BAS Part Sales Has Acquired Aircraft Salvage Competitor White Industries
Posted by BAS | Aircraft Salvage Experts on Mar 3rd 2023
BAS Kansas City Is Officially 1 Year Old!
March 1, 2024
It's hard to believe that a full year has already passed...but it sure has been a wild ride. The original acquisition of White Industries provided BAS with access to a very large and very diverse inventory of aviation parts for both general aviation and biz jet models going back many decades. And we gained 4 amazing people with decades of aviation experience. But we also gained a stagnant business with an out-of-date and out-of-touch business model that was not making its inventory available to the public through modern consumer channels.
One year later, we have changed all of that. The original team of 4 is now as many as 12, depending on the season. The inventory is available on our website and through every other digital marketplace where you can buy aviation parts. We acquired a 15,000 sq ft hangar across the runway (read more) from our headquarters in Greeley for the exclusive purpose of processing and listing the KC inventory that we are trucking home to Colorado. We also have a full-time team in Missouri doing the same thing to make as much BAS Kansas City inventory available to the community as possible.
One year in and we are delighted at the progress we have made and the growth we have created for everyone involved in this huge undertaking. The BAS KC team is well-equipped to support the aviation community worldwide for many years to come. They have the support and the resources they need to get your order processed and out the door rapidly. After a year of constant change and hard work, the BAS Kansas City team is thriving. We are so excited about what the future holds as the BAS empire successfully expands to a multi-state operation while also entering the business jet and turbine aircraft parts market. There are many, many great things to come from your favorite aviation parts supplier.
The White Industries Acquisition - 6 Month Update...
With the passing of the six-month mark, BAS Kansas City is hitting its stride.
We have tripled the staff in Bates City, MO, and inventory is moving out daily. With the addition of Juan Castro in sales (juan@baspartsales.com), BAS Kansas City is seeing a huge uptick in sales activity and we are making deals happen for customers all over the globe. We have added four full-time members to the groundkeeping crew to keep the airfield clean and remove the overgrowth from around the aircraft in the field. Our mechanic team is steadily growing as well. We have also added a full-time researcher who is just getting started with the monumental task of identifying, tagging, photographing and listing the enormous inventory.
The BAS mechanic team from Greeley will make their second trip to Bates City in October to complete the disassembly of 125+ general aviation aircraft. They made a trip to rural Missouri a few months ago and completed the tear down of 101 units. On this next excursion, they expect to knock out over 125 units. They are removing any final components, such as firewalls, bulkheads, doors, etc., from aircraft that have been housed at Harry S. Truman Airport for some time. We are bringing truckloads of Cessna, Beechcraft, Mooney, and Piper parts for a range of general aviation aircraft back to Greeley for processing into our e-commerce storefront.
Our Marketing Director, Clinton McJenkin, spent some time in Bates City with two media personalities over the past few months - Kate Broug and James Webb, a.k.a. Jimmy's World. You can see some snippets of Kate's upcoming show, First Flight with Kate Broug, on our Instagram account. Jimmy was on a cross-country trip with his family and stopped by both BAS locations along the way. Watch Jimmy, Clinton, and Matt Brewe explore the airfield in Bates City on the Jimmy's World channel on YouTube.
Be on the lookout for more media spotlights on the BAS acquisition of White Industries.
Please hit the link to our new BAS Kansas City Facebook page and follow along for updates and some awesome aviation content. And check back soon for more updates!
White Industries Acquisition Update...
It's been roughly 90 days since BAS Part Sales acquired White Industries. A lot has changed in the offices just east of Kansas City. The company has been rebranded as BAS Kansas City. The staff has doubled in size. The airfield has been more active than it has been in over a decade. Trucks are arriving and leaving daily with a wide assortment of aircraft and parts & components heading back to headquarters in Colorado. The mechanic team from Greeley spent a week in the field and completed final disassembly on over 100 general aviation aircraft, sending a tractor-trailer load of parts home to the warehouse.
The activity at BAS Kansas City sales office has increased dramatically. The phones are ringing constantly. The team is shipping parts large and small all over the world. The number of requests for King Air, Cessna jet, Learjet, JetStar, Hawker, Merlin, and Jetstream parts and components has gone vertical. We will continue to post updates as we make more progress in the airfield at Harry S Truman Regional Airport in Missouri.
Until then, if you need parts or components for a business jet or commercial aircraft, call the BAS Kansas City team directly at 816-690-8800. They are ready to get you what you need and get it on the way ASAP!
BAS Part Sales is very excited to announce that we have finally completed the acquisition of our oldest competitor in the aircraft salvage and used airplane parts business...White Industries.
