Complex product and supplier
interfaces in aeronautics
Ayshe Cagli, Med Kechidi and Rachel Levy
LEREPS, Technological University Institute of Toulouse III, Toulouse, France
Abstract
Purpose – The aeronautical industry is a perfect example of a complex product industry
characterized by a hierarchically-organized supply chain. The authors can identify four types of
supplier interfaces: interactive, translation, specified and standardized ones. The purpose of this paper
is to understand the factors explaining the diversification of these relationships between aircraft
manufacturers and their suppliers, through the example of Airbus suppliers.
Design/methodology/approach – Network analysis (to define the complexity level of aircraft
components), data analysis (to characterize the diversity of aircraft suppliers) and a logit model were
combined in order to link the supplier interfaces to the complexity of components and to the suppliers’
characteristics.
Findings – It is shown that the earlier a supplier is involved in the development process, the more
responsibility is delegated to him and the more intertwined its relationship is with the prime
contractor. Also, it is shown that component complexity plays a major role in a supplier’s involvement
during the integral design and face-to-face interactions matter greatly during the co-design phases of
the products.
Research limitations/implications – The research has rather a static perspective covering all the
inter-firm relations within Airbus programs at once. By using the same databases, one could look into
the evolution of supplier interfaces within the aeronautical supply chain. A dynamic view would
provide some evidence regarding the recent restructuring of the supply chain.
Originality/value – The originality of the paper comes from the methodology and the use of original
data allowing to test in the same analysis the role of the component complexity and the characterization
of the suppliers on the form of relationship between the manufacturer and its principal suppliers.
Keywords Aerospace industry, Supply chain management, Outsourcing, New products,
Buyer-supplier relationships, New product development
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Complex products are characterized by a large number of interacting components
relying on new technologies and are developed within large supply chains (Hobday,
1998; New and Westbrook, 2004). Because mastering all the knowledge and skills
required for their production is difficult for a single firm, the participation of external
suppliers providing a wide range of knowledge and components is essential to the
complex process of product development (Prencipe, 2005; Persson and Ahlstro
¨
m, 2006;
Becker and Zirpoli, 2011). In addition, this process has to be coordinated by a central
agent responsible for the integration of knowledge and components gathered from
distributed sources: this agent is “the system integrator” (Brusoni and Prencipe, 2001).
The aeronautical industry is a perfect example of a complex product industry
characterized by a hierarchically organized supply chain (Amesse et al., 2001; Acha et al.,
2007; Rebolledo and Nollet, 2011). Prime contractors have been restructuring their
respective supply chains over recent years and they have been changing the nature and
depth of their relationships with their suppliers. Studies focusing on procurement
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Product and
supplier
interfaces
717
Received 1 March 2011
Revised 4 July 2011,
18 October 2011
Accepted 17 November 2011
Journal of Manufacturing Technology
Management
Vol. 23 No. 6, 2012
pp. 717-732
q Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1741-038X
DOI 10.1108/17410381211253308