MORE FOR LESS Boeing and its suppliers work together to cut costs and be more productive and efficient By Liz Verdier and Antonella Bellman Inside the fuselage of a 737-900ER (Extended Range) on the Renton, Wash., assembly line, Boeing technical designer James Pounds watched—a smile of satisfaction moving across his face—as a mechanic prepared to make the first installation of a redesigned part for the airplane’s ventilation system. With the whir of an electric screwdriver, the mechanic fastened the part securely to the aluminum track along the fuselage frames, the attached hose snaking down. The task completed the first phase of the project. Installing the part took no more than about 30 seconds. But getting to that moment in the Renton factory several weeks ago was the result of a brainstorming session two years earlier—and lots of work in between by Boeing and one of its suppliers. “It is really satisfying to be able to save Boeing so much money—and now we want to find even more projects like this,” said Pounds, a 737 mechanical systems design engineer. 28 Frontiers May 2014 He was part of that initial brainstorming group. It began as an effort by the 737 Environmental Control Systems team to find a way to reduce cost and weight on the best-selling airplane. Working with longtime supplier PECO Astronics of Portland, Ore., which makes the 737 Environmental Control Systems, a Boeing team came up with an out-of-the-box solution. What had been a three-nozzle air distribution system on the 737 will be changed to one with only two nozzles. The result? Boeing expects an eventual savings of about $4 million a year, along with a weight reduction of 26 pounds (12 kilograms) per plane when the second phase of the project installs in 2015. It’s but one example of the value being created around the company by the Partnering for Success program. “We can’t implement a true cost savings for our customers unless our supply chain is able to realize the same improvement in quality and efficiency in their production systems. That is what Partnering for Success is about,” said Mike Zyskowski, director of Engineering with Commercial Airplanes Supplier Management. The supply chain accounts for about two-thirds the cost of Boeing products and services, so suppliers must be as vigilant as Boeing in looking for ways to reduce costs and streamline their operations, he and other Boeing leaders say. The reward for those who do, they point out, is a huge opportunity for growth in the years ahead. PECO, the 737 supplier, has been doing just that—working with Boeing to reduce costs and improve efficiencies. Through initial PECO collaboration with Boeing, some 100 component part numbers for the 737 ventilation system were reduced to 10, said Dave Freund, PECO’s vice president. “It’s been encouraging to our team members to be able to take ideas up to Boeing knowing they’re getting legitimate review and resources when the project makes sense and there’s
Frontiers May 2014 Issue
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