Posted on 09/04/2018 9:21:43 AM PDT by Red Badger
Supplier bottlenecks threaten production at aerospace giant’s factory near Seattle
Boeing Co. BA +0.02% is facing a problem as it races to meet demand for single-aisle, fuel-efficient jets: where to store unfinished 737s piling up at a factory near Seattle.
One answer in late July was the taxiway of the small airport in Renton, Wash., next to its Boeing factory there.
“Boeing is running out of space,” Renton public works administrator Gregg Zimmerman wrote to city council members in a July 27 memo about the taxiway plan. “They have encountered an emergency production challenge that threatens to interfere with their ability to keep their airplane production lines running.”
A Boeing spokesman said the request for parking space was part of a “recovery plan” to get deliveries to match production rates. Mr. Zimmerman declined to comment.
The unfinished airplanes illustrate a challenge to Boeing, the world’s biggest aircraft manufacturer by sales, as it tries to make enough of its new 737 Max jets to meet fast-growing demand. Boeing and rival Airbus SE together have more than $1 trillion in orders for planes, driven by a global boom in air travel that is adding 100 million passengers a year.
(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...
Tell me again how this was all part of Putin’s sinister plot to elect Trump POTUS.
Yeah, well the production problems are clearly Trump’s fault.
It was all a diabolical plan to overload American manufacturers so that they could not fill orders fast enough, and so customers would turn to Russian company..................
Can someone who can get past the paywall tell us what parts shortages are causing the backlog? I know with Airbus the A320NEO is being held up by P&W’s geared turbofan issues.
Engines from GE falling behind on backorder
It appears to be engines on the 737 also (GE “Leap” engines).
Just in time inventory sounds good on paper. When it works, it saves a little money, which adds up. When it fails, it costs a huge amount - quickly.
Thank you very much!
“The delays are due largely to two suppliers: engine maker CFM International, a joint venture between General Electric Co. and Safran SA, and fuselage manufacturer Spirit AeroSystems Holdings Inc. Both companies have said some of their own small suppliers are struggling to meet demand.
CFM executives have pledged to catch up on engine deliveries that have been several weeks behind. Spirit AeroSystems said it has resolved problems and resumed on-time shipments to Boeing. “
Got me by a little bit more than a minute!
Engines and some parts having to do with the fuselage. For Airbus it just says delay in parts.
evil capitalist bastach
I was flying a kite about 30 years ago next to that plant/airport. I was using fishing line and it went practically straight up.
The cops came and told me to take it down because I was interfering with small aircraft circling in to land.
I did a little work on a Boeing B-17 restoration in that plant. Never worked there, though.
You make a good point. If aircraft production in the US were nationalized, there wouldn’t be a backlog of orders.
Good one. Point made!
WSJ: “Open the borders! Open the borders! Open the borders!”
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