WASHINGTON D.C., May 5, 2021 –Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) is a multi-trillion-dollar emerging aerospace sector.  Nations around the world are engaged in a highly competitive race to achieve technological superiority and market dominance with electric Vertical Take-off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft.  For the U.S. to stay in and lead this race, it must harness America’s innovative scientific, technical, production, and capital market strengths across products and services unique to AAM.

NEXA Capital is pleased to announce the formation and funding of a national consortium of U.S. companies and organizations fully committed to developing and launching this integrated supply chain solution.  The consortium will be led by i5 Services LLC., the long-term partner of the National Association of Manufacturers and its Manufacturers Marketplace (https://manufacturersmarketplace.us) electronic exchange platform.

The goal of the consortium will be to apply its expertise in advanced aerospace systems, eVTOL technologies, manufacturing, electronic exchange platforms, business process improvement, and supply chain optimization to aid the U.S. UAM/AAM sector to maintain its leadership.

To facilitate rapid advancement of AAM aircraft, the consortium will use the powerful CONNEX electronic exchange platform which links Tier 0 American eVTOL developers to a wide range of local and national suppliers in areas such as:

• Motors, propellers and power control systems
• Energy storage systems including Lithium Ion and hydrogen fuel cells
• Avionics including flight control, radio and inertial navigation, surveillance, air to ground communications, and pilot assistance
• Composites and aerodynamic structures
• Software, Command and Control and Artificial Intelligence
• Traffic Management Systems
• Improved Heliport Safety Systems

The CONNEX instantiation for AAM will use an integrated national approach to supply chain management and will also address national security concerns, keeping U.S. intellectual property firmly in the hands of U.S. industry.  It will also attract more private investment as well as non-dilutive capital to the sector.

Air Mobility Connex^TM currently has thousands of U.S. companies supplying sectors including aerospace and defense, aviation and more.  Additional companies will continue to be added for the next few weeks which will result in close to 25,000 AAM companies being represented by the end of May 2021. The system will be hosted on an ongoing basis by i5 Services and by the Vertical Flight Society, ensuring the fullest and broadest possible linkages to the eVTOL development and supplier community.

The consortium will also be supported by experts drawn from Apicem Analytics LLC and Crown Consulting Inc., each familiar with supply chain disciplines critical to implementation and wide-spread adoption by the Advanced Air Mobility community.

The AAM CONNEX Platform is currently operational and available through:

https://airmobility.connexmarketplace.com

or on the Connex Marketplace website at:

https://connexmarketplace.com

The specific Advanced Air Mobility instantiation of CONNEX will be available for eVTOL Supply Chain registration on May 4, 2021.  It will make use of membership rules widely in place today with the National Association of Manufacturers’ “Manufacturers Marketplace”.

Furthermore, the Consortium pledges to work closely with federal agencies including the FAA, NASA and DOD in recognition of their valuable contributions to vertical flight and Advanced Air Mobility.

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About NEXA Capital Partners:  NEXA is an investment bank and the project financing advisor for this program.  NEXA has funded hundreds of millions of dollars in worthy aerospace projects since it was founded in 2007.  NEXA also has years of business consulting and work experience in aerospace supply chain optimization. With offices in Washington DC and Chicago IL, NEXA works closely with government and industry organizations that drive regulatory requirements vitally important for the aerospace and airline sectors. http://www.nexacapital.com/

About i5 Services:  For most of this past decade, i5 has worked to develop a robust tool – CONNEX^TM – for national and regional supply chain, workforce, and R&D connections. The solution provides public, member, and confidential data that is accessed through secure, role-based permissions. The supply chain visualization, risk assessment, and exchange center connections (surplus materials, RFI’s, RFP’s, RFQ’s and other needs) have set the solution and i5 apart as pioneers and leaders in the industry. https://i5services.com/

About Apicem Analytics LLC:  Apicem has deep experience in industrial supply chain strategy, process and workforce optimization and procurement management.  Apicem designs resilient and effective supply chains leading to increased aerospace sector growth.  Apicem will provide relevant expertise in supply chain management, business and data analytics, electronic platform implementation, and project management. https://www.apicemanalytics.com/

About the Vertical Flight Society:  The Vertical Flight Society is the world’s premier educational and technical organization for vertical flight — including leading eVTOL advocacy efforts since 2014 — and provides collaborative and technical resources for eVTOL developers across the supply chain.  A 501(c)(3) educational not-for-profit, the society was originally founded in 1943 and currently has 6,000 individual members around the world. VFS is the tradename for the American Helicopter Society International, Inc. https://vtol.org/

About Crown Consulting Inc.: Crown is a world-class aviation consultancy with significant experience in business process improvement, for industry and government clients.  Crown also is a world leader in AAM and UTM fields.  Crown has worked with the DoD, FAA and NASA for over 20 years, and is familiar with their mission, multiple priorities and many processes.  It will bring this expertise to the effort to ensure that NASA and other agencies are fully represented during the Project. https://www.crownci.com/

For further information, please reach out to the following media contacts:

NEXA media contact: Eleanor Herman
NEXA phone : 202-499-5056
Email address: eleanor.herman@nexacapital.com or michael.j.dyment@nexacapital.com

i5 Services contact: Alan Davis
i5 Services phone: 800-560-2857
Email address: alan.davis@i5Services.com