Montana manufacturers eye trade deal

Small rules trip up small companies in the world of foreign trade, which is why Lewistown’s Spika Mechanical interested in the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Spika makes fine-tuned catwalks that allow technicians to work on every square inch of U.S. war craft without ever setting foot on their high-tech surface. The company also makes similar products for helicopters, jumbo cargo and refueling planes.

U.S. manufactured aircraft tend to flow to other countries once free trade agreements are forged. The Trans-Pacific Partnership, a proposed 12-nation trade agreement among Pacific Rim countries, could help Spika get a foot in the door of TPP countries.

By Tom Lutey

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