45% Reduction in Non-Conformances

An aerospace OEM’s core Tier-1 suppliers were behind schedule and burning overtime. GPSI led the recovery — stopping forward scheduling, freeing capacity, and standing up a Corrective Action Board that cut non-conformances by 45%.

Aerospace Tier-1 supplier recovery and quality non-conformance reduction
45% Reduction in
non-conformances
Client Major Aerospace OEM

Engaged GPSI to support and lead the recovery of its core Tier-1 suppliers — and their sub-tiers — back to schedule.

Industry
Aerospace & Defence
Engagement
Tier-1 Supplier Recovery
Focus
Load/capacity, source inspection, CAB
Headline
45% fewer non-conformances

Key Takeaways

  • GPSI led full recovery of core Tier-1 suppliers back to the current schedule.
  • Stopping forward scheduling and freeing machine capacity halved overtime from 20% to 10%.
  • A new Corrective Action Board (CAB) limited repeat non-conformances.
  • Switching old castings to hog-out machining cut non-conformances by 45%.
  • Daily standups and war-room calls drove drawing revisions that saved hundreds of hours.
  • A full lead-time data cleanse for OSP/OSM parts improved on-time delivery.

Scope of WorkWhat was the scope of work?

A major player in the Aerospace industry hired the Global Partner Solutions team to support and lead the recovery of their core Tier 1 Suppliers. The SOW consisted of:

  • Full Recovery of the Suppliers to the current schedule.
  • Perform load/capacity analysis at the tier 1 Supplier and Capacity audits at sub-tier level.
  • Provide Source Inspection to limit non-conformities.

ChallengesWhat challenges did GPSI face?

  • Load Hours were not 1 for 1; productivity percentages were used (capturing incremental improvements) and not shared by the supplier, making it difficult to understand “Actual Load Hours” across each machine.
  • Some Machines were scheduled for 7/20 operations which led to no open capacity for additional recovery.
  • High reliance on overtime – as high as 20% to meet Load/Hours – that led to Suppliers not able to sustain the level, resulting in missed targets.
  • Suppliers were performing Forward Schedule practice – this led to behind schedule to customer PO.
  • Lead times not accurate for OSP (Outside Processing) and OSM (Outside Machining) and did not reflect on the overall lead-time for parts.
  • Supplier lacked visibility of actual number of Load Hours offloaded to each sub-tier supplier, with no Load and Capacity Analysis performed at sub-tiers.
  • No Corrective Action Board (CAB) process existed.
DEFINITION

Corrective Action Board (CAB): a governance process that reviews defects and non-conformances, assigns root-cause corrective actions, and tracks them to closure so the same problems don’t recur. No CAB existed before GPSI implemented one.

Activities & ResultsWhat did GPSI do?

  1. GPSI stopped the forward scheduling practice.
  2. GPSI advised and secured the procurement of an extra Lathe to help stop the 7/20 operation on some machines.
  3. Lowered the Overtime to 10%.
  4. Implementation of CAB process to limit the repeat non-conformances.
  5. Eliminated some old castings in favor of Hog out — this led to a reduction in non-conformances by 45%.
  6. Detailed Load and Capacity analysis performed at several OSP and OSM sub-tiers to better understand supplier capabilities.
  7. Implementation of daily tracking of hours planned vs hours achieved for each machine.
  8. GPSI introduced daily morning standups to discuss any issues from the previous shifts.
  9. Introduced daily war room calls between Suppliers and the client to leverage client’s expertise on complex engineering problems — leading to several Drawing Revs that saved hundreds of hours of redundant testing and processes.
  10. Data Cleanse – Leadtimes were corrected for every part that had OSM and OSP, resulting in improved OTD and customer satisfaction.
DEFINITION

OSP & OSM: Outside Processing (OSP) and Outside Machining (OSM) are operations sent to external sub-tier suppliers — such as special coatings or machining. Inaccurate OSP/OSM lead times had distorted overall part lead-times until GPSI cleansed the data.

ImpactWhat was the impact?

Before
20%
overtime to meet load hours — unsustainable
After
10%
overtime — capacity freed, targets held
45%
Reduction in non-conformances
10%
Overtime, down from 20%
+1
Lathe secured to free capacity
100s
Hours saved via drawing revisions

Non-conformances down 45%, overtime halved, a Corrective Action Board in place, and corrected lead-times across every OSP/OSM part — improving on-time delivery and customer satisfaction. — Outcome of the GPSI Tier-1 supplier recovery

AS9100NSF-ISR Certified

GPSI leads aerospace Tier-1 supplier recovery and delivery assurance under AS9100-certified quality management — the standard behind engagements like this one.

Frequently asked questions

What was GPSI hired to do?
A major aerospace player hired GPSI to support and lead the recovery of its core Tier-1 suppliers — including full recovery to schedule, load and capacity analysis at the Tier-1 supplier with capacity audits at sub-tier level, and source inspection to limit non-conformities.
How much were non-conformances reduced?
GPSI reduced non-conformances by 45%, largely by eliminating some old castings in favor of hog-out machining and implementing a Corrective Action Board process to limit repeat non-conformances.
What is a Corrective Action Board (CAB)?
A Corrective Action Board (CAB) is a governance process that reviews defects and non-conformances, assigns root-cause corrective actions, and tracks them to closure so the same problems do not recur. No CAB process existed before GPSI implemented one.
What are OSP and OSM?
OSP (Outside Processing) and OSM (Outside Machining) are operations sent to external sub-tier suppliers, such as special coatings or machining. Inaccurate OSP/OSM lead times had distorted overall part lead-times until GPSI cleansed the data.
What happened to overtime?
Suppliers had relied on overtime as high as 20% to meet load hours, which was not sustainable. GPSI lowered overtime to 10% by stopping forward scheduling, freeing capacity with an extra lathe, and improving planning.
How did the daily war-room calls help?
GPSI introduced daily war-room calls between suppliers and the client to leverage the client’s engineering expertise on complex problems. This produced several drawing revisions that saved hundreds of hours of redundant testing and processes.

Tier-1 suppliers behind schedule?

GPSI leads hands-on supplier recovery — load and capacity analysis, source inspection, CAB governance, and daily war-room cadence — to cut non-conformances and restore on-time delivery. Let’s find a time to connect.

Explore Supplier Recovery & Delivery Assurance Canada toll free: 866-980-1387  ·  US: 316-263-1288  ·  UK: 44 121 295 6504