Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh!

[Norman the Storeman]

LEAN is sh1te! Quite simply sh1te!

I am speaking as someone who has been 'out of trade' for 5 years & has recently re-joined the hustle & bustle of the logistics trade.
As far as I can see it reduces manpower & increases workloads (double-handling the Suppliers enemy). If I am wrong then feel free to correct me.
Preferably not using 'cool' phrases & trendy management buzzwords like SOLUTIONISE???? WTF does that mean?

Rant over! That feels much better...and relax.

 

[budgie]

I've just a been leaned in me bay. It won't be too bad when we cross over fully, if everything we have asked for happens. What with this being the RAF, you just know that it will half ar8ed and therefore doomed to fail. We also managed to lean the place without losing any manpower, from my base anyway.

 

[monobrow]

As far as I'm aware, LEAN is supposed to cut out extra fat in your job, therefore reducing manhours. Good idea if the RAF payed by the hour!

 

[Bluntend]

RAF technicians have been engineering ac to the highest standard since military flying in the UK began, to say that we're the subject matter experts is a huge understatment. Our lords and masters, ignoring our expertise, look to industry for solutions and then try and mimic the way that companies like GM and Toyota do business (turning a blind eye to the fact that GM, that US flagship of Lean efficiency is in serious difficulty right now). Unfortunately, we don't have the kind of financial flexibility that these companies have so can only afford to cherry pick what 'we' perceive to be the best bits, ie going at it half ar$ed and as Budgie says, doomed to fail.

The way I have seen things work is that we have a budget prescribed to us, invariably around a 5th lower than the previous year. We then approach a contractor and propose selling them our business, ie giving them the task of ensuring availability of kit, kit that can range from consumerbles to entire ac. With Industry risk = cost, therefore if we want a line of serviceable ac, 24/7, engineered to the highest standard and available to carry out any tasking in any role with no Lims, the risk that industry may not be able to acheive this is phenomanally high, hence a contract will cost more than we can afford. This is where we start to compromise to bring the cost down. We end up agreeing metrics or Key Performance Indicators, KPIs (sorry Norman) that don't specify quality, simply quantity. We ask for numbers of ac, irrespective of their condition. The fact that to remedy shoddy work from industry may take upto 100s of blue suit man hours is irrelevant because as far as the contract is concerned all KPIs have been satisfied. Our contract monitors see a line of serviceable ac, our engineers see a line of barely serviceable ac - worlds apart in my book, but to the powers that be its a resounding success.

Outsourceing support to industry is never as cost effective as we first think - we've seen this with jets coming out of DARA St. Athan and we're seeing it now with BAE Systems. Sooner or later we're going to grind to a halt, we're going to see aircraft falling from the sky and Operations failing due to unsupported supply lines. Perhaps then, the high paid help will realise that they need to start taking advice from those who know what's really going on and listening to their experts, assuming that by then that there are any left. The future I'm afraid is anything but bright.

DT_Xtremez_38:

 

[budgie]

I agree with you fully Bluntend.
My own concern is that we have done all this work here, only for it tobe handed over to contract and all the effort the blue suit put in will be wasted. We were briefed that it is time for us, the producers, to finally say how to run things at the coalface. I'm not concerned about the cost of implimenting things, just the end product of producing a 'S' box for the Sqns. It will cost money that we haven't got, the question to ask is will it save us money in the long run? I think if it stays blue suit, then probably yes. As we now only effectively lease the aircraft from BAE/Lockheed/Boeing, then I'm afraid the answer will be no.

 

[Bluntend]

If you want excellence, you need to pay for excellence. You can't expect to drive an brand new Aston Martin if you're only prepared to spend the price of a '91 plate fiesta. Instead, what you might get is a '91 plate Aston Martin but with it all the running costs of a fifteen year old car with no warranty, high milage and expensive spares. Just because it has a top marque badge on the bonnet, doesn't mean you'll enjoy years of trouble free motoring.

A slightly random analogy but there you go...

 

[monobrow]

interesting analagy bluntend....

One thing that does gripe my $hit is the ever moving goalposts at the sharp end. only the other day we had a SengO briefing our line controller on a LEAN flying program for the next day (due to people being detached and running rear party).

Next day comes and as always the master race ring up "yeah that flying program is bo11ocks, we want to do this"

The idea of lean is to have a set system in place which everyone relies upon. If things like this happen, then we have to be flexible. which is it going to be???

Another example.......

We now have set pick up / drop off times from ESG for our boxes. Lean says that that is what we abide to. So, (as has happened many times) jet comes down with snag, needs fixing within the hour for next wave. so what do we do, we break the system and take a wagon down there for the box. Not major issues, but the raf is paying people large sums of money to sit on their a$$ and draw up ideas that in a perfect world will work.

/steps down from soap box

 

[Bluntend]

Flexibility costs money. Industry like FlyBe, Virgin, BA don't need anyway near the amount of flexibility that we need in order to operate. For example, if there is a routine shuttle flight between, say, Stansted and Paris the only things likely to stop the flight are the ac going t!ts up or either airport being closed. If the ac develops a snag en route the ac has the capability to radio ahead the symptoms, the engineers on the ground analyse the symptoms and make a decision on the nature of the fault and order parts accordingly. On landing the techies and spares are avalable to carry out rect's whilst the ac is being turned. Low and behold the ac is ready for its return flight.

A fast jet sqn's flying programme though is subject to a whole raft of variables - range availability for practice bombing sorties, weather conditions, tanker availability, crew availability, ac serviceability, low flying clearence etc etc. It seems that the consultants brought in to LEAN the system simply don't understand this and more worryingly, neither do the 1 and 2 stars who approve their ideas. You can prescribe the sortie type for an airline because they only ever do one type