PHOTOS: (Far left) Designer James Pounds stands in a 737 cabin, where the first parts of a lighter, simpler air distribution system—developed with supplier PECO Astronics—are being installed. MARIAN LOCKHART/BOEING (Insets) PECO employees Dave Freund (top left), Fred Blake (top right) and Julie Lee (above) inspect parts to be sent to Boeing. JIM ANDERSON/BOEING Frontiers May 2014 29 “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 ... That is what Partnering for Success is about. ” — Mike Zyskowski, director of Engineering with Commercial Airplanes Supplier Management a value proposition,” Freund said. Jack House, Boeing’s Partnering for Success enterprise leader, said achieving mutual cost reduction goals is everyone’s business. At Boeing, it means first-time quality and design efficiencies that improve production performance while reducing costs, he explained. House is vice president of Supplier Management for Boeing Defense, Space & Security, where coordination with a supplier across business units provided the most affordable pricing solution for an F-15 program customer. Fighter aircraft components such as radar systems are technically sophisticated and can be very expensive to purchase, especially if they’re procured individually. A Boeing team led by Sharon Loetscher, a Supplier Management senior manager, worked with colleagues in Boeing Military Aircraft and Global Services & Support to integrate their needs into one set of requirements. The team then worked with supplier Raytheon to negotiate the best possible production, spares and retrofit pricing in support of the customer’s fleet. “The economies of scale were substantial,” Loetscher said. “We were able to secure significant savings for the package.” But the teamwork doesn’t end there. Representatives of the F-15 and F/A-18 programs are making the most out of certain commonalities of these aircraft, including their work with Raytheon. By focusing on common designs and support staff, as well as common companies within their supply chains, the F-15 and F/A-18 teams were
Frontiers May 2014 Issue
To see the actual publication please follow the link above