Top 10 A&D Magazines Online: Comparing the Numbers August 25, 2010
Posted by ludozone in Aerospace, eBusiness Applications/Services, International Business Development, Internet Marketing, Social Media, Twitter.Tags: Aerospace, eBusiness, Marketing
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In my recent blog post entitled “MRO Americas and EBACE Online Coverage: Missed Opportunity for Exhibitors”, I stated the following:
I would want to see AIN’s news content
in FlightGlobal’s multi-format web platform
delivered to AviationWeek’s online audience.
This was a pretty strong statement that generated much discussion around the water coolers of numerous A&D publishing companies. Flight Global argued that they had a larger online audience and ended up posting their web traffic analysis (PDF) for all to see. AviationWeek sent out a press release about their Farnborough web traffic to show that they felt their presence was pretty successful. Flight Global responded in their editor’s blog. Many others commented to me privately via email. All of this interest prompted me to investigate further. My complete data spreadsheet is available for download (PDF).
PRINT MEDIA CIRCULATION
Using the online BPA circulation reports, I selected the ten most distributed A&D magazines based on their December 2009 Qualified Total Circulation.
As I thought, AviationWeek has by far the largest audience of them all. But there is more than meets the eye. When looking at Qualified Paid Circulation and eliminating the Air Force Magazine which is provided as part of the association membership, the dominance of AviationWeek is undeniable. Quite an achievement since 100% of their circulation is paid versus 77% for Flight International. All the other magazines have less than 15% paid subscribers.
ONLINE PRESENCE
I then looked at the online presence for each company, analyzing the “public” side of each publisher. That is to say, I did not have access to data regarding web pages behind a password protected screen. I also included Twitter information. I gathered the information from websitegrader.com and twitter.grader.com data as well as Google Doubleclick Ad Planner estimates. What quickly emerged, contrary to the statement I made above, is that Flight Global dominates the online audience in every category.
With over 118 thousand pages of information available, they manage an estimated 360,000 unique visitors and 4.6 million page views per month. Next up are Aviation Week and Jane’s who both have a mixed model of public and premium pages. For their public pages, their numbers are similar: around 35,000 pages available, generating an estimated 1.2 million page views by 110,000 unique visitors per month. That is roughly a third of what Flight Global generates. So even if you optimistically double the page views to account for the password protected data (the unique visitor counts would be unchanged), Flight Global is still well ahead. It is important to note that Jane’s traffic numbers are skewed compared to the Aviation Week ones because janes.com handles a number of topic not related directly to our industry. They should therefore be somewhat discounted.
However, niche magazines seem to be missing the online domain entirely. Aircraft Maintenance Technology, Aviation International News, Aviation Today and Defense Systems all have less monthly unique visitors than they have circulation for their flagship magazines. They have the least amount of information available, and therefore generate the least “stickiness” with an average of 6 page views per unique visitor as opposed to over 10 for the industry leaders. Aviation International News has the least stickiness with less than 4. They also all have less than 2000 followers on Twitter (Aircraft Maintenance technology has less than 100!) which seems to be an important traffic driver for the top websites.
Most of the A&D Media publishers also offer “Premium” (paid) products both in print and online. Those are difficult to compare because their circulation and traffic numbers are not public. Segmented headline newsletters (with electronic version usually available alongside) seem to be the most common. The larger publishers also provide database and reference services that are well suited for online access. AviationWeek has indicated a steady growth in their Intelligent Network (AWIN) and MRO Prospector online products. Flight Global has a number of online paid products including the Air Transport Intelligence (ATI) as well as a series of “Analysis Systems” geared at various segments of the industry.
WHAT CAN BE LEARNED FROM THIS?
