2021 SUSTAINABILITY PERFORMANCE

PRODUCT SAFETY

At Textron, our success in pushing the boundaries of what’s possible requires a disciplined and thoughtful approach to the safety and quality of our products. Because our products are complex and often used in highly demanding environments that are extensively governed by state, federal, and international regulations, our businesses have developed and maintain rigorous processes designed to ensure quality and safety throughout the product lifecycle. This commitment to quality and safety begins with product development, extends through the manufacturing process, and continues throughout the customer’s use of our products. Our businesses’ quality and safety programs are stringently and consistently reviewed to ensure they meet the specific regulatory guidelines and rules applicable to the products offered by that business.

Textron’s aircraft manufacturing businesses, including Textron Aviation and Bell, design, certify, manufacture and support commercial and military airplanes and vertical lift aircraft. All aspects of these business operations are thoroughly regulated by civil and military airworthiness authorities, as applicable, including the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, the US Department of Defense, Transport Canada and the European Aviation Safety Agency. These governmental bodies issue extensive and detailed safety regulations and requirements, and compliance with these regulations is central to the operations of our aviation businesses. The safety regulations and requirements cover not only the design and certification of aircraft, but also continuing airworthiness support after aircraft are delivered. For their post-production fielded aircraft, our aircraft manufacturing businesses monitor service and production data for their products, identify issues or events that might affect the operational safety of their products, and interface with the Federal Aviation Administration or other applicable aviation authorities. We continually improve our products’ reliability, durability and safety through the issuance of Service Letters, Service Bulletins and model specific communiques which are available to owners, operators and repair stations on the companies’ respective customer portals.

Textron’s defense businesses develop and manufacture products to the specifications and standards established by our U.S. Government customer. Any proposed engineering changes to a product must be submitted to the Government customer as a formal engineering change proposal and must be approved by the Government customer prior to implementation. Military products are subject to rigorous testing, including safety testing, during development and must meet all required specifications before they are accepted by the Government customer upon completion.

Textron Specialized Vehicles (TSV) manufactures products that are governed by various voluntary and mandatory industry standards designed to ensure quality and safety. Additionally, for its consumer products, TSV must comply with the Consumer Product Safety Act and other statutes and regulations enforced by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission or similar domestic and foreign administrative bodies. To ensure compliance with these standards and laws, TSV assesses quality and safety throughout the design, manufacturing, and finished product stages, which includes comprehensive testing of product design, components and finished products. When safety or quality issues arise during product development and manufacture, or on products that have already been sold, TSV utilizes a multidisciplinary review process to identify and address product issues, and, when necessary, undertake recalls, field fixes, and public communications to address identified concerns.

Leadership teams across Textron are committed to ensuring that safety and quality are an essential part of their business. Similarly, through consistent training, a positive safety culture, and rigorous adherence to process, each of our employees is an integral part of product safety commitment. Finally, when circumstances require, our businesses routinely work with government agencies to evaluate safety incidents and work to incorporate lessons learned into our products and services.