Integrating the Supply Chain

Satair Group is making great strides on a major programme to integrate its Airbus aftermarket supply chain. Several of the different modules underpinning this project are nearly finished with the final elements due to be completed at year end.

Project execution started in early 2014 and as Ulrich Maiberger, Senior Director Procurement Airbus at Satair Group explained: “The pay-back of this project will result in long-term benefits for customers in improved service and transparency and will be matched by increased reliability and efficiency for the company”.

The aim is to transform the previous aftermarket supply chain which has been integrated into the production systems at Airbus European plants in France, Germany, UK and Spain.

The decision was taken to centralise the aftermarket supply chain at Hamburg through four different, but interconnected modules.

Centralised ordering has been adopted and staff trained at Hamburg on the Satair Group SAP aftermarket system, taking over the tasks previously done at the production centres. Seamless working is ensured through factory interface for technical support, and for parts liaison on older legacy aircraft.

Already all aftermarket orders previously processed in Spain and the UK are now handled through Hamburg. Those from French and German manufacturing sites will follow this year.

Secondly, the kitting process for modification kits has been centralised to replace the previous system which was linked to production workshare. A 10,000 sq.m kitting factory in a logistics centre at Hamburg has been rented for kit assembly.

Already the new facility is 30% more efficient than the previous method. Kits are now created for the French, Spanish and UK workshare and Germany will follow by the middle of 2016.

The third module is to integrate and create a centralised and harmonised supply chain IT system.

Ulrich said; “Previously we were using local SAP systems at the plants for supply chain operations. The UK and Spanish workshare has already been integrated into the Satair Group SAP aftermarket system but the much bigger French and German workshare is planned as the next step. One important task to achieve that is to migrate engineering and procurement masterdata from the legacy SAP systems with their sophisticated connections to suppliers.”

The final module is creating a new material inbound flow to efficiently get the spares and kit parts to the Hamburg facilities. Cross-dock locations have been established in all countries allowing suppliers to ship their parts to one hub for consolidation and then regular truck shipments will deliver the stock to Hamburg. This saves time and cost and increases the transparency of the material flow.

Ulrich concluded: “This is a complex project, undertaken at the same time as other major programmes are also challenging us, but its success will be an enabler allowing us build on this for other aftermarket improvements.”