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EQUAL HOUSING
LENDER

An unassuming kibbutz factory produces vital
military aviation equipment.

STEVE RODAN SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

RATES ARE DOWN!

BANCORP
MORTGAGE INC.

A Small Business
Turns Big Profits

F

rom the outside, the tin-
roofed building looks emp-
ty. Overlooking the
one-story structure is a
donkey stable. Nearby is a chick-
en coop.
The factory is about the most
unassuming you could imagine.
The company has only 10 em-
ployees, and many of its prod-
ucts can be held in the palm of
your hand.
But Maoz has found a niche
where small is profitable. It is
the leading Israeli designer and
manufacturer of illuminated
plans for control systems in jets,

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bank
&trust

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48

miles southeast of Jerusalem in
the West Bank which, company
officials say, has not presented
a problem for either Israeli or
foreign customers. The mar-
keting office is in Herzliya.
The kibbutz-owned factory
started out by printing signs. In
1982, then-Defense Minister
Ariel Sharon visited the plant
and designated Maoz to manu-
facture the panels on the cock-
pit of the Kfir fighter jet.
The new direction required re-
training. While the 39-year-old
Ron, an engineer by training,
had little difficulty adjusting, his

VISIT ONE OF OUR LOCATIONS
NEAR YOU OR CALL OUR
TELEBANKING CENTER
AT
(810) 355-2400 TODAY!

BERKLEY
Todd Hegler
(810) 546-2590
SOUTHFIELD
Kevin Swords
(810) 355-9831

BIRMINGHAM
Norm Lining
(810) 646 8787
WEST BLOOMFIELD
Greg Kane
(810) 855-6644

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ANNUAL FERCENTAGE YIELD EFFECTIVE AS OF JULY 14. 1995. RATES SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE. - PENALTY FOR EARLY WITHDRAWAL 652500 MINIMUM BALANCE REQUIRED.
STATEMENT FEES MAY REDUCE EARNINGS IF BALANCE IS NOT MAINTAINED.

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11 11111.1 !it

helicopters and tanks. The com-
pany has served as a subcon-
tractor for big defense firms such
as Israel Aircraft Industries,
Rafael, Elbit and El-Op.
Yossi Ron, Maoz's director, did
not attend the Paris Air Show
last month. He was too busy
handling the new batch of or-
ders, from Israeli and foreign
companies, for Maoz's line of
panels. Some of the panels are
illuminated for aircraft cockpits
and atinored vehicles; others are
for night-vision goggles in heli-
copters.
Mr. Ron says the company
had revenues of $400,000 in
1994 and he expects sales to in-
crease this year.
Maoz is a long way from Sili-
con Valley. Its headquarters are
in Kibbutz Migdal Oz, about 15

Th ;

employees were taught on the
job.
Half of the tiny workforce is
composed of kibbutz members.
The other half lives either in
Gush Etzion or in Jerusalem.
The building itself is shared by
another kibbutz firm that man-
ufactures belt buckles and trin-
kets.
Maoz production manager Yi-
gal Friedman, 42, arrived from
Tashkent in Uzbekistan five
years ago. He says that kibbutz
members mingle well with out-
siders: "In the realm of motiva-
tion and production, there are
no problems."
Like the big boys in the de-
fense industry, Maoz has been
affected by the worldwide drop
in military expenditures. But
like many of the country's mili-