Despite the introduction of new technologies such as the Kindle and iPad, the convenience and portability of a paper magazine won’t go away for a while. At least not until we have a complete generational overhaul of our industry’s personnel. Judging by the subscription level changes of the last 5 years, the reduction in subscribers seems to follow the natural attrition rate of the industry. That is except for Flight Global. The reduction in their circulation numbers are the most significant in the industry (down 23% since 2005), but they have by far the largest web traffic. Critics will say that providing most of the content for free online hurt their subscriptions figures. However, they offer online advertisers the largest targeted audience with tremendous demographic information, and great campaign flexibility that just impossible to match in print. Will their loss in subscription revenue be compensated by the increase in online advertising and premium web-based product revenue? I personally think it can.
The modern business to business marketing techniques suggest strongly that print advertising still works well for brand awareness, but that online campaigns yield the best results when it comes to cost effective lead generation. That puts the smaller publishers in the toughest spot. They make very little revenue from magazine subscriptions yet must carry the significant production costs. They are sustained by traditional (brand) advertising and small premium products, while their online traffic numbers do not allow them to commandeer premium advert insertion rates on their websites. For example, Aviation International News has a similar print circulation than Flight International. However, they have almost no paid subscribers. They have strong print advertisers and high content volume, but they struggle to invest in their online platform and therefore are losing ground to their competitors. Combine that with a very low Twitter presence and it shows the typical profile of an A&D Media company that used to do well, but is now unable to keep up or grow. Aviation Today, Aircraft Maintenance Technology and Defense Systems are all in the same position.
Air Transport World and Defense News have managed better online numbers that the other small magazines. Defense News in particular has a tremendous amount of traffic and inbound links for very low available content. By focusing on their online products and traffic these companies could continue to play a strong role in the landscape and segment they serve.
As for AviationWeek, they have great revenue coming from their print magazine. Based on their published subscription price, and factoring in some corporate discount, I estimate their subscription revenues at around $7M. In addition, B2B magazine revealed AviationWeek’s print advertising revenue to be at $12.7M. That is roughly $20M/year in print revenue excluding other premium services, online services, conferences, and online advertising. Knowing full well that growing their on line portfolio will cannibalize some of that “traditional” revenue, one can understand the careful and measured approach taken by the company when it comes to web based publishing.
My analysis only covered the 10 A&D magazines with the largest physical circulation. There are dozens of other magazines and websites that cover small segments of the industry and draw a very narrow but enthusiastic demographic. Since most of them are driven by advertising and sponsorship revenues, they will all struggle to keep up with the business environment changes afoot unless they manage to make a significant and successful transition online.
Consolidation of the smaller magazines into larger entities could occur but the difficulty is that the audiences overlap significantly and the net revenue increase for the buying company is usually not meaningful enough. Delivering specialized narrow content is only cost effective online if the company has a flexible web platform. That requires significant upfront investment with a long term ROI. So in the next 5 years, I foresee a consolidation of intellectual capital (journalists) into larger properties. They will create better content in a timelier manner as well as premium advanced analytics tools and services. But unfortunately, I don’t think the printed landscape can sustain the diversity that has existed until today.
What do you think of the A&D media landscape? What are some of the trends and innovations you would like to see as a publisher or a reader? What information will A&D businesses expect from these media companies?
FlightGlobal and AINOnline iPhone Apps Reviews May 18, 2010
Posted by ludozone in Aerospace, eBusiness Applications/Services, Internet Marketing, iPhone, Social Media, Twitter.Tags: Aerospace, eBusiness, iPhone
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When FlightGlobal released its A&D News iPhone app a few months ago, I downloaded it in the first couple of days. They were the first A&D media company venturing on the platform and they were rushing to get it ready in time for the Singapore Air Show. Last week, AINOnline released their own iPhone app which they have been working on for a few months. Both apps are free and they offer very different features, but which one should you be using? Let’s take a look.
Before jumping into the details, it is important to note that these apps are pioneering a new platform for our industry. Both Michael Targett (FlightGlobal) and Chad Trautveter (AINOnline), the respective Online Editors, insist that this is just “version 1” and that they have many improvements in the work for future versions. So it is important to judge the application in their current state rather than in regards to the “could be” state.
