More than 70 per cent of suppliers in the aerospace industry’s supply chain improvement programme have reported improvements in their customer relationships, according to an independent assessment.

The survey of firms in the Supply Chain Relationships in Aerospace (Scria) programme found that, over the past two years, the most improved relations were with prime contractors. Specific areas mentioned were costing, supplier quality, forecasting and engineering interface. But the survey also noted that while Scria was not the sole reason for improvements, it contributed greatly. “Scria is very much about how organisations interact,” Alex Burns, Scria programme manager, told SM. “An example of better communication is how an engineering department might now contact its purchasing and supply department before placing an order directly with a supplier.” Conversely, 30 per cent of companies showed no improvement. “These might be companies that haven’t participated actively in the programme,” said Burns. They may have enrolled but not followed through with workshops and monitoring performance. From January, all companies participating in workshops will receive a monitoring programme for self-assessment. Around 2,000 supply chain staff a year take part in the workshops. Scria was started in 1995 and includes companies such as British Aerospace and GKN Westland. The survey was conducted by Ernst & Young and covered 86 respondents representing 71 companies of various sizes.