Grant to Fund Tech Center at El Camino College

Small aerospace suppliers that have been hit hard by defense cuts and foreign competition can expect some help from a $13-million federal grant awarded this week to California’s community colleges for the creation of a manufacturing technology center.

The center, to be based at El Camino College near Torrance, is mainly intended to help small aerospace businesses shift from defense to civilian manufacturing by providing them with new technology and production techniques.

The U.S. Commerce Department grant will be released in installments over the next six years and will be supplemented by another $20 million in cash and in-kind contributions from the state and California’s community college system. California has about 6,000 small aerospace suppliers, 60% of which are in the Los Angeles area, state officials say.