Note: FlightGlobal Released A New Version of this App in November 2010
See Complete Review Here
The FlightGlobal iPhone app (Search for “FlightGobal” in AppStore) strives to be very complete and uses many different features. At a high level, it offers 5 sections: news, blogs, twitter feed, videos, and jobs. The interface is configurable to arrange and display your favorite sections at the bottom of the screen. The app is designed mainly as a “jump point” to other apps. The News section only contains the headlines, and links to the main website in the Safari app for the whole article. The Video section links to the YouTube app. The Jobs section has more information, but still requires jumping to the Safari browser for proper formatting and interaction. The Twitter section lists the tweets from the entire FlightGlobal team, however, it requires that you jump and login to the Twitter website on the Safari app for interaction such as retweeting or opening the embedded links. The Twitter section also seems to lag behind the current timeline by as much as several days. The Blog section has the most content (with full blog posts and pictures) although some of them simply embed the main website page. The Search section only returns hits from the photo gallery, so it is not very useful to parse the news and blog items available. This is a big setback to find the news you want as the app does not allow the categorization of news between Airline, Business, MRO, Defense, etc… Most pages have the ability to email someone a link to the story, using the iPhone email app. The app does not work offline and it reloads all data every time it opens. It also has no resiliency so every time you come back from another app, it takes you back to the home page rather than the page and/or item you were reading.
The AINOnline iPhone app (Search for “AINOnline” in AppStore) takes the very pragmatic approach to delivering basic content to mobile users. The app is organized in three main sections: Headlines, Categorized News, and Calendar. The Categorized section provides grouping of news items in no less than 15 different topics ranging from Airlines, to Avionics, to Defense, and Rotorcraft. The main menu at the bottom of the screen is configurable to allow your favorite categories to be accessible quickly. The rest are reached through the “More” button. Each section contains at least a couple of week’s worth of news articles. The display provides a chronological list of headlines and synopsis. Each item can be read in its entirety by clicking on it. When reading a specific item, you can send a link via email or post it on Twitter. There are also links to the full web version in Safari to access the pictures and other features. The calendar provides links to each event’s website as well as a useable phone number (click to call). All th eexternal apps are imbedded in the viewer so you do not have to leave the application when jumping off. There is also an omnipresent search feature that scans the entire content, however it cannot be restricted to a single category. The most attractive part of this application is that it can be used off-line. Because the app only contains text, updates when connected are extremely fast. You can do a quick refresh over WiFi or 3G before boarding the flight and have hours of reading available while off-line. The app also resiliency, so if you close it, you get back to the last screen you were on.
As I said before, this will be an evolving medium. Perhaps that is why AviationWeek is late to the table with no iPhone app development underway only “considerations“. Greg Hamilton, their Online Publisher, argues that their mobile website works well on iPhone and that it serves the needs of their audience. It doesn’t work off-line, but using WiFi it is fast and offers many of the features I like in the AINOnline app. It is a valid alternative approach that also has the advantage of covering all platforms, not just the iPhone. But when it comes to leveraging the unique features of each Smartphone system (like customization or integration), AviationWeek offers only the “lowest common denominator” approach. It is interesting to note that neither FlightGlobal nor AINOnline offer a mobile version of their site, arguing that the Smartphones display their regular site well enough. I am not convinced that it is a good argument. The AviationWeek mobile site is definitely the best way to get A&D News on the other Smartphones. And aren’t there more BlackBerrys than iPhones in use in the A&D industry anyway?
But if you are an iPhone user, the AINOnline app is much more useable than the FlightGlobal app or the AviationWeek mobile site. It works “off-line”, has all the content you need organized in easy-to-use categories, allows customization, and avoids unnecessary bells-and-whistles. So until new versions come out, I would say definitely download the AINOnline app.
For future versions, I’d like the apps providers to consider a few additional features:
- The offline mode is extremely important so I can read the news anywhere and at anytime. This will be even more important for the iPad version! The app should therefore allow for quick text download with the option to download larger items such as pictures on demand (either as a setting or via a button in the item)
- Provide resiliency to allow me to return to the last place I was in the app after I come back.
