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The paper proposes a framework for the successful deployment of Industry 4.0 (I4.0) principles in the aerospace industry, based on identified success factors. The paper challenges the perception of I4.0 being aligned with de-skilling and personnel reduction and instead promotes a route to successful deployment centred on upskilling and retaining personnel for future role requirements.

The research methodology involved a literature review and industrial data collection via questionnaires to develop and validate the framework. The questionnaire was sent to a purposive sample of 50 respondents working in operations, and a response rate of 90% was achieved. Content analysis was used to identify patterns, themes, or biases, and the data were tabulated based on specific common attributes. The proposed framework consists of a series of gates and criteria that must be met before progressing to the next gate.

The proposed framework provides a feedback mechanism to review minimum standards for successful deployment, aligned with new developments in capability and technology, and ensures quality assessment at each gate. The paper highlights the potential benefits of I4.0 implementation in the aerospace industry, including reducing operational costs and improving competitiveness by eliminating variation in manufacturing processes. The identified success factors were used to define the framework, and the identified failure points were used to form mitigation actions or controls for inclusion in the framework.

The paper provides a framework for the successful deployment of I4.0 principles in the aerospace industry, based on identified success factors. The framework challenges the perception of I4.0 as being aligned with de-skilling and personnel reduction and instead promotes a route to successful deployment centred on upskilling and retaining personnel for future role requirements. The framework can be used as a guideline for organizations to deploy I4.0 principles successfully and improve competitiveness.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the evolution of “product‐service” (P‐S) strategies in the aerospace sector. Despite the widespread perception that aerospace organisations are advanced in terms of P‐S integration, little is known about the realities of P‐S provision in the sector. Much of the existing literature is normative and prescriptive, focusing upon what organisations aspire to do, but offers little insights into how attempts to integrate products and services occur or the challenges organisations encounter.

This paper presents an in‐depth case study of an international aerospace original equipment manufacturer, referred to as “JetCo”. A total of 18 interviews were conducted with key actors involved in the operationalisation of P‐S strategy within defence aerospace and civil aerospace divisions. In addition, analysis of internal company documentation was also undertaken.

This paper reveals that current P‐S strategy, which builds upon a long history of service offerings, initially evolved separately in each division in response to the particular markets in which they operate. However, there was evidence of a corporate‐wide strategy for P‐S provision being developed across divisions to improve co‐ordination. This was founded on the recognition that P‐S delivery requires the development of a stronger customer orientation, better knowledge and information management strategies and the engagement of employees. A key challenge concerned integrating the product and service parts of the business to ensure consistent delivery of a seamless value offering to customers.

The paper offers fresh empirical evidence into the development of P‐S in an organisation drawn from a sector often flagged as an exemplar of P‐S provision, and provides insights into the complex realities of P‐S implementation and delivery. Notably, it highlights the challenge of attempting to embed an organisation‐wide “service culture” in pursuit of integrated P‐S delivery, and questions the nostrums and overly simplistic models which pervade the current solutions discourse.

In the present work, lean and resilient practices applied to supply chains are studied in order to evaluate their impact on the three dimensions of sustainability. Additionally, the mutual impact of lean and resilient supply chain practices is investigated. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

The aerospace sector and its supply chain are chosen, since lean and resilient practices have been proven relevant in the sector. A methodology based on Interpretive Structural Modeling approach is applied in order to identify the existing relationships between lean and resilient supply chain practices and their impact on the three different dimensions of sustainability.

The results reveal synergetic effects between lean and resilient practices. The former practices act as drivers of the latter practices. Hence, lean practices lead to direct and indirect effects in achieving supply chain sustainability.

The relationship between lean and resilient practices has been studied for the aerospace sector. Different sectors may lead to different results as the practices considered important in each sector may differ as well as the way in which each practice is implemented.

