Eng2Mfg

The annual SAE AeroTech Conference (sponsored by Boeing) was held in Seattle, Washington last week.  This is an annual event where all of the major aerospace companies get together to review the latest technology as well as to update industry standards.  There were three days of technical sessions covering topics ranging from the new standards for safety management systems to new design & manufacturing methods.

I attended a presentation from a Boeing engineer talking about lean/cellular manufacturing.  While his presentation was informative, I was a little taken aback because these lean principles are techniques that many companies implemented over 10 years ago (perhaps someone should have been talking about 787 supply chain management).

An interesting article in InfoWorld about six ‘transformational’ technologies that went bust. Each of the six technologies has earned the dubious distinction of being over-hyped and falling far short of legendary promises.

Interestingly, many of these happen to be focused on the business market place…

You may have caught the news that Boeing is adding prodution for the 787 outside the Seattle area. The Charleston, South Carolina facility, adjacent to a parts plant Boeing bought in July, will be used along with one in Washington state to build, test and deliver the 787:

“Establishing a second 787 assembly line in Charleston will expand our production capability to meet the market demand for the airplane,” said Jim Albaugh, chief executive officer of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, in the statement. “We’re taking prudent steps to protect the interests of our customers.”