Paco Plastics & Engineering

Aircraft Interior Hardware | Custom Injection Molding | Aerospace Manufacturing

🔍 At a Glance

Company Name: Paco Plastics & Engineering
Location: Santa Fe Springs, CA
Founded: 1948
Shop Type: Custom injection molding and aircraft interior hardware manufacturer
Industries Served: Aerospace
Production Style: Long, stable production runs of high-volume aircraft parts
Machining Capabilities: CNC milling (Haas vertical machining centers)
Materials: Stainless steel, aluminum, engineering plastics
Certifications: ISO 9001, AS9100

🏭 About Paco Plastics & Engineering

Founded in 1948, Paco Plastics & Engineering has spent more than 76 years serving the aircraft industry from Santa Fe Springs, California, combining custom injection molding with machined aircraft interior hardware under one roof. For over 60 years the company has been a Boeing/McDonnell Douglas licensee, holding proprietary and patent rights on aircraft maintenance items such as circuit breaker lockout rings and tags, cable grommets, escutcheons, and speaker grille assemblies.

Paco has also built a reputation as one of the leading designers and manufacturers of aircraft interior galley hardware made from stainless steel and aluminum — locks, latches, retainers, door bolting systems, strikers, and drawer slides among them. Led by President and Owner Greg Dowden, the company is ISO 9001 / AS9100 certified and supplies over 300 companies across the aerospace industry, backed by a long track record of realistic quotes and on-time delivery.

👍 Why You'll Like Working Here

Paco has been making aircraft parts in Santa Fe Springs for more than 76 years — stability that's rare in manufacturing, with generations of institutional knowledge on the shop floor. Working here means running a dedicated production cell rather than bouncing between one-off jobs, with real ownership over quality and output. As a longtime Boeing/McDonnell Douglas licensee under ISO 9001 / AS9100, the shop holds itself to the inspection and documentation standards the aerospace industry demands, and the parts machinists help make end up on aircraft flown by hundreds of companies worldwide.

⚙️ What You'll Be Working On

Paco's Hardware department runs dedicated CNC cells producing high-volume aircraft interior components — door bolting systems, latches, strikers, drawer slides, retainers, and other stainless steel and aluminum hardware — alongside the company's custom injection-molded plastic parts for aircraft interiors and exteriors. Work is organized around long, stable production runs with defined setups, First Article inspection between operations, and in-process test-fitting against mating components to hold the tight form, fit, and function tolerances aerospace hardware requires.

⭐ Shop Highlights

• Family-run aerospace supplier since 1948 (76+ years in business)
• Boeing/McDonnell Douglas licensee for 60+ years, holding proprietary and patent rights on aircraft hardware
• ISO 9001 / AS9100 certified
• Trusted supplier to over 300 companies
• Combines custom injection molding with metal aircraft hardware manufacturing under one roof

🛠️ Machines & Technology

CNC Mills: Haas CNC vertical machining centers running dedicated production cells

📏 Quality & Inspection

Paco is ISO 9001 / AS9100 certified and uses First Article inspection between operations along with in-process measurement and test-fitting against mating components to verify form, fit, and function on every run — standards consistent with its 60+ years as a Boeing/McDonnell Douglas licensee.

💼 Current CNC Career Opportunities

CNC Haas Setup Machinist

View current opportunities and apply through hireCNC.