This study highlights the relationship existing between lean and resilient supply chain practices and their impact on sustainability. Additionally, several managerial implications are drawn out to help managers make better decisions.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a composite index (CI) to evaluate the sustainability performance of an aircraft manufacturing firm using Fuzzy Best Worst Multi Criteria (FBWM) decision-making approach. It identifies a wide range of sub-dimensions and their attributes to measure sustainability in a multi-echelon supply chain.

FBWM, a hybrid multi-criteria decision making method, relies on multiple sub-dimensions and attributes for assessment of sustainability. Sub-dimensions and attributes are identified from a detailed literature review and inputs from 17 experts. The weights are evaluated using best worst method (BWM). Quantitative measurements are very difficult for attributes like living conditions, noise emission, etc., so the performance of attributes are assessed using Fuzzy logic. The proposed methodology is validated with the case study of a single unit of an Indian aircraft manufacturing firm.

Economic concerns emerge as the most influential dimension of sustainability in the aerospace sector. The results reveal that the firm considered in the case study is “Very Sustainable.” Firm’s performance ratings are excellent in three out of 79 attributes considered for the study. Further, 24 weaker (least performing) attributes are identified with the help of fuzzy performance index. These require managerial action for improvements.

The present study is based on inputs from a small group of managers in a single firm in India. It can be extended to a large group of executives in other firms like Boeing, Airbus, etc. for testing the validity of the proposed methodology and generalization of the findings.

Managers, consultants and audit agencies can use the proposed CI developed in this paper for evaluating the sustainability performance of a firm. It assists managers to identify weaker attributes for which they may plan and prioritize their activities for improvements.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper to measure sustainability in an aircraft manufacturing firm. The paper proposes a novel framework based on fuzzy BWM, for assessing sustainability performance.

This paper aims to address the advantage of considering an evolutionary classification scheme for commercial aerospace supply chains. It is an industry wide approach. By going beyond the performance of the single firm and considering the whole supply chain for a product a better understanding of present states and performances of the firms within the chain can be achieved.

The approach is presented as evolutionary steps by introduction of key supply chain characters. These steps are brought together by applying cladistics to classify the evolutionary relationships between supply chain forms.

Key character states define the change of supply chain forms in the evolutionary adaptation to market realities and to proactive responses to increased competition.

The potential benefits of this approach include a benchmark of best practice, a strategic tool for policy development, and the creation of future scenarios.

This paper analyses the development of aerospace material supply chains. The paper begins with an overview of operations management literature, which introduces and conceptualises the research area. Supply chain literature is examined, focusing on supply chain structure and the inter‐organisational links between supply chain actors. Analysis of case study material is presented to illustrate the scope, complexity and interdependent nature of the aerospace supply chain. Recurring themes from the literature are compared with the data categories emergent from the empirical case data. The results are discussed in terms of the changes that are taking place in supply chain structure to increase the overall effectiveness of the network. The paper concludes by identifying the need for, and discussing the nature of, a specialised organisation focused on managing the complex structure of the supply chain.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the evolution of commercial aerospace supply chains.

The approach is presented as evolutionary steps by introduction of key supply chain practices. These steps are brought together by applying cladistics, a classification approach from the biological sciences, to classify the evolutionary relationships between supply chain forms. This is presented in two stages.

Earlier research produced a “conceptual cladogram” from secondary data that describes the evolution of aerospace supply chains. This paper expands on this through empirical validation and develops a “factual cladogram”, revealing a newly emerging supply chain form. Key practices define the change of supply chain forms in the evolutionary adaptation to market realities and to proactive responses to increased competition.

The factual cladogram as such does not necessarily prescribe world‐class performance but may serve as a platform for discussing and monitoring the properties of the emergent supply chain in light of strategies for the future. As such it becomes a strategic bench‐marking tool for the change of practices, technologies and products.

In practical terms, the approach may be developed as a strategic tool for policy development, and a decision support tool through the creation and exploration of future supply chain form scenarios.

Theoretically, this paper elaborates on a framework for how and why evolution produces diversity of supply chain form.

