thyssenkrupp Aerospace is pleased to announce a three-year extension to its contract with MHI Canada Aerospace (MHICA). Under the agreement, which began in 2018, thyssenkrupp Aerospace manages material for aluminum wing planks, including procuring, receiving, inspecting, and storing planks directly from the mills at its facility in Montreal. The material is drilled and tapped on demand for just-in-time delivery.

 “The continuation of our contract with MHICA is a sign of their confidence and trust in our relationship. Under our ‘Materials as a Service’ approach, we reduce the complexity of MHICA’s supply chain with access to global markets, custom supply chain solutions, material processing, and just-in-time delivery.”

Jürgen Funke, Chairman and CEO of thyssenkrupp Aerospace North America.

MHI Canada Aerospace Inc., located in Mississauga, Ont., manufactures heavy aero structures for Bombardier, including the Challenger 350 wing and the Global 5500/6500 wing and center fuselage section. In addition to performing systems and flight control assembly installations and testing, its facility boasts a 24/7 supply chain and logistics center.

As part of the worldwide thyssenkrupp network in 22 countries, thyssenkrupp Aerospace offers an unmatched logistics infrastructure to support customers around the world. Services range from raw material management to finished parts kitting. The company’s Montreal facilities feature 177 k square feet of warehouse space, with about 80 employees.

EN/AS 9100/9120 certificate extended: The audit of thyssenkrupp Aerospace’s Quality Management System at 38 locations confirms its very high standard in Quality Management. From February to July, a total of 13 auditors tested how thyssenkrupp Aerospace ensures the quality of its processes. The audit report praised the clear vision and communication of the management QM team, a high degree of motivation for change, a competent team and a very well-structured improvement system as particular strengths of the company.

The certification process was challenging for all parties involved. Given the circumstances, a large part of the 113 audit days had to be carried out under the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many audits were therefore conducted virtually to comply with the distancing regulations. This approach was new for both the auditors from DNV GL and the Quality Management System team at thyssenkrupp Aerospace. Patrick Marous, CEO of the Aerospace Operating Unit at thyssenkrupp, is all the more pleased that a thorough investigation was nevertheless possible:

“The global Quality Management of thyssenkrupp Aerospace is the foundation for our joint success, because we want to continue to be a trusted business partner for the aerospace industry. The extension of the global Quality Management System certificate is clear evidence of this.”

Importance of certified Quality Management highlighted

Customers in the aerospace industry have always focused on Quality Management and supply chain security. thyssenkrupp Aerospace therefore attaches particular importance to taking a proactive approach to process management: this means approaching customers, identifying their needs, and delivering suitable offers.

“We can be very proud of the result. The circumstances of social distancing made it difficult for the auditors, but we found useful solutions that still allowed for a thorough inspection. One thing is clear: When it comes to Quality Management, even under the unique conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic, we do not make compromises – for ourselves or our customers.”

Patrick Marous
CEO thyssenkrupp Aerospace

About thyssenkrupp Aerospace

As one of the world's leading service providers in the market for raw materials, processing services and the management of complex supply chains, thyssenkrupp Aerospace supplies the required materials just-in-time, cut and machined exactly to customer specifications. The aim is for customers to be able to concentrate fully on their core business. The company has a global network of more than 20 countries.

In the near future, materials by thyssenkrupp Aerospace will be flying in the Airbus Single Aisle, a narrow-body aircraft designed for long-haul flights. As part of a five-year contract, the service provider has been supplying cut-to-size sheets, plates as well as round and flat bars to a British partner of Airbus since April 2020. The engineering company produces components for civil and military aircraft and has been a customer of thyssenkrupp Aerospace for more than 20 years. 

The Airbus supplier requires aluminum, steel and titanium products cut to size for its precision components. thyssenkrupp Aerospace is supplying these essential parts in the face of tight deadlines to support the customer in processing the order for the Airbus Single Aisle. The initial project is set to run until the end of 2025 with the potential for thyssenkrupp Aerospace’s contract to be extended for an additional five years, resulting in cost advantages for the British customer as well as a more secure supply chain in a volatile market.

