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by Jeff Moad, MA Editorial Staff Posted on Monday, July 23, 2007 3:30:46 PM   | Abstract: | The success of Boeing's groundbreaking 787 Dreamliner hinges on a new business model and a multi-tier, collaborative global supply chain network. Will these massive process changes hold the new aircraft back or allow it to soar? |
Tim Opitz heaved a big sigh of relief on Jan. 15 when supplier Kawasaki Heavy Industries made its first delivery — on time — of a forward fuselage for Boeing's new 787 Dreamliner to Boeing's assembly facility in Charleston, SC. To Opitz, director of product operations and support at Boeing's Commercial Airplanes unit, the successful delivery from a key partner was one in a long series of tests that Boeing must pass in order to get the 787 off the ground. The three-model craft, designed for 210 to 330 passengers, is scheduled for first customer shipment late next year. And Boeing can't afford to have anything go wrong. The 787 program represents the company's best bet for regaining competitive territory lost to arch-rival Airbus, which, in 2001, surpassed Boeing as the world's largest manufacturer of commercial aircraft. Even before full production, the relatively light, fuel-efficient 787 — which is designed for long-range, point-to-point travel and sells for $160 million per plane — has attracted 514 orders from airlines around the world, making it the fastest-selling commercial airplane in history, according to Boeing. [Click to continue] |