The purpose of this paper is to propose two simple tools for the kinematic characterization of hexapods. The paper also aims to share the experience of converting a popular commercial motion base (Stewart‐Gough platform, hexapod) to an industrial robot for use in heavy duty aerospace manufacturing processes.

The complete workspace of a hexapod is a six‐dimensional entity that is impossible to visualize. Thus, nearly all hexapod manufacturers simply state the extrema of each of the six dimensions, which is very misleading. As a compromise, a special 3D subset of the complete workspace is proposed, an approximation of which can be readily obtained using a computer‐aided design (CAD)/computer‐aided manufacturing (CAM) software suite, such as computer‐aided 3D interactive application (CATIA). While calibration techniques for serial robots are readily available, there is still no generally agreed procedure for calibrating hexapods. The paper proposes a simple calibration method that relies on the use of a laser tracker and requires no programming at all. Instead, the design parameters of the hexapod are directly and individually measured and the few computations involved are performed in a CAD/CAM software such as CATIA.

The conventional octahedral hexapod design has a very limited workspace, though free of singularities. There are important deviations between the actual and the specified kinematic model in a commercial motion base.

A commercial motion base can be used as a precision positioning device with its controller retrofitted with state‐of‐the‐art motion control technology with accurate workspace and geometric characteristics.

A novel geometric approach for obtaining meaningful measures of the workspace is proposed. A novel, systematic procedure for the calibration of a hexapod is outlined. Finally, experimental results are presented and discussed.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the resources and capabilities required by manufacturers to develop and deliver multi-vendor solutions.

A multi-case design comprising six UK-based manufacturers: two from each of the aerospace/defence, information technology and telecommunications sectors.

Manufacturers can be characterized by their propensity to include products from other vendors in their solutions; single vendor solution providers (SVSPs) focus on solutions comprising their own products, while multi-vendor solution providers (MVSPs) fully embrace products from other manufacturers. Three capabilities were identified which distinguish MVSPs from SVSPs given the complexity of multi-vendor solutions (expertise specifying the solution, engineers trained in implementing/supporting the solution, partnerships with component suppliers of the solution). These capabilities are underpinned by both technical capability and impartiality in solution specification.

MVSPs need to be impartial when specifying customer solutions. They should be guided by the best interests of the customer rather than the interests of the product-based SBUs. Achieving impartiality can conflict with some manufacturers' product heritage. The research has focused on three sectors; further research is needed to test whether the findings are applicable beyond these sectors.

Solutions are a valuable approach in creating market differentiation, although not all manufacturers will possess the resources/capabilities to be successful.

A continuum of solution providers is proposed; SVSPs at one extreme and MVSPs at the other. The operant resource-based capability “impartiality” was identified as being particularly important to MVSPs in creating value for customers.

The intention of this research paper is to shed light on the key factors influencing the human resource management (HRM) performance of first tier managers (FTMs), and the vital importance that a holistic strategic framework can have in this regard.

The research paper uses an up‐to‐date historical approach and, additionally, draws on detailed case study evidence from an aerospace manufacturing/engineering company via manually and electronically analysed in‐depth semi‐structured interview and company documentation.

The case study findings reveal that the FTM's HRM performance is greatly influenced by a group of four key factors, and their interrelationships.

The literature survey was mainly industry‐specific (manufacturing), and the sample was restricted to one sector (aerospace), as well as one case study organisation. Furthermore, the views of FTMs' staff are not directly represented.

The FTMs' HRM role shows no signs of abating; in addition, questions regarding their performance of this role have increasingly emerged. This has become more evident as organisations have continued to expand the FTMs' role by devolving greater HRM responsibilities to them, and their performance of the role demonstrates that many FTMs are ill equipped to perform their HRM duties to the required standard. However, the vital importance that a holistic strategic framework (which encompasses the four key factors influencing their performance) can have on their performance of this role is not acknowledged. The present research paper, gives an empirical example of a case study, and therefore provides a springboard to address the weakness in the literature.