Boeing has a very complex supply chain consisting of several international and domestic suppliers with a wide range of financial arrangements from direct ownership to contract arrangements. Due to the specialized nature of the final product, every part has to meet a specified standard of quality. Although it is possible that some supplies may be purchased on the open market, I was unable to find any that are. A fully assembled 737 has 367,000 parts, an equal number of bolts, rivets and other fasteners, and 36 miles (58 kilometers) of electrical wire (Brady, n.d.). Boeing has made significant improvements to both the training and technology implemented in the 737 production processes since the introduction of the “Lean Academy” in the 1990’s …show more content…
Performance is a large factor that is considered in the supply base because it is not practical to maintain an inventory that can compensate for variations in production rates of suppliers (Jenkins, 2002). Also, with proprietary components internal capability is essential (Brady, 2018). The decision to outsource component parts is largely based on the supplier’s ability to meet delivery times, quality standards, and quantities necessary to maintain the constant production needs. Unlike the 737, Boeing outsourced as many parts as possible with the 787. The costs associated with inconsistent quality and delivery of component parts backfired costing Boeing billions of dollars and years of delays (Denning, 2013). “Production delays plagued the 787 and the 747-8 programs. Boeing learned painful and costly lessons from its production problems in 1997. Those lessons have been applied to current 737 production plans, company spokesman Adam Tischler said.” (Catchpole, 2017). Critical components for the 737 are increasingly made by Boeing and its subsidiaries, while less complex components and internal assembly of the passenger cabins are more likely to be …show more content…
In March 2015, Boeing started using a new automated system to build wing panels for 737 jetliners (Brady, 2018). The robotic system, known as the Panel Assembly Line, or PAL, drills holes and installs rivets in the wings of a production aircraft (Brady, 2018). PAL replaces older-generation machines that drilled the panels, but left workers the labor-intensive task of installing rivets (Brady, 2018). PAL increases economies of scale in 737 assembly by reducing assembly time while eliminating the risk of occasional injuries and defects (Brady, 2018). PAL cuts injuries in half, slashes defects by 66 percent and reduces production time by 33 percent – and reduces the factory footprint by half (Brady, 2018). In October 2015, Boeing reduced production time for each 737 to 10 days from 11, less than half the time it took to assemble each Boeing 737 in 1999, before Boeing instituted moving lines on the 737 floor (Brady, 2018). While production capacity increased by one-third in December 2015 at the 737 final assembly center’s actual production increased from 38 to 42 737s per month by removing waste that slows production (Brady,
April 16th 1907, Joseph-Armand Bombardier, a Canadian inventor and entrepreneur was born. Bombardier grew up in the eastern Quebec village of Valcourt. The ambitious young bombardier wanted to come up with a solution to make it much easier to travel through the snow-covered roads. Through Bombardier’s earlier years, he started his own garage where he worked and honed his mechanical craft. In his spare time, Bombardier worked hard to create an automobile that could travel easily on snow.
In today’s operational management arena, there are certain expectations from a managerial aspect that must be met in order to be successful. A comprehensive look at the Space Age Furniture Company will show exactly what the Materials Requirement Planning (MRP) calculations are for this company at present time and then take the information given in order to properly suggest ways to improve the sub-assemblies. In addition, there will be an analysis on the trade-offs between the overtime and inventory costs. A calculation will be made on the new MRP that will improve the base MRP. This paper will also compare and contrast the types of production processing to include the job shop, batch, repetitive, or continuous, and determine which the primary mode of operation should be and exactly why. A detailed description on how management can keep track of the job status and location during production will also be addressed. Finally, there will be a recommendation on they type of changes that need to occur that will be beneficial to the company and at the same time add value to the customer. This paper will conclude with summary of the major points.
American manufacturing is moving into new era of proficiency through software based production systems that are qualitatively different than in the past impacting all aspect of manufacturing such as the way companies address customer needs and wants, research and development, the product development and production process, and the platforms and footprints employed in execution, testing, and servicing (Ludwig & Spiegel, 2014).
Executive Summary A key factor in determining a project's viability is its cost of capital [WACC]. The estimation of Boeing's WACC must be consistent with the overall valuation approach and the definition of cash flows to be discounted. Note that this process is a forward-looking focus and is laden with uncertainty. It is how the assumptions are modeled that many costly mistakes can be made.