Terry White founded White Industries in 1956, making the business 67 years old. The Facilities in Bates City include a full runway, 170 acres of outdoor airplane storage, and 90,000 sq ft of hangar storage. There are over 2,000 airplanes on the yard ranging from small Cessnas to commercial cargo planes and from completely stripped fuselages to nearly complete aircraft. The four hangars include over 500,000 aviation parts for general aviation prop-driven aircraft and turbine engine airplanes of all shapes and sizes. This acquisition gives BAS a vast entry point into the jet airplane parts business.
“At BAS Part Sales, we are excited about the acquisition, and we know our customers will be thrilled with the sheer extent of the inventory we’ll have to offer. We’re also thrilled to welcome White Industries’ employees to our team, who will no doubt enjoy being part of our intensely customer-focused culture. We’re proud of our exceptional customer service, which goes unrivaled in our industry.”
Jared Boles
President
BAS Part Sales
If you Google White Industries, you will find a treasure trove of articles and images written over the years about a business, and business model, that was unique for a long time. As the years rolled by, the need for used aviation parts became more and more prevalent across the industry as a whole. As a result, white Industries gained several competitors and saw the game change significantly over the years. Without any doubt, Terry White and White Industries was a pioneer in the aircraft salvage business, if not THE pioneer. And our team at BAS is both excited and humbled to have the opportunity to bring the White Industries staff and inventory into the BAS Family.
Here are some of our favorite links related to White Industries
What's Going On At BAS?
Our team at headquarters in Greeley, CO, is excited about the massive inventory that gives us instant access to a whole new group of customers and the 86 years of combined aviation experience we gained with the amazing people that came with this acquisition. Matt, Mike, Cathy, and Mike have been with us in Colorado for a few days onboarding as new BAS employees, learning our system, and training on the new technology and processes they are receiving to bring the antiquated White Industries operation in line with what BAS customers have to expect from us. We are so deligthed to have them and have laughed a lot this week telling war stories and sharing our values and experiences. This group will make a great addition to the family culture we have here at BAS, and they will bring deep experience and knowledge to our existing customers.
BAS customers have grown to love how we do business, which has propelled tremendous growth for us over the past ten years. The new BAS Kansas City will quickly come online to offer the same level of service, the same 90-day guarantee, and the same fast and accurate shipping for jet and general aviation airplane parts and components.
But creating that mirror image of service and detail will take some time. We will start the process of cleaning, researching, cataloging, and listing the Kansas City used airplane parts immediately, but it might take years to get it all done. The goal is to bring as much of that inventory into our existing e-commerce store as quickly as possible. This will require new technology and resources in the Kansas City hangars, new people and processes, and lots of learning and training. But we are up to the task and excited about the possibilities this acquisition offers all of us.
What Does This Mean For White Industries Customers?
Current White Industries customers will see two immediate changes when they call their favorite sales rep...
1 - The BAS Kansas City team will have much more flexibility on pricing. Make an offer, a reasonable offer, and we just might accept it. This acquisition gives Matt and Mike at BAS Kansas City much more authority to wheel and deal with you on big-ticket items. Tried before and couldn't make a deal happen? Try again! BAS is highly motivated to move inventory, so don't hesitate to call and discuss what you need with Matt or Mike and let them know your budget. We will do all we can to make it work for both of us.
2 - In the near term, you will see Matt and Mike moving much faster to get your order handled and out the door. We will be adding staff to the Kansas City location to ensure that Matt and Mike can take care of your needs quickly, without having to personally manage every aspect of pulling the part, researching it, cleaning it, photographing it, etc., before they can make it available to you. Of course, we must hire and train some folks before accomplishing this. But that process is already underway, and you should see a much more fluid, faster customer experience at BAS Kansas City soon.
What Does This Mean For BAS Customers?
BAS customers will have immediate access to a much more extensive inventory of used airplane parts for a much more comprehensive range of makes and models, including business jet and turbine engine aircraft parts and components. If we don't have it in stock in Greeley, we will try to locate it in Kansas City. This process will be manual in the early days, which will take some time. But as we move the White Industries spreadsheets into our e-commerce system, we will steadily have better access to more information. Regardless of which office you call, we can get the part on the way to you from either location. So more choices, more options, more airplane parts, all available to you with the same unrivaled customer service you have come to expect from BAS.
We Are So Excited!
Our team has put in a lot of hard work and long hours to bring this acquisition to fruition. Now that it is done and the new BAS Kansas City team members are on board, we are ready to satisfy even more of your aviation parts needs. Call us today at 970-313-4823.
Read the full press release here - Aircraft Salvage Company BAS Part Sales Announces Acquisition of White Industries