- An indicator of what items I have already read with the ability to “Mark all Read” and selectively sort and display on this criteria would optimize reading over multiple sessions. (“Where was I again?”).
- Full reposting of the stories via email, Twitter, Facebook, and Digg using APIs rather than application call-out. This is the best way to generate traffic back to the main website.
- Customizable search with the option the save my favorite queries. This way, if I am interested in “Airbus” I can re-run the search every time I open the app. I should also be able to limit the query to a specific category.
- Provide a “favorite” button and section to save stories of particular interest.
- Provide a “like” button to create trending and create a “most watched” section based on it.
- Provide YouTube integration via an imbedded mobile interface (in HTML5) rather than jumping out to the external app.
- Create a separate “Major Events” app to handle Farnborough, Paris, and NBAA to allow special features and content, rather than trying to cramp everything in the main app.
What do you think of the apps? How do use them? What would you want in future versions? The best way to make the apps better is to discuss them and suggest new ideas. But first, pass the word and have as any people as possible download the apps so publisher can measure the interest.
Dubai Air Show Online Coverage by the Numbers November 20, 2009
Posted by ludozone in Aerospace, Conference, International Business Development, Internet Marketing, LinkedIn, Social Media, Twitter.Tags: Aerospace, eBusiness, Social Media, Twitter
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Dubai Air Show 2009, the 11th and largest in the biennial series with 890 exhibitors from 47 countries as well as 130 aircrafts on static display, concluded yesterday with an onsite order book of over $US13 Billion. Not bad for a recession, but significantly less than in 2007. It remains nonetheless a very important event for the industry, and as such draws a lot of attention from all corners of the world. Many get a chance to experience the show in person, but more follow the developments online. Here is my review of this year’s coverage on the web.
AEROSPACE & DEFENSE MEDIA
Although the show was well covered by worldwide mainstream media, the top three aerospace and defense magazines dedicated significant resources to the event. Aviation International News, Aviation Week and Flight Global each created a landing page dedicated to the show on their websites. Flight Global reprising and expanding on its great coverage at Paris (see “Paris Air Show Online Coverage”), provided a much more esthetically pleasing experience than the other two organizations.
However, many will argue that it is the content that is important. But judging strictly by the numbers, Flight Global also comes out ahead in this area.
Although overall less online content was generated than at Paris, some of my favorites were there. Flight Global’s daily video wrap-up by Mary Kirby (@RunwayGirl) and Jon Ostrower (@FlightBlogger) is always excellent, although they quit a day early to my great surprise and disappointment. Flight Global also brought out a full WYSIWYG version of their daily publication, catching up to Aviation Week which has had theirs at both shows. AIN did not provide theirs.
I feel that AIN was the least “Online” friendly of the three. Aviation Week did not seem to improve from Paris. In fact, I feel they went backwards, as they had only 1 video and a much disorganized Twitter presence (see below). Also, they decided to place a full screen Airbus A380 advertising as an entry page for most of the show coverage which was extremely annoying.
All in all, it was clear that Flight Global came to the show with a well conceived online coverage plan. Their online editor, Michael Targett, confirmed that they put a significant amount of work into their strategy. The web traffic numbers should show that it served them well.
I think Flight Global has set the bar for the other media organizations and the race is now on for Singapore just a few months away. For that show, I would like to see the news segregated in “channels” (e.g. BizAv, Defense, Space, and Commercial) and more online interaction with the trade visitors and exhibitors before and during the show. Singapore Air Show should also have very good cell phone data coverage, so smart phone applications might make their appearance. By the way, Flight Global has already released a primitive iPhone app.
