Chris Morisse Vizza, cvizza@jconline.com

Greater Lafayette will have a presence during Indiana’s economic development mission to the United Kingdom next week.

Jody Hamilton, director of economic and community and workforce development for Greater Lafayette Commerce, is one of 20 people who will accompany Gov. Mike Pence on a July 12-19 visit to the southern coast of England.

Hamilton said she will spend the majority of her time at the Indiana Economic Development Corp. booth at the Farnborough International Airshow in north Hampshire.

“My role with IEDC at previous trade shows and in this event is to help sell the state of Indiana, and more importantly, the Greater Lafayette area in terms of economic development,” she said.

“It’s more exposure for Greater Lafayette and Indiana to talk about the companies we’ve been able to recruit, and talk to prospects about quality of life, our skilled workforce, local government collaboration and so on.”

The biennial airshow attracts more than 100,000 visitors. More than 1,500 exhibitors from 35 countries will showcase products and discuss developments in the aviation and aerospace industry, according to its website.

Alcoa and GE Aviation will be among the exhibitors, and Hamilton said she will be supporting those companies as well as marketing new business opportunities.

Lafayette’s Alcoa plant manufactures aerospace components, and GE Aviation announced in late March that it will build a $100 million jet engine production plant on the south side of Lafayette.

The goal is to keep Greater Lafayette and Indiana out front on the international business map, said Hamilton, who has participated in trade missions to Japan, China and around the U.S.

What’s different about this trip is that the governor will be thanking the aviation companies that have invested in Indiana, as well as recruiting new investors, she said.

Hamilton has been reading up on the aviation industry so she can better discuss planes and components. Sightseeing is not on her radar.

“After going through all of these economic development opportunities, I’ve learned it all comes down to relationships,” she said.

“You don’t get the return on investment right away. You’ve got to continue these relationships, and eventually you will get the capital investments, the job announcements.”