Material for Airbus parts 

Airbus is developing the A321XLR in response to market needs for even more range and payload by delivering an unprecedented “Xtra Long Range” for single-aisle aircraft of up to 4,700 NM. This provides 15 percent additional reach on airline routes from the A321LR long-range variant currently in service, with 30 percent lower fuel burn per seat compared to previous-generation competitor aircraft.

Together with the Airbus A330neo, the A321XLR perfectly addresses the market niche which exists between single-aisle aircraft and the smallest widebodies, while enabling Airbus to enhance the product coverage between its A220 and A320 single-aisle families and the widebody A330neo and A350 XWB.

thyssenkrupp Aerospace is supporting the British supplier as well as many other Airbus tier 1 and tier 2 suppliers. As a result, the materials of the service provider are now included in many Airbus aircraft.

About thyssenkrupp Aerospace

As one of the world's leading service providers in the market for raw materials, processing services and the management of complex supply chains, thyssenkrupp Aerospace supplies the required materials just-in-time, cut and machined exactly to customer specifications. The aim is for customers to be able to concentrate fully on their core business. The company has a global network of more than 20 countries.

thyssenkrupp Aerospace is supplying the Korean aircraft landing gear manufacturer Hyundai WIA with 48 ship sets and is integrating the various supply chains involved in the process. The materials will be supplied to the original equipment manufacturer, Hyundai WIA, over a period of three years and will be used to aid Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) in building the Korea Utility Helicopter KUH-1 Surion. The KUH project was developed by KAI and Airbus Helicopters, a long-standing customer of thyssenkrupp Aerospace. The twin-engined transport helicopter will be used for both military and civil purposes.

Early involvement for best results

A landing gear consists of many different components and is built for heavy loads and extreme reliability. To meet the demands, a wide range of materials with highly specialised properties and very specific features from various sub-suppliers are required, but usually only in small quantities. This often leads to complex material supply chains and challenges in procurement, driving up costs and time required for overall coordination.

thyssenkrupp Aerospace has used its expertise in materials and global supply chains to develop a customized one-stop shop solution for the customer. A profound understanding of the customer’s challenges combined with early involvement in the process to develop a solution were important for success. As a result, thyssenkrupp Aerospace consolidated the various material shipments and put together a series of ship sets. These are then delivered when necessary and synchronised with the customer’s production flows.

This strategy allows thyssenkrupp Aerospace to eliminate supply chain complexity, enabling the customer to focus entirely on its core business.

The project shows that it is not enough to simply supply materials to our customers. They need a partner who can also solve logistical challenges. We have developed the one-stop shop solution with and for the customer to save them time and money. Both the material shipments and supply chain management have been customised for our customer.

Patrick Marous, CEO of thyssenkrupp Aerospace

About thyssenkrupp Aerospace

As one of the world's leading service providers in the market for raw materials, processing services and the management of complex supply chains, thyssenkrupp Aerospace supplies the required materials just-in-time, cut and machined exactly to customer specifications. The aim is for customers to be able to concentrate fully on their core business. The company has a global network of 21 countries.

thyssenkrupp convinces AVIC Chenfei Commercial Aircraft Corporation in Chengdu (CCAC) with its “Materials as a Service” concept, which includes an onsite warehousing solution, and is awarded an additional work package with 1,200 metric tons of aluminum.

Among other commercial airplane programs manufactured and assembled by CCAC, thyssenkrupp Aerospace issues aluminum parts in the right dimension at the point of use.

For this service, thyssenkrupp Aerospace in Suzhou has installed a satellite facility on CCAC’s premises in Chengdu. Raw materials are being sourced locally in China and processed in thyssenkrupp’s free-trade-zone location in Suzhou. Precision cutting, further processing and quality checks – all happen in the Suzhou facility. The local team’s optimized material planning then ensures the right supply levels to Chengdu by safe river transport.

“We are proud that CCAC chose thyssenkrupp Aerospace with its proven service base to power their raw material supply chain over several thousand part numbers and over 2,000 kilometers in distance”, says Martin Buchmüller, CEO of thyssenkrupp Aerospace in China.

About thyssenkrupp Aerospace

As one of the world's leading service providers in the market for raw materials, processing services and the management of complex supply chains, thyssenkrupp Aerospace supplies the required materials just-in-time, cut and machined exactly to customer specifications. The aim is for customers to be able to concentrate fully on their core business. The company has a global network of 21 countries.