Management of the Boeing Global Supply Chain

Boeing Commercial Airplanes procures in excess of $30B annually from the global aerospace materials supply base. From raw materials to finished components, this supply chain constitutes years of work in progress and converges on production lines that turn out the most advanced commercial transport aircraft in the world. Without a reliable supplier base, this would be impossible. Boeing suppliers have to be world class, meeting strict quality requirements, demanding cost initiatives and a rate responsiveness that few can match. This situation is about to get even more challenging, as production rates increase in a effort to fill a tremendous backlog. At the same time, competition demands that we continue to bring the best materials technologies to new models, to insure they are economic for our customer airlines and that we remain competitive in the marketplace. It requires a balance and a partnership with our suppliers that is remarkable in scale and detail. This presentation will discuss what we expect from our network of more than 5,000 suppliers, and what the future holds as we bring several new models to the market (737 MAX, 767 Tanker, 787-9, 787-10X and 777X), while increasing rate by 25% and expanding the global supply base.