Smart manufacturing for aerospace and defense – Part 3: Optimize products and processes across the full lifecycle
Launch day is just the beginning in aerospace and defense manufacturing. Once production is underway, maintaining performance, quality and efficiency require constant monitoring and refinement. The ability to adapt quickly to real-world conditions is what sets high-performing teams apart from those struggling to keep pace.
Traditional production models built on static schedules, siloed knowledge and paper-based communication struggle to keep pace. Without real-time visibility, manufacturers risk costly downtime, inefficiencies and missed opportunities for improvement.
That’s why forward-thinking A&D teams are embracing smart manufacturing to optimize their products and processes long after the first unit ships. By leveraging digital tools, closed-loop feedback and connected operations, they’re transforming manufacturing into a continuously improving, highly adaptable process.
Build flexible scheduling and work orders
The pace of aerospace manufacturing is anything but predictable. Programs shift, priorities change and disruptions happen. Flexible scheduling is key to staying on track without sacrificing output or quality. By using simulation tools and data analytics, you can:
- Dynamically adjust work orders in response to real-time conditions
- Balance workloads across resources for maximum efficiency
- Minimize downtime caused by bottlenecks or unplanned events
Digitalize operational and quality control
When operational and quality data are trapped in silos, problems take longer to detect and solve. With connected systems and digital continuity, you can:
- Gain complete visibility into production and quality metrics
- Identify and address process deviations before they affect delivery
- Standardize best practices across facilities and programs
Optimize end-to-end operations
Every aerospace program is a network of interconnected processes. A closed-loop approach connects planning, execution and feedback, enabling you to:
- Analyze real production data to uncover opportunities for optimization
- Implement process changes with minimal disruption
- Drive efficiency gains across the value chain
Foster digital collaboration across the value chain
Suppliers, partners and internal teams all play a role in delivering complex aerospace products. Digital collaboration tools create a shared workspace where everyone works from the same up-to-date information; miscommunication and rework are reduced; and decisions are made faster, with full context.
Making continuous improvement a part of the process
Optimizing production isn’t a one-time effort, it’s a continuous loop. The Siemens Xcelerator platform brings together the tools you need to manage aerospace and defense manufacturing effectively. By uniting manufacturing planning, execution, optimization and traceability in one connected environment, you can:
- Act on real-time data to fine-tune processes
- Drive continuous quality improvements
- Maintain the agility to respond to shifting requirements and market demands
Smart manufacturing transforms aerospace production into a living system that is constantly learning, adapting and improving. This leads to faster ramp-up, sustained performance and right-first-time quality at every stage.
Missed the earlier parts of this series?
Catch up on the first two installments of our smart manufacturing series for aerospace and defense:
[Part 1: Create a model-based manufacturing plan] – how to align engineering and production from day one for right-first-time delivery.
[Part 2: Validate and finalize your manufacturing plan before launch] – how to prove readiness and reduce risk before production begins
