IJTEMT www.ijtemt.org ; EISSN: 2321-5518; Vol. III, Issue II, June 2014 Index Copernicus (ICValue: 6.14), Ulrich, DOAJ, BASE, Google Scholar, J-Gate and Academic Journal Database. Page15 Page15 Competitive Operation Model for the Supply Chain of Aircraft Composite Parts Hsien-Ming CHANG Aerospace MBA Toulouse Business School Toulouse, France Abstract—The demand trend of civil aircraft is stable and increasing in the future years. Due to the material technology development and fuel price volatility, the composite materials become more important in aero-structures, also starting to apply in the aero-engine category. It is a good opportunity to integrate the supply chain in the aircraft composite parts and get benefits from well operation. This study propose the Competitive Operation Model, which introduce the concepts of value stream, risk management and lean production into the supply chain processes and management processes for aircraft manufacturers and aero- structures suppliers. Thus the aircraft manufacturers and their suppliers can increase the performance and competence in the competitive market. Key words: aircraft, supply chain, composite parts, Competitive Operation Model. I. INTRODUCTION Although the number of new transport aircraft sold in a given year has “whip-sawed” over the past decade, production and deliveries have trended steadily upward. As seen in Figure 1, this trend will continue in the coming decade. Aircraft manufacturers are expected to deliver more than 17,000 aircraft (including dedicated cargo planes) between 2012 and 2022. About 60 percent of these aircraft will replace aging aircraft. [1] Figure 1 Demand of Transport Aircraft [1] A recent challenge in aerospace engineering is the trend to switch from predominantly aluminum to predominantly composite structures, as evidenced by the development of the Boeing B787 and the Airbus A350 XWB (Extra Wide Body). From the manufacturing perspective, this is a major step change since it imposes the need to create and update existing knowledge bases to adapt industry to this new demand. [2] For commercial planes, composites penetration continues in new design as composites are applied to all critical parts. This trend is driven by the positive economic global impact of composites - weight reduction leading to fuel cost savings. [3] Composite materials used in commercial airplanes typically are produced by combining layers of carbon or glass fibers with epoxy. In recent years, manufacturers have expanded the use of composites to the fuselage and wings because these materials are typically lighter and more resistant to corrosion than are the metallic materials that have traditionally been used in airplanes. The percentage of total structural weight attributed to composites show as Figure 2. [4] Figure 2 Commercial Airplane Models over time by Percentage of Composites. [4] Bombardier’s International Composite Centers of Excellence includes 6 main manufacturing plants with Composite manufacturing facilities for civil aircraft structures. They structure for composites new product development approaches. They focus on the quality of the manufacturing