Advancing the art of manufacturing

Use of new manufacturing tools and techniques are allowing aircraft makers to deliver their products faster.

As international competition heats up, aircraft manufacturers are making big changes in their manufacturing operations. Bar codes, lean manufacturing, design for manufacturability, and waste elimination are all contributing to the bottom line by improving efficiency.

The sheer size of planes and other aircraft, coupled with the number of components used on them, has made it extremely difficult to automate aircraft production. Even without extensive use of robots and other automation, manufacturers are still making huge strides in productivity by re-examining every step of the manufacturing process.