It's under control

Some say the more things change, the more they stay the same. Not so for the folks responsible for managing change at Commercial Airplanes. When they put their minds to improving their operations, their process improvements led to the creation of a new organization called Program Planning & Control.

PP&C is responsible for planning and scheduling the work related to building a commercial jet. This work used to be done in three separate organizations: Engineering Operations, Industrial Engineering and Change Management. The vision of PP&C is to put certain production-related tasks handled by these groups under one organization, to help streamline production and improve efficiency—which ultimately helps improve business performance.

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Show and sell

There's something to be said about "seeing is believing."

At the new Customer Experience Center in Renton, Wash., Commercial Airplanes' airline customers will see for themselves why Boeing products and services are world-class in innovation, technology and lifetime fleet support—and how choosing Boeing will strategically advance their business plans.

The main purpose of this facility is to establish a business case for customers to buy Boeing airplanes, said Klaus Brauer, director of Passenger Satisfaction and Revenue for Commercial Airplanes and the person who helped conceptualize and develop the center.

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A covenant with Kabul

"So, the kites have cutting strings coated with tiny glass shards?" I asked. Over dinner, my new Afghan friends briefed me on kite fighting, as described in the novel The Kite Runner.

We were in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where the Boeing sales team hosted a signing ceremony in November for Ariana Afghan Airlines, Afghanistan's national carrier. Ariana and Boeing Capital Corporation inked a deal for the lease of two 757s; the carrier also signed for the direct purchase of four 737-700s from Boeing Commercial Airplanes.

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