WCA September 2009

‘Every minute counts’ As described by Ms James, a video screen 40 feet wide and 10 feet high holds dozens of boxes that monitor news around the world, global weather, earthquakes in real time, production issues with each supplier, the health of 787-related computer servers, and shipping schedules for the ‘Dreamlifter’ – a converted 747 that fetches and carries parts for the 787. Boeing operates three of these giant transports. The big screen also displays live video feeds from Boeing suppliers. Digital clocks display the time in Everett; Wichita, Kansas; Charleston, South Carolina; Rome; Moscow; Melbourne; and Nagoya, Japan. There are 27 workstations, each with three flat screens. Morale is a priority. Painted on the wall of the centre is the declaration, ‘International team at work.’ Most of the problems addressed by the staff of the 787 Production Integration Center concern damaged parts. Earthquakes, riots, strikes, and floods have presented other challenges. Because the work is taxing and the hours long, Mr Noble said, employees (“controllers,” in Boeing parlance) are susceptible to burnout. He likened an assignment to the centre – typically short-term – to a stint as a fire-fighter. Preparation for the work includes practice with mock emergencies that could slow the 787 programme and further delay delivery of the first Dreamliner. To its builder, Mr Noble told the Post-Intelligencer , “Every minute counts.” Elsewhere in aviation . . . The European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co ❖ ❖ (EADS), parent company of Airbus, has said it would join with its American partner Northrop Grumman Corp in bidding for a $35 billion US Air Force contract even if the 179-plane contract must be shared with its rival Boeing. The Boeing KC-135 in-flight refuelling tankers in the fleet are nearing the end of their service life, and some Washington lawmakers are in favour of expediting their replacement by dividing the work between Boeing and the Northrop-EADS team. “We want to be there whatever the solution,” EADS spokesman Pierre Bayle said in Paris on 17 th April, in reference to the reopening of a competition that was won by Northrop-EADS but vacated last September when Boeing appealed the award on grounds of unfairness, and prevailed. Although no date has been set, the Pentagon was expected to issue new guidelines and solicit bids for a new plane by the autumn.

The workplace

Many more American men are out of work than women The recession in the US is affecting workers in just about every industry. But, according to the business and financial news daily MarketWatch , men are taking a much bigger hit than women.

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Wire & Cable ASIA – September/October 2009