Enterprise System (Es) Critical Success Factors (Csf), Across Lifecycle, In Aircraft Industry For Production Excellence

Abstract

For an aircraft industry, Enterprise System (ES) is paramount for Operations, Manufacturing, Fleet Management and MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul). ES have been invariably adopted and have replaced the conventional legacy systems by legendry enterprises like Airbus, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Rolls Royce, Raytheon Air etc. However, developing Asian Aircraft industries (Turkey, Pakistan and China) have recently realized the importance of ES and are in the process of adoption or up-gradation of ES. The implementation of ES in any aircraft industry is not only a cumbersome process but takes years before it yields results and reveals its effectiveness. It is reported that aircraft industries, which inducted ES technology either scrapped, replaced or upgraded the ES before the diffusion of innovation. Conversely, ES and Simulation Integration in pursuit of optimum real-time Master Production Scheduling are the emerging vital challenges. Literature indicates that ES selection process may demand over $30 million, years of efforts and massive transformation of organization to fit the ES. Contextual agony is that even after spending huge amount of money and years of efforts, approximately 60% to 90% of ES implementation projects fail or fail to meet desired expectations of Aviation Industry. While in past; studies were conducted to curtail budget and to shorten implementation time utilizing theory of Critical Success Factors (CSFs); yet very limited research exist that focuses at identifying CSFs across complete lifecycle through the lens of Process-approach. Gap exists in literature for ES careful selection, Quality and functional fit (a vital CSFs) at start of its lifecycle. Evidence supports that careful selection and functional fit is a vital CSF for whole lifecycle, which ultimately affects ramping up of aircraft production due to inaccurate lead-time calculations by MRP-Module. The problem statement is hence, three tier, first there is a Need of Exhaustive literature review for up-to-date CSFs with focus on the End User Perspective of the aircraft industry only then it would be logical to validate such CSFs. Second CSFs validation across lifecycle to conserve and deploy resources. Third ES-functional fit to support intelligent production by eradication MPS errors with a special emphasis to ramp-up aircraft production-lines. Retrospectively, aim is to mitigate CSFs across lifecycle; with a special emphasis to ES-CSF (functionality-fit at ES-selection stage through the ES-Simulation integration) for production excellence. ES-Simulation integration would delivers much needed Online planning and Scheduling to avert production lead time errors and avert uncertain shop floor dynamics; which is a limitation of almost every renowned ES-packages like; Ms SAP, BAAN, INFOR-Systems and ORCALE. To reap aim research uses Scenarios Planning based multiple imaginative-views to avert risks through lifecycle. Reresearch deliverables are multiple, first, to render shared vision to ES players (users and vendors) to better understand as well as better manage ES through lifecycle. Second, development of state-of-art to bridge the knowledge-gap that exists in literature by first identifying cohesive and coalesced classical-CSFs and then its validation through lifecycle utilizing Bayesian-Rule. Third, development of knowledge areas for CSFs along technovation lifecycle. Fourth development of “Unified Framework" not only for ES-Simulation (SIM) Integration but also for ES's CSFs lifecycle. Resultantly the industry-validated CSFs have 90% of harmony with classical-CSFs. Aircraft industry need to learn from validated findings of developing Asian Aircraft industry which at present is in the process of either adoption or upgrade. It is expected that these deliverables would contribute optimistically to state of Knowledge and to aircraft industry rendering efficiency, effectiveness, and performance and to conserve resources not only at selection phase but also through enterprise lifecycle by leveraging deployment, when it is needed the most. This can then lead to competitive advantage via ES optimum functionality-fit, configuration-fit, reliability, usability, portability, and maintainability which need to be taken care-off right at ES-selection stage so as to avert scrapping of ES, and further production-delays due to inaccurate logic of ES-MPS-logic. This research hence, serves as a precursor to niche emerging aircraft industry.