More than 37 years ago, Rollin King and Herb Kelleher got together and decided to start a different kind of airline. They began with one simple notion: If you get your passengers to their destinations when they want to get there, on time, at the lowest possible fares, and make darn sure they have a good time doing it, people will fly your airline. And you know what? They were right. What began as a small Texas airline has grown to become one of the largest airlines in America. Today, Southwest Airlines flies over 104 million passengers a year to 64 great cities all across the country, and we do it more than 3,400 times a day.
Deregulation for 16 years (1978) has resulted in an icnrease of domestic carriers from 36 in 1978 to 100 in 1985.
Apple’s supply chain is one of the top performing supply chains in the world. According to AMR’s recent findings, Apple was named the best supply chain in the world for a third consecutive year (Apple's Supply Chaing Tops AMR Ranking, 2010). This illustrates that Apple is doing something right with their supply chain. Even when Apple launches a product, they have enough products to meet the demand (Satariano & Burrows, 2011). Since Apple is in the number one spot, there is little room for improvement to their supply
There are few things that are impressive about Southwest Airlines first one is how they treat the employees. For Southwest Airlines employees are first and customers are second. If the employees are treated well that will bring in happy customers. Next is that Southwest is not only with their low prices but is able to create a competitive advantage by offering a fun and humorous experience when flying. Finally another impressive fact is when Herb Kelleher’s retire from CEO position yet remained a Southwest employee till July 2014. Even after the retirement he was still active with the Southwest Airlines that reflected his enthusiasm and dedication for the
Siemens is a German conglomerate that specialise in electronics and electrical engineering. They currently operate in four different sectors, these being Healthcare, Industry, energy and Infrastructure & Cities sector (Siemans a). They are represented in 190 countries (Siemens b), employ around 362,000 employees (Siemens c) and in 2013 achieved a revenue of €75,882 million and a net income of €4,409 million (Siemens d). This essay will focus on Siemen’s energy sector.
In conclusion, with the new composite materials the risk of corrosion and fatigue will greatly decrease. Composite repair techniques described earlier and the new electronic systems monitoring will allow maintenance costs and time out of service to be reduced while airline profit maximizes. As Boeing brings the 787 Dreamliner to the market, the company has made a significant profit which has continued to increase each year. The above average fuel economy allows passengers to save money and take longer direct flights with higher levels of comfort. This aircraft is showing it is more technologically advanced than its competition which is why this aircraft will be the revolutionary to the aircraft industry.
During hard economic times it may be possible for a firm to switch suppliers be it from domestic to international or vice-versa for some required materials. However, this might not be desirable for all materials. Another issue that often occurs is the delay in shipment with the transportation companies. This may require that certain parts be divided into smaller batches and shipped separately, which would increase the lead time and shipping costs.
Planning, an imperative part of any business environment, is a daily focus at Boeing Corporation. The organization faces daily challenges to produce products to fit the consumer wants for air travel, comfort, and efficiency. While Boeing deals with a constant need for innovative ideas it also deal with the challenges of its main competitor airbus whom has historically been subsidized by many of the European nations to compete with Boeing for a larger share of the market. Boeing management, through excellent planning, an ethics policy that demands large returns for shareholders, and constant work to comply with ever changing legal demands of the industry has led to the constant success of the company.
Products are not standardized and vary by country in terms of type, packaging and specification. This increases production time, production costs, lead tim...
The second way is to achieve low direct and indirect operating costs is gained by offering high volumes of standard products and offering basic no-frills products. Production costs are kept low by using less parts and using standard components. Limiting the number of models produced to ensure larger producti...
The business environment is increasingly becoming competitive and challenging. In the recent past, manufacturers have found themselves facing the threat of dwindling profit margins due to unfortunate global events such as the 2007 global financial crisis and the on going Europe economic crisis. The need to improve operation efficiency so as to ensure current and future investment yield the highest rate of return has therefore become extremely important. Manufacturers are now actively engaged in, managing their costs, Research and Development, adopting best procurement strategies, among other Actions. While such actions might eventually lead to positive results, additional business value can be achieved through proper management of the supply chain (Waymer, Ivanaj & Mussa 2009; Krivda 2004).