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‘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.