Ground_Support_EMilitary_Winter_2019 - 7

Boeing's focus is on increasing
operational efficiency for
our customers and growing
the relationship between
OEMs and customers.
BOEING

and distribute throughout the world
in many regions where OEMs are not
specialized, we are benefiting from
increased spare parts consumption."
At Boeing Global Services, Ken
Shaw, vice president of supply chain,
said one of the larger trends they're
noticing is with customers and the
way they're interacting with the supply
chain.
"We continue to live in an
environment where our customers
expect us to meet our commitments,
improve our cycle times, drive
affordable solutions and bring

operations and we see customers
requesting more integrated solutions,"
Shaw described.
On the flipside, Kelly Palma of
Business Aircraft Consumables, Inc.
(BAC) said one trend they've noticed is
in the way some suppliers are interacting with customers.
"I've noticed that other major
distributors are steering customers
to their websites to place orders.
While we underwent a major redesign
of our website a few years ago, we
by no means intended it to replace a
live customer service representative.

"Customers want to be able to order parts from
their phone and receive overnight shipping
with free return goods policies."
- Brad White, vice president of North America
Customer Service Centers, Textron Aviation
innovative solutions to enhance their
competitiveness. A few specific trends
we see are around data analytics -
from supply and demand planning
all the way through repairs; we see
customers exploring different ways to
operate, including offloading non-core

There will always be someone at BAC
who is happy to talk to a customer on
the phone to answer any questions or
to take an order," she said.
Additionally, Palma added that
customers are not necessarily always
looking for the best price when shop-

ping but are more concerned with
timely delivery.
"The majority of our customers are
most concerned with getting what they
need when they need it. Price is important, but not necessarily the deciding
factor when choosing a supplier," said
Palma.
It's a customer-trend that Shaw
echoed.
"While we still see some customers
shopping for the lowest price, we are
starting to see more and more customers seeking best value where suppliers
can help improve customer operations and lower the customer costs.
We are seeing an uptick on interest
in managed programs," Shaw said.
"Customers are also looking for ways
to reduce inventory costs while having
quick access to the parts they need."
Brad White, vice president of North
America Customer Service Centers
at Textron Aviation, said that there
are many outside influences affecting
customer expectations.
"Amazon has set a new bar in
terms of customer convenience,"
White said. "Customers want to order
parts from their phone and receive
overnight shipping with free return

AviationPros.com

7
http://www.AviationPros.com
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