Aircraft modification business covers many different types of aircraft. Modification work required spans from small maintenance activities to large scale re-fitting of the aircraft for missions not planned in the original design. The preparation of a bid for tender is a critical part of the business as it starts the formal commitment of the company to its customer on the cost of work. Throughout the years, the case study company has developed different processes to prepare bids to match the requirements of specific jobs. The multiple bid processes become an obstacle for corporate learning in bid preparation and is expensive to operate. The availability of network computing provides an opportunity to integrate these processes into a single workflow. A re-engineering exercise was carried out to define the process and streamline the decision-making procedure. The new process takes a holistic approach and manages th]e different types and sizes of bids in the company. This paper reports on the bid re-engineering process and the business benefits it brings to the company.
The Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) defines the work scope of a project. The way a WBS is defined depends on the person and his/her viewpoint. The aircraft modification business carries out a great variety of projects. Although the core skills and tasks are similar, there are very few projects that are exact repetition of previous work. The reuse of information is difficult without a good structure to archive and manage project information. This paper presents an integrated WBS approach for managing the work scope in aircraft modification projects. The model is the result of an in-depth study and analysis of the working methods in an aircraft modification industrial company. This WBS is designed to incorporate the information needs and the views of the different functions involved in aircraft modification. It provides the structure for the reuse of information, such as cost and schedules, in the diverse range of aircraft modification projects. In this model, the top tiers of the WBS are configured from a pre-defined industry specific template. The lower tiers are defined with a flexible structure to support the different views of the knowledge users and providers in the project. The information need for all the life stages of the project is fully covered. The integrated WBS is being implemented in an enterprise wide computing solution that is used for cost estimating in the collaborating company. The same approach could be used to enhance knowledge reuse where there is a great diversity in project contracts.
The Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) defines the work scope of a project. The way a WBS is defined depends on the person and his/her viewpoint. The aircraft modification business carries out a great variety of projects. Although the core skills and tasks are similar, there are very few projects that are exact repetition of previous work. The reuse of information is difficult without a good structure to archive and manage project information. This paper presents an integrated WBS approach for managing the work scope in aircraft modification projects. The model is the result of an in-depth study and analysis of the working methods in an aircraft modification industrial company. This WBS is designed to incorporate the information needs and the views of the different functions involved in aircraft modification. It provides the structure for the reuse of information, such as cost and schedules, in the diverse range of aircraft modification projects. In this model, the top tiers of the WBS are configured from a pre-defined industry specific template. The lower tiers are defined with a flexible structure to support the different views of the knowledge users and providers in the project. The information need for all the life stages of the project is fully covered. The integrated WBS is being implemented in an enterprise wide computing solution that is used for cost estimating in the collaborating company. The same approach could be used to enhance knowledge reuse where there is a great diversity in project contracts.
Design for manufacture (DFM) is accepted as an important tool to improve manufacturing competitiveness. Reports on the results of the first phase of a study conducted by Cranfield University to establish the user requirements for “design for manufacture” within a complex design and manufacture supply chain.