TWITTER STREAM
After Paris, AUSA and NBAA, Dubai was the fourth major A&D show where Twitter was used. The organizers, Aviation Week and Flight Global all agreed on a (short) hashtag for the show (#DXB09) back in late October. From November 10th to the 19th, it was used in over 1100 posts by more than 180 unique contributors. It is half the contributions from Paris and five times less than at AUSA. However, I suspect this has to do with the availability of cell phone data coverage more than any other factor.
Looking at the top 10 contributors during the show, @RunwayGirl and @FlightBlogger, both from Flight Global, dominated the stream with 112 and 73 posts respectively. Flight Global accounted for 4 of the top 10 contributors.
The other twitter accounts belong to a variety of users, all very passionate about Aerospace: @Tangosix is a Serbian aviation journalist; @DefenseAviation links to an impressive blog managed by a student from the Mangalore University in India; @InflightCuisine reports on behalf of an online community of over 600 in-flight catering professionals; while @obsalah is the Head of Quality Assurance and Safety for the local company Al Jaber Aviation and has almost 1900 followers. In fact, the top 10 contributors count a total following of over 11,000 accounts. This audience does not include the numerous other people simply following the shows’ #DXB09 stream.
Aviation Week seemed disorganized in their use of Twitter. @AviationWeek and @AvWeekMorris posted very little, but most importantly, they did not use the event hashtag thus missing the majority of the audience. As always, but again from thousands of miles away, @AvWeekBenet carried the torch for the organization by providing a steady stream of updates finishing 15th in the contributor ranks. She also posted on her personal account (@BenetWilson) and was assisted by @ThingsWithWings who posted about various elements of Aviation Week’s Dubai coverage including links to Mike Vines’ great photos. @AvWeekJobs re-tweeted two of these photo links continuing to post “ThingsNotAboutJobs” on this account (Am I the only one that is bothered by this?). As an organization, Aviation Week produced 25 online stories, 29 blog posts and 4 days’ worth of editorial content for the show daily news. Yet, they only posted (collectively) 57 updates on Twitter. What is wrong with this picture?
Another disappointment was the organizers (@DubaiAirShow) participating only timidly before and during the show. They managed 6 tweets in 4 days; two of them re-posts from other contributors. I think they could have done better (see below).
The rest of the industry was equally shy. Honeywell (@HON_Carrie and @HON_KC) contributed the most (25 posts), while @Fly_cessna and @PrattAndWhitney basically checked in. @Airbus, @BoeingAirplanes, @NorthropGrumman, @BAESystems, @ThalesGroup and @RaytheonCompany were noticeably absent from the show stream.
Except for Flight Global, I think the concept of Twitter as a sort of “headline news ticker” that draws people’s attention to the rest of the content provided in blogs and websites seems to still be lost on most A&D companies.
THE ORGANIZERS
F&E Aerospace continues to do a remarkable job with the physical logistics of putting such an enormous event together. The event’s website contained a wealth of information for Exhibitors, Journalists, and Visitors. They did make an attempt at social media by adding a Twitter account, a LinkedIn group and a social media “Share” button, but these felt like afterthoughts with not much strategy around them. During the show, the website was updated with the official press releases and a few photos. I think a great opportunity was missed.
DubaiAirShow.aero should have been the absolute hub for all online activity before, during and after the show. The organizers are in the unique position to “mash up” content from all the media and the exhibitors in one place. They can share the excitement in the run-up to the event and provide its heartbeat during. Here are three ideas (Are you listening Farnborough?):
- Stream information, pictures and video live from the show. Post time-lapse pictures of the exhibit hall construction. Provide live webcam of the press conferences. Update the number of visitors and the onsite order book as streaming data feeds on the home page. Show live video of the flight demos. Make the site fun and addictive so online visitors use it as their central hub well before the event and for its duration. I guarantee it will make more people want to attend next time.
- Collect and publish each exhibitor’s website, twitter, and RSS information. Use this information to provide a centralized but segmented news feed (e.g. Corporate, Defense, etc…) directly on the website. Provide a twitter window for the #DXB09 feed.
