Groton — It’s a “momentous” time for the aerospace industry. That was the message from Sergio Loureiro, vice president of global supply chain at jet-engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney.

Growth has been “tremendous” at the aerospace manufacturer, Loureiro told a packed room of more than 100 people from Connecticut and around the world.

“Right now we have about 7,000 engines in the backlog and growing,” he said. “Long gone seem to be the times where Pratt is still trying to stay on the market.”

Loureiro was one of several speakers Monday at the state’s second Aerospace and Defense International Trade Summit being held at the Mystic Marriott. The three-day event brings together representatives from more than 16 nations and 10 prime contractors, offering Connecticut defense and aerospace suppliers the opportunity to make vital industry connections and learn more about the contracting process.

U.S. Rep Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, compared the summit to a “reverse trade mission.”

“Instead of trips abroad to connect with potential customers, our small precision manufacturers can meet dozens of prime contractors” without having to leave the state,” he said. “It is an efficient, cost-effective venue for Connecticut’s talented suppliers to connect with growing opportunities in defense, aerospace and shipbuilding.”

The supply base in the aerospace industry is smaller than in the automotive industry, for example, because of the strict requirements, Loureiro said.

“It is a little bit incestuous,” he said, adding that it takes a while to develop and certify new material.

Pratt & Whitney has a network of more than 800 suppliers to support the manufacturing of its jet engines used in the civilian realm by major airlines and by military. Those suppliers are responsible for about 8,000 of the roughly 10,000 parts that go into each engine that the company manufactures.

“Before, we used to make close to 50 to 80 percent of the parts,” Loureiro said. “Now there’s been a significant shift in terms of the conversion to the supply chain.”

Pratt & Whitney’s workload is expected to double before 2020.

This year, the company established seven regional centers in East Hartford, San Diego, Calif., West Palm Beach, Fla., Poland and China to bring together experts from manufacturing engineering, quality and procurement to provide on-site support at suppliers. These experts provide training and work on issues directly with suppliers in addition to sharing their knowledge and expertise. Company officials say the centers allow them to be more efficient and productive.

“We have verified that that actually works very, very well in terms of propelling and advancing the state of readiness across our network,” Loureiro said.

The company also will be establishing regional offices in the Midwest and South Asia.

While some of the part-making that Pratt & Whitney used to do has been taken up by small businesses in the state, “quite honestly, a lot of that is going overseas,” U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn, said by phone Monday.

Murphy has pushed for strengthening Buy American laws in part because many first-tier defense suppliers like Pratt & Whitney are outsourcing more parts to the supply chain, he said.

“We want to make sure those parts stay in the U.S.,” Murphy said.

Some of the company’s supply chain has gone to Poland, according to Murphy. The company’s parent, United Technologies, has a UTC Aerospace Systems plant there. A recent news report indicated that the company also is moving work from Connecticut to Georgia, where it has a facility that rebuilds older jet engines.

Murphy moderated a panel on European defense trends, including the “enormous opportunity” for U.S. defense manufacturers there as a number of European countries seek to expand their defense budgets partly because of Russia’s actions, he said.

“I wish this economic opportunity didn’t come from Russian aggression on Europe’s Eastern front,” Murphy said, “but that’s a reality.”

In procurement sessions not open to the media, attendees heard from various big aerospace and defense contractors like Lockheed Martin and Electric Boat.

The suppliers attending the summit have an array of expertise in areas such as high-temperature alloys and military platforms. Most indicated that they were interested in networking, exploring business opportunities, particularly with tier 1 companies, and learning more about the international supply chain.

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy will give the opening remarks this morning on the third and final day of the summit.

j.bergman@theday.com

Twitter: @JuliaSBergman