Operations Management Strategies: Boeing and Airbus Comparison Report

This report provides a comparative analysis of the operations management strategies employed by Boeing and Airbus. It delves into the key differences in their approaches, examining aspects such as supply chain management, project management techniques (including PERT and Gantt charts), and the role of information technology. The report highlights specific issues faced by Boeing, particularly concerning the 787 Dreamliner, including problems related to supply chain, quality control, and project delays. It evaluates the need for changes in operational plans, assesses supply management practices, and explores tools used by both companies. Furthermore, the report offers recommendations for addressing identified challenges and improving operational efficiency. The analysis encompasses a discussion of push and pull systems, initiatives for quality improvement, and considerations for future sustainability within the context of a global economy.

Operations management

Table of Contents
ASSIGNMENT TASK 1.................................................................................................................1
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.............................................................................................................1
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................2
1. Difference between aspects of Boing and Airbus in relation to operations management..2
2. Examination of the need to make any change in the plan..................................................4
3. Operations strategy to solve the problems of Boeing.........................................................5
4. Evaluation of supply management practices......................................................................6
5. Management of project by using PERT and Gantt chart....................................................7
6. Tools that are used by Boeing and Airbus..........................................................................9
7. Role of IT in both the companies.....................................................................................10
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS..........................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................13
ASSIGNMENT TASK 2...............................................................................................................14
INTRODUCTION.........................................................................................................................14
1 Supply chain strategies that impact positively on the organization’s operations strategy14
2. Push and pull systems can aid the organization in eliminating waste..............................15
3.3 Initiatives that supply chain management can adopt for firm quality improvement:.....17
4. Tools to improve the strategies...........................................................................................2
5. scope in relation to strategy for the future sustainability...................................................2

ASSIGNMENT TASK 1
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Operations management is the process in which the various process that are undertaken in
the business are managed. In the given report the strategies in relation to this are compared in
between Airbus and Boeing. There are various issues that are faced by Boeing 787 which are
described here together with the reasons due to which it is happening. Both the companies are
big competitors of each other and also covers most of the aviation sector. Dreamliner is facing
various issues in relation to supply and quality of the services and they are also discussed in this
report. The quality is the issue because it is not being able to be controlled and this due to the
factor that company is having large number of suppliers from whom it will be obtaining its
products. There are various other issues also which are faced like the company is not able to
maintain the safety and this was because of the lack of time as the whole process that was
involved in this project was delayed and no time was left for this aspect to be taken into
consideration. The comparison has been made among both the companies on the basis of the
tools and the manner in which management is done. By the performance is evaluated and in the
basis of the findings various suggestions are also provided below with the help of which the
issues that are identified will be resolved by the company. There are various proposals which are
to be evaluated by the company so that the best among them can be chosen and also it is needed
that it should be completed on time and for that there are various techniques which can be used
in order to determine the time that shall be taken and they are PERT or CPM in which the
shortest duration is identified. In the global economy there are various technological
advancements which are to be used by the company and they are also included in the report. All
of the tools which are used by the companies have been entered in the given assignment.
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INTRODUCTION
In all the business there are various activities that are required to be performed and it is
very necessary that they should be managed in the most effective manner (Heizer, 2016). This
whole process is known as operations management. In this there is the requirement that plan
should be changed and it will be examined. The supply chain management that are followed in
the company will be evaluated and any improvements that are to be made in them will also be
discussed together with the manner in which that can be done. In order to find the time taken by
the project PERT will be used and Gantt chart will be prepared with the help of it. Also the role
of information technology will be considered that can be used by the company so that
performance can be improved.
1. Difference between aspects of Boing and Airbus in relation to operations management.
In the process of operations management there are various functions that are to be
performed so that the available resources can be used and be converted into the finished
products. It is necessary that scope of it should be understood so that the management can be
done in better manner (Slack, 2015).In any business the most important operation that is to be
undertaken is the production and there are various such factors due to which it will be affected
such as demand and supply, economies and various market conditions, so it is needed that proper
plan should be formulated by taking the different estimates in relation to the future period.
After this it shall be noted that in the process of production labour will be required and
also machinery and for that it will be needed that the available manpower should be allocated to
the various functions so that they can be managed effectively. For this purpose it will be needed
to identify that how much employees or workers will be required and then they should be
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recruited by using suitable manner. In order to face the competition, quality will be have to be
maintained as then only customer loyalty will be achieved that is most important in order to
retain them. For this purpose proper control shall be established so that quality in the products
can be established.
It has been analysed that there are four major factors with the help of which the
operations management will be done and they will include consideration of the cost that will be
associated with the purchases that will be made and also the other cost that will be incurred in the
process of its storage. Then quality maintenance will be required and standards that are set
should be achieved (Barratt, Choi and Li, 2011). The relations shall be maintained on good note
and by this the suppliers will not create any problems for the company. Also the information
system will be required to be maintained so that with the help of it company will be benefited
and also the supplier will be gaining from it.