- Create interactive features before and during the show: voting on the flight and static displays by visitors; “must visit” exhibitor lists ranked by journalists; interactive forums about the local hotels and restaurants.
In a global economy, events such as the Dubai Air Show truly have a worldwide appeal. “Attending” the show online will never replace being there in person. However, better online coverage will expand the reach of the organizers and exhibitors, augment the business buzz, and definitely create the desire to be there in person next time. Next up is Singapore, then Farnborough. Let’s see if they learn from Paris and Dubai.
Business Aviation and Social Media Survey Results: 5 Findings and 5 Opportunities November 5, 2009
Posted by ludozone in Aerospace, eBusiness Applications/Services, FaceBook, Internet Marketing, LinkedIn, Social Media, Twitter.Tags: Aerospace, BizAv, eBusiness, Social Media, Twitter
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Based on the great success of the Social Media session at the recent NBAA annual event, I decided to further explore the topic with the business aviation audience through a very quick survey. The purpose was to quantify participation, catalog the interest, and collect (anonymous) demographics.
The survey was designed as a collaborative effort and then posted online for 5 business days. Participation was solicited mostly via Twitter, but also through posts in LinkedIn discussion boards. The complete result summary is available for download here (PDF). You can also contact me if you want the raw data in Excel. After reviewing the survey results, here are the 5 findings and 5 opportunities I discovered:
MY FINDINGS:
- Contrary to many reports, 73% of respondents indicate that social media platform access is NOT blocked at work. However, companies that prevent access generally do it for all social media sites except for LinkedIn. Only 41% of companies have a Social Media policy.
- LinkedIn is the premier e-Networking platform amongst business aviation professionals. Over 91% of respondents use it, but they indicated that looking for job postings was the least important use. They mostly use it to connect with colleagues and customers.
- Social Media is used in the executive suite. 60% of respondents were at a Director level or above. 57% were 40 year old or over.
- Twitter ranks highest amongst the platforms used by companies. Although it seems like all platforms are used fairly evenly.
- Companies have added social media as an additional news/marketing channel. 67% of respondents indicate that publishing news is the most important use of social media platform, followed by marketing/promotion (44%). A full 48% indicate that recruiting is the least important use of Social Media.
| Did you spot something else in the survey results? Do you have your own take? Please send me your feedback or post comments on this post and I’ll add it to this list. |
OPPORTUNITIES:
- Business Aviation is embracing social media at a good pace, probably faster than the rest of the A&D industry. Structuring the communications and properly combining websites, LinkedIn and Twitter will continue to be the trend. More can be done to use blogs as only 36% of respondents indicated their companies use them.
- The best way to combat the perception that social media is for kids to play with their friends on FaceBook is to do two things. First, as John Keller (Chief editor, Military & Aerospace Electronics) discussed in a recent blog, start calling it e-Networking. When social media is used for business, e-Networking is really its purpose. Second, get your executives to start using e-Networking effectively.
- I am a big believer in using e-Networking to enhance industry events and conferences. However, it seems like NBAA missed an opportunity, as most respondents indicated that the use of social media platforms made NO Difference in their experience of the event. There is much to be done in this area.
- E-Networking is about interaction and conversation. Only 35% of respondent said that soliciting ideas was the most important use of social media for their company. I think that e-networking is about sharing and collaborating not lecturing or selling. For example, companies should move away from looking at Twitter as another channel by which to distribute press releases. It is much more than that.
- Industry media and associations can take the lead in transforming the industry by facilitating the dialogue and the sharing of information through e-Networking platforms. Aerospace and Defense seems stuck in a “chicken and egg” loop: companies don’t use social media because no other company is using it. This survey shows that it is not true and that others are indeed using it. We need more opportunities to educate and encourage the industry.
