Aero’s Canadian operation even makes best use of its roof by growing a garden on it in the northern sunshine; employees enjoy their summers by taking home a weekly harvest of fresh veggies. (Do they grow okra and tomatoes? Just asking for a friend:))
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