Boeing was also using the operations management and in this various decisions are
required to be made in relation to various aspects. It will be identified that whether the product
will be manufactured by itself or it have to be purchased from some outside company. There are
various factors that will be affecting the decision of the company and they are that if the
company will not be having adequate resources and skills then it will choose to outsource the
work (Krajewski, Ritzman and Malhotra, 2013). By this the cost will be saved or it can also be
said that company don't want distract itself and focus on other competencies.
The main reason due to which the failure was resulted in Boeing 747 was that it was a
new experience for the company and it was not having any knowledge in this field. The material
that was used in this was different from what was used in the past as it was required to be more
efficient and quieter. It was outsourced by the company due to the same reason as it was not
having any prior experience in handling the new materials. Due to this reason almost 65% of the
parts of the plane have been outsources to different countries in the world and this was done with
the intention to achieve the customers confidence. On the contrary to this Airbus also used this
method of outsourcing but in its case the parts that were outsourced were only limited to 25%. so
the main problem that arise was due to this process.
In addition to this the fire that took place in earlier year has also caused harm as by that
the battery problem has arise due to which the quality of them was affected. So it can be said that
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these were the problems and also due to them delay was caused by which the schedule that was
made was not followed.
In case of the management of operations there are various problems which will have to be
dealt by the company so that proper work can be carried out and for that it will be required that
they shall be identified on timely basis. The main problems that are discovered in the given case
are that as the products were outsourced so it was needed that they should be tested but this was
not done so company has to face problems due to it. Also there was no proper follow up system
established due to which mismanagement was faced. All of them together led to the failure of
Dream liner.
2. Examination of the need to make any change in the plan.
Due to the various problems that have arisen, there was the need that the plan in relation
to the operations shall be modified. The aircraft named dreamliner that was made has been a
failure so there was an urgent requirement that change shall be introduced in which the
perspective of all will be considered. Change will be required in various areas and they are
described here under.
 In the manufacturing process of the company there will need of the various material and
they will be obtained from the suppliers. For this reason it will be required that supplier
chain management shall be considered (Peng and Lai, 2012). If it will be dealt with in the
appropriate manner then the problem in relation to the supply will not be arising. Also as
the material that will be supplied by them will be checked so there will be no issue that
will have to be faced in relation to quality of that. Due to this reason this area will be
provided the required focus.
 The process that was adopted by the company will require that proper risk management
shall be done as the parts are outsourced to the other countries so there will be high
amount of risk that will be involved in it. The risk in relation to various aspects such as
finance and market will be taken into consideration.
 In the production of aircraft that is a very complex process there are various elements that
are involved and there are required to be considered. It shall be ascertained that whether
all the elements are working in harmony with each other or not. This is one of the major
issue that will have to be faced. If they will be identified in advance than it will not be
problem and they will be solved in the advance so there will be no risk that will have to
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be faced in relation to it. If they will not be considered before the launching then the
problems will be arise in after stages which will more harmful for the company.
 It is required that strategic management shall be maintained in the better manner. In this
the cost will be reduced and that will be the the main aspect to be taken into view. In this
there are different approaches that will be used in relation to the products that will be
developed for the first time and management has not been able to understand them in the
proper manner. So it will be needed that with the use of strategic management the market
will be understood in the better manner and the new product will be developed in the new
manner by which the problems will not be faced in the future.
 In order to avoid the problem of delay that is faced by it there will be need that
prevention shall be established from bullwhip (Hill and Hill, 2012). The main reason of
this is that information is not proper that is provided in the supply process.
 The main problem is in relation to the delay and in order to overcome this it will be
required that proper management system shall be established about the material that will
be procured and also planning shall be made about how should the production be carried
out.
 Company shall consider re engineering so that quality of the product can be improved
and it can be made successful.
3. Operations strategy to solve the problems of Boeing.
There are some problems that are faced by Boeing 787 dream-line project. Delay in the
outsourcing process that is material and inputs are not comes in time (Subramanian and
Ramanathan, 2012). Substantial are to exported to different part of country so heavily losses are
received by company. Due to the unanticipated shortage of person, the burden comes on
provider for fast delivery of material so the company are not done their work properly. Strikes
and lockouts are made by labours against outsourcing done by company. Company pressurise
their workers to bring together of material with thousand of deficiency. Boeing identify some
operational strategies to solve the problem of this project that is:
Six Sigma:Company implementing six sigma with a purpose to achieve the reduction of
variations and stabilise certain processes. They help their providers for steady operation due to
alteration.
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Supply chain management :If company are not received the receipt of items from suppliers this
process has helped. It is a strategic method to optimise resource allocation.
Checklist:This plan is to helpful for company like it arrange all the things that unit want to do, to
find out information relate to subject. It identify and verify the list of items that organisastion
made.