I would like to thank the people that dialogued with me before and during the survey. Also, I would like to thank the tweeples that helped soliciting survey answers: @AWyss, @AvWeekBenet, @nonnyjorris, @NBAA, @CDHeisermann, @CutterAviation, @AeroPR, @ShowalterFlying, @GretemanGroup, @HeisteComm, @kevinmerritt, @FlightGlobal, @AviationWeek. What started as an experiment actually provided very interesting results. I would have liked more responses, but I wanted to run this survey as a Social Media platform experiment to validate its use as an interactive medium for our industry.
I would love to hear your feedback on this survey or on other surveys you think would be interesting. Please do not hesitate to contact me.
Connecting the World: Three Applications for International eBusiness Collaboration April 20, 2009
Posted by ludozone in eBusiness Applications/Services, International Business Development, Online Supply Chain Management.Tags: Dassault Systemes, eBusiness, eSourcing, Exostar, Export Control, International Business, Online Collaboration, Oracle
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With the globalization of the Aerospace and Defense (A&D) industry, the international portion of a company’s business will continue to grow and become more complex than ever. Managing export control of restricted non-tangible items, sourcing products and services qualifying for offset credits, or taking advantage multi-time zone workday are three examples of how internet applications can help.
Export Control Management
With renewed emphasis by the government of the United States and United Kingdom on the control of information and technology export to other nations, many A&D companies are increasing their level of diligence on this matter. Rules and regulations in this area require careful planning, control, and tracking of the distribution of information related to military technology declared “sensitive” by the government. Any breach of these regulations can result in severe monetary penalties or even federal charges resulting in imprisonment.
Using secure multi-enterprise collaboration tools (e.g. Exostar ForumPass), companies can take advantage of the identity management, access control, and full audit tracking functionalities of the solution to meet the requirements of Export Control. A company can insure that only users for which it has obtained export control license are invited to the project. Any data that needs to be shared with the targeted partners can be “tagged” for export. This triggers the workflow function of the tool which alerts the export control officer. The officer can then review the data and approve or reject access by the desired companies. The whole process is tracked and recorded electronically, should any of this information be required by government auditors.
Multi-time Zone Workday
With A&D partners located throughout the world, there is now an opportunity to take advantage of the geographic position of some companies to achieve tremendous growth in productivity. This is particularly important in the domain of engineering design.
Using multi-enterprise collaboration tools (e.g. Dassault Systemes ENOVIA) to combine the work of engineers located in different parts of the world to achieve a near continuous multi-time zone workday. For example, an engineer in the UK can check-in his design work into the system at the end of the day. This work is then picked up by a colleague in Seattle at the beginning of her work day. When she is done, the updated work gets checked back into the system where a third colleague in Japan picks it up upon arriving to work. At the end of his day, the completed work gets reviewed by the original engineer back in the UK just back to work in the morning. This means a UK project could achieve nearly 24 hours of engineering work in any calendar day, potentially reducing a design project from months to a mere weeks.
Sourcing for Offset Credits
Many A&D companies selling equipment to foreign countries enter “offset” agreements that require them to reciprocate the original deal with the procurement of products and services from local suppliers. If the company does not meet these obligations, they are liable for major financial penalties which, by the way, do not relieve them from the original obligations. In addition, the “offset” obligation is often greater than the value of the original contract.
The main difficulty with buying from “local” suppliers in a foreign country is that the procurement department of the buying company does not recognize these suppliers as “approved” suppliers. In the past, including additional suppliers, especially foreign, in a request for bid was very time consuming and just not efficient.
Some companies are now using eSourcing tools (e.g. Oracle Sourcing) to help them with this problem. With this solution, sending a request for information (RFI) or even a request for quote (RFQ) to three “known” or to fifteen “international” suppliers takes about the same time. This means procurement executives can scan international supplier directories for suppliers in countries where offset obligations exist and include them in the requests. Of course, this solution does not work for all purchases especially when supplier reputation and track record are a major requirement. But all in all, companies have found enough “low risk” purchases in a year to derive noticeable offsets benefits from the solution.
Ludo Van Vooren, a 15 years veteran of the industry, blogs about eBusiness, Social Media, Internet Marketing, and International Business Development.
