Page 16 - AAA MAY - JUNE 2013 Online Magazine

FEATURE OUTSOURCING
FEATURE OUTSOURCING

OuTSOuRcINg

The Way Ahead?

Or Heading for Problems?

When Boeing decided to build its new 787 Dreamliner, it proudly boasted many
firsts. It was the first airliner to use a majority of composite materials in fuselage
construction, the first Boeing to offer luxury cabin comfort levels in all classes, the
first to use large-scale electronic servicing and control systems, and the first to
make use of extensive outsourcing

WhIlE ThE FIRST ITEmS ON ThE lIST ARE questions about the management of care and diligence
all definite bonuses for the new flagship, its outsourcing process, but denied “The increase in outsourcing may have
the last is much more debatable. Although that Boeing’s management of its 787 reduced the costs of some components,
issues that have plagued its battery subcontractors was deficient. but this cost has been more than offset by
systems have made headlines in recent “Our standards and expectations increased redesign costs and expensive
times, the company probably suffered for design, production, quality, and delays,” says Dr Lyda Bigelow, Assistant
more financial stress from its decision to performance have always been, and Professor of Strategy at the University of
outsource major component manufacture remain today, as high on the 787 as they Utah’s David Eccles School of Business.
– something that it had relatively little are on any other commercial programme,” Bigelow conducted extensive research on
experience with, as compared to arch- he asserted. And indeed, the Dreamliner the pros and cons of outsourcing in the
rival Airbus. There were grumblings from is still looking good on the sales ledger, manufacturing industries, and concluded
some quarters that Boeing was jumping the US Federal Aviation Administration that in specific sectors with highly specialist
too far, too soon, and didn’t have the QA has re-certified it for flight duties, and products and component technology,
or project management skills to perform planes are rolling off the production outsourcing can bring problems. One such
such a major and highly technical trick. line at seven a month at press time. But sector was the aviation industry.
In one interview on the matter with Boeing, and probably many other aircraft “Boeing has indicated that it will rein
the Seattle Times, Boeing spokesman manufacturers will have learned a difficult in outsourcing on the next version of
Marc Birtel declined to answer specific lesson about outsourcing. It isn’t easy. the Dreamliner, acknowledging that the
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