Flowchart:Company draw a diagram that represent algorithm,work flow process .These charts
are also used in investigating,documenting,managing a process in different piece of land.
Pareto analysis: This technique is helpful for company to identify the causes that need to be
addressed to resolve the battle.
Fisher model:Organisation also used this model for the objective to define the relationship
between real and nominal interest rate during period of inflation. In this duration company
material are hardly to purchased in large number.
After the problems are identified it will be required that steps shall be taken so that they
can be resolved in the most effective manner. Boeing will be required to establish a system of
production in its own company so that it will not have to outsource the parts and by this it will be
ensured that the work will be completed in time and also the quality of the products will be
maintained. It shall also be taken into consideration that the communication between company
and supplier shall be maintained so that there is proper coordination and they will be able to
understand the needs of each other.
4. Evaluation of supply management practices.
Supply chain management means to outsource the procurement process, to define relation
between supplier and customer ,incorporated the supply chain designs and cooperative planning.
Currently company have large type of supply chain exist in different areas such as
beginning .middle, and bottom (Galindo and Batta, 2013). Their sustainability issues are ranges
from workers exploitation and child labour ,this may causes a deforestation, ozone depletion,
global warming.
Suggestion are provided here under:
Establish a supply chain council: The membership of council includes leader of supply chain
management, business managers, departmental; mangers, and other organisation leader. This
council worked to exit barriers to success that survive within company.
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Technology oriented work: Company choose software that they hope with more efficient . Best
selection of technology result better productivity. They provide the efficient strategies and
mechanism to get benefit from technology.
Engage in collaborative strategic sourcing: They produce better and efficient result in company.
Many customers involved in decision making process they generate feedback and suggestion for
improvement.
Optimise company stock: They continuously review the quality and quantity of company
material and strive them to keep in optimal level (Brown, Bessant and Lamming, 2013).
Financial team of organisation give effort to reduce the working capital.
Minimise risk: Company establish their policies and procedures so every worker of organisation
works in that regulations thus it is possible to reduce risk in working environment.
Take social responsibility seriously: Making purchase consumer are taking social obligation
seriously.
The chain of the Boeing was expanded to the whole world and this was one of the reason
due to which company has to suffer the losses. As suppliers were there in different countries so
there were lot of expenditures that were incurred in order to manage them and to provide them
with the material and due to this the overall cost was increased. Also there was very less amount
of control due to the outsourcing and for this it will be required that it shall not be done and this
service shall not be used so that proper control can be established.
5. Management of project by using PERT and Gantt chart.
In the process of production there are various defects that are found and they will have to
be controlled so that the corrections that are required to be made in them will be done in proper
time (Farahani, Rezapour and Kardar, 2011). For this purpose it will be required that schedule
shall be followed in proper manner. The reason due to which problems are arising will be
identified with the help of various tools so that they can be solved. The project will be required
to be completed in time and for that there are various techniques that can be used which are as
follows.
 Forecasting: This will be the method in which the forecasts will be made in relation to the
time that will be required to complete each activity and also the cost that will have to
incurred in relation to it. This can be done by using the historical data and for this
services of third party can be used.
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 The next step that will be undertaken after the forecast are made will be of planning in
which the various activities will be assigned to the different authorities. In this Gantt
chart and PERT will be used.
 The project will be required to monitored and controlled which is very important for the
company. With the help of it the company will be able to notice the delay that is made in
the project which will have to be removed after the identification.
The activities will be identified and then the pert diagram will be prepared with the help of it by
which the path with the help of which project will be completed in time will be identified and
then Gantt chart will be prepared with the use of it (Holmström, Främling and Ala-Risku, 2010).
For the better understanding of it they have been presented below.
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In any project that will be undertaken there are various paths which can be adopted in
order to complete the work. But to gain more advantage it shall be noted that the shortest path
shall be selected and that will be identified with the help of CPM. By this the manner in which
the work will be completed in the smallest duration will be known and that will be known as
critical path.
6. Tools that are used by Boeing and Airbus.
In Boeing there are various tools which are used by it and some of them are as follows:
1. management of suppliers: This is the most important aspect that is to be considered so
that the risk that is present can be allocated to them. For this reason a proper suppliers
management plan has been developed by the company.
2. Estimation of cost: This is the another technique that is used by which the cost that will
be incurred in the manufacturing of Dreamliner is ascertained. By this the cost at which
the company will not have to face the losses is determined.
3. Scheduling: In this a proper schedule is made by which the work will be completed in the
time. In the case of Boeing 787 the main problem that was faced by the company was the
delay in the project (Lewis and Brown, 2012). This method cannot be said to be bad due
to the reason that it was not successful in case of Boeing. Therefore it will be used in all
the further cases and will be made sure that it is followed in the most appropriate manner
so that the problem of delay will not be arising again.
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