High Flier

The government shutdown and sequestration that dominated national news for parts of 2013 nearly derailed growth plans at a Manatee County manufacturing business.

That firm, Honeycomb Company of America, an aftermarket manufacturer of aircraft parts for the military, didn't lose any contracts, President and CEO Steven Walker says. But opportunities for new business shrank. Competition, further, multiplied because other firms squeezed by the shutdown sought new business lines.

Walker, for one, is glad the threat, for now, has passed — though he recently hired some federal government consultants to keep tabs of the situation.