Section 1 Goal and Scope
In late 1993, Airbus, with its three main consortium members Aerospatiale, British Aerospace and Defence Analytical Services and Advice (DASA), started a joint feasibility study of ultra-high capacity aircraft (UHCA).1 The study showed a need for up to 727 UHCA between 2001 and 2011.2 With world passenger numbers growing at 5 per cent each year, taking off and landing slots at major airports will be limited. Airbus believed that UHCA, providing more efficient use of ramp and runway space, will be part of the solution to the growing congestion.
Airbus’ competitor Boeing netted 40 new sales of their 747 model, worth $6.5 billion (USD) in 1994.3 This had portrayed Airbus’ inability to compete at this high value end of the market. With the mounting sense of urgency, Airbus need to intensify the design and development of a UHCA to fill the top end of its product line and stop the dominance of Boeing in large aircraft market with 747 for over two decades. Hence, in June 1994, Airbus announced its project goal to build a high-capacity, high-efficiency aircraft with up to 569 seat capacity and a maximum range of 8,520 nautical miles; the project was designated A3XX.4 Many airlines faced a dilemma whether to opt for earlier option of the new Boeing 747X, or the all new A3XX. During a meeting with 13 major airliners in Carcassonne, Airbus had then assured them with a scope to work toward preliminary and final design freezes scheduled on the end of 1997 and
Airbus was planning to introduce the A380 in direct competition to Boeing 747 to compete in the large aircraft sector. The rivalry between Airbus and Boeing was already intense. Boeing’s market share reduced from 70% in 1974 to 45% in 1990 while Airbus’s market share had increased from 1% to 34% during the same time (Exhibit 5). Encouraged by this increase in market share, Airbus was contemplating the introduction of A380. Development of new product line is extremely expensive in the Aircraft sector. Following is a quantitative analysis of the project to calculate the risks involved in introducing a new line of Aircrafts.
Many consider Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner an example of a failed project. Twenty-six billion dollars over budget, almost four years late, and several quality issues surround the innovative new aircraft (Ausick 2014). This paper explores Boeing’s approach of materializing the Dreamliner from a project management perspective by comparing the company’s undertakings with project management principles.
This comprises the main reason why Airbus is interested in building the A3XX. It attempts to create a dominant design that the market for large planes may pledge allegiance to, moving from simply product innovations to process improvements for the VLA. It does intend to just replicate the 747s and achieve a jumbo jet with the same capabilities. Rather, it aims to increase the seating capacity and reduce costs for the operators by so much more than what Boeing’s alleged monopoly holds, with the objective of seizing the market
Boeing being the market leader for almost a decade as a manufacturer of large commercial aircraft and had also reached economies of scale, the need to sustain its market share it presumed that “customers might demand for new”. Any potential growth was only through taking super leap and making VLCT jumbo aircraft which needed
Boeing adopts a very thorough, well planned out process to manage the project. The stages are defined clearly and tasks involved in each stage are carried out sequentially. The first stage of their approach is the project definition phase during which Boeing identified holes in the market not met by existing planes, assessed future airline needs, considered alternative plane configurations, explored feasibility of possible technologies and performed preliminary estimation of costs. During the market assessment, analysts gathered information regarding future needs of airlines by speaking directly to
Market Share Airbus will launch their new large, long distance plane A380 in 2006. This plane can be a dreadful competitive product to Boeing. If Boeing falls behind regarding innovations, fuel efficiency and other attributes of a long haul airliner, it will soon lose its market share. In order for Boeing to compete in the aviation industry, it is crucial to take on some risk and develop this new 7E7 project. This helps the company to fight against its competitors and recover from the slump in the industry.
1.) In early 2003, Boeing announced plans to design and sell an airliner named the 7E7. Boeing aimed for the 7E7 to be more fuel efficient, carry between 200 and 250 passengers, able to accomplish both domestic and international flights, as well as be 10% cheaper to operate than Airbus’s A330-200 aircraft. All of these attributes were attractive to Boeing but would come at significant costs. To accomplish these attributes, Boeing proposed to construct the aircraft
In addition, Airbus has received over half of the total large aircraft orders for the first time in 1999 thanks to the “cross crew qualification” feature. Capturing more than half of the very large aircraft (VLA) market with the A3XX would constitute an
Dominating the commercial aircraft market for decades, Boeing is considered to be the most highly competitive U.S aerospace industry. “U.S. firms manufacture a wide variety of products for civil and defense purposes and, in 2010, the value of aerospace industry shipments was estimated at $171 billion, of which civil aircraft and aircraft parts accounted for over half of all U.S. aerospace shipments. The U.S. aerospace industry exported nearly $78 billion in products in 2010, of which $67 billion (or 86% of total exports) were civil aircraft, engines, equipment, and parts” (Harrison, 2011). However, its position of influence has lessened in recent years. This is due to its main competitor, Airbus, who in recent years has made significant
Given the high-tech nature of the airplane industry, there are relatively few suppliers capable of providing parts to Airbus and Boeing. In contrast to Boeing, who relies heavily on suppliers, Airbus has tried to manufacture the
Boeing adopted the radical change approach for designing and developing the 787 Dreamliner not only to attempt to create new aircraft through the innovative design and advanced material, but it also drastically changed the production process. With a $10 billion dollar project in mind, the goal was to reduce the financial risks involved as well as the new product development cycle time. Meanwhile, Boeing produced a remarkably complicated supply chain that included greater than fifty partners in over 100 locations all across the globe. In addition to the complicated supply chain, they experimented with various firms in diverse areas to align complementary skill sets. Furthermore, this was the first time the company outsourced the two most crucial parts of the plane, the wings and the fuselage.
This paper analyzes the goals and actions of Boeing by analyzing its critical success factors as well as its strategic roadmap.
Developing the World's Largest Commercial Jet In this case, we will be analyzing strategic interaction between Airbus and Boeing, the two leading producers in the global commercial aircraft industry. In particular, we will be considering Airbus' proposed launch of the A3XX, their entry into the intercontinental jumbo jet segment, and Boeing's potential competitive responses to this entry. We will attempt to answer the questions: Should Airbus enter the jumbo jet segment? If so, how?
Air travel has drastically changed the way of life for many individuals that depend on air travel to take care of business. One of the top leaders in the air travel industry, The Boeing Company realizes in order to stay competitive in their chosen industry, an effective strategic plan should be implemented. There are several approaches that can be utilized, such as focusing on the external and internal objectives that could beneficial. Boeing strives to be the best aerospace-based manufacture in the world.
Due to customers’ needs and requests, Boeing has expanded its product line and services. The long tradition of aerospace leadership and innovation has given the company the advantages. Its broad range of capabilities includes creating new and more efficient commercial airplane, integrating military platforms and defense systems through