The fact that we're a mile closer to space is just part of the story.
Metro Denver is first among the 50 largest metros for total private aerospace workers with 19,870 people employed at aerospace companies. Colorado has the nation's third-largest aerospace economy and is home to four military commands, eight major space contractors, and more than 300 aerospace companies and suppliers.
The nation's top aerospace contractors have significant operations in Metro Denver: Ball Aerospace, Boeing, ITT Corporation, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Sierra Nevada Corporation, and the United Launch Alliance. The Metro Denver and Northern Colorado region also has a strong cluster of companies involved in geospatial technologies, remote sensing, imaging, and related industries and ranks first out of the 50 largest U.S. metros for private aerospace employment.
Metro Denver companies are leading the nation's most significant space contracts. Centennial-based United Launch Alliance was awarded a $600 million NASA contract to provide launch services, data tracking, and other support in four different missions. Boulder-based Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. is the prime contractor for NASA's Kepler Mission to search for rocky, Earth-sized planets around other stars.
Along with major DoD and NASA research activities, Colorado is the U.S. center for military space. The state's four military commands – the primary customers for space-based research, development, acquisition, and operations – ensure industry growth.
The region's universities and research centers are leading the charge to educate the next generation of aerospace workers. The Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at CU-Boulder is the most experienced university-based center in the world for all aspects of spacecraft operations and producing world-class science data products.
And there's support and advocacy for space through the Colorado Space Coalition, a group of stakeholders in Colorado's space industry whose volunteer efforts promote the industry regionally and nationally.
Here, you'll be part of a high-powered, established aerospace industry in a location that also happens to be a great place to live. In an atmosphere like this, it's no wonder that aerospace companies thrive and prosper at 5,280 feet.
Document Downloads
Industry Associations