Smart manufacturing for aerospace and defense – Part 1: Creating a model-based plan that delivers high-quality products with speed and precision
Aerospace manufacturing is becoming more complex, with tighter timelines, stricter regulations and rising pressure to get it right the first time.
You’re juggling electrification, software integration, regulatory hurdles and labor gaps, while trying to stay competitive. While you’ve probably invested in great design tools, your production ramp-up might still feel like a scramble.
That’s why leading manufacturers are shifting from document-based, sequential planning to model-based manufacturing: A connected, digital thread approach that enables right-first-time production.
In this three-part series, we’ll walk through how to build a smarter, more agile manufacturing strategy:
- Part 1: Create a model-based manufacturing plan
- Part 2: Validate your product and process plan before you hit the floor
- Part 3: Optimize products and processes across the full lifecycle
This blog post tackles part 1: How to lay the foundation for faster, more predictable production—starting with your plan.
Build on a shared digital foundation between engineering and manufacturing
In the past, design and manufacturing have operated in silos, relying on manual handoffs and disconnected systems.
With a model-based approach, a shared digital thread ensures alignment from the earliest stages of product development. With digital continuity, engineering teams and manufacturing planners can collaborate in real time using consistent, up-to-date data. This leads to improved communication, faster decision-making and reduced risk of late-stage rework.
Connect process planning to the digital twin
A comprehensive digital twin goes beyond product design. It includes production lines, tools and processes, enabling you to simulate and refine before anything physical is built.
By planning in the virtual realm, your team can:
- Validate manufacturability and assembly sequences
- Identify bottlenecks or tooling constraints early
- Optimize production strategies without costly prototypes
This creates greater predictability and confidence that what you design is what you’ll build.
Shift validation earlier in the lifecycle
Too often, manufacturing issues aren’t discovered until commissioning, when it’s too late to adjust without disrupting timelines and budgets.
Model-based planning allows you to shift validation left, detecting and addressing potential issues while the product and process are still digital. This early feedback loop between design and manufacturing reduces costly redesigns, improves quality and shortens time to market.
Plan for agility, not just execution
In A&D, requirements will evolve, whether due to regulatory changes, new materials or shifting customer needs. Your manufacturing plan needs to keep pace.
With model-based planning, you gain the flexibility to:
- Incorporate design changes without starting from scratch
- Respond to disruptions without derailing the entire program
- Maintain traceability across teams and systems
The result? A resilient, future-ready manufacturing plan that can evolve with your business.
Where strategy meets execution: Siemens Xcelerator
Executing a model-based manufacturing strategy takes more than intention—it requires the right digital backbone. That’s where Siemens Xcelerator comes in. This open, integrated software ecosystem connects engineering, manufacturing and operations across the full product lifecycle. From digital twins to seamless data threads, it gives your team the ability to collaborate, simulate and adapt faster and more efficiently.
With Siemens Xcelerator as your foundation, model-based manufacturing becomes more than an ideal; it becomes a repeatable, scalable advantage.
Up next in the aerospace and defense smart manufacturing series
Stay tuned for part 2 of this series. In the meantime, check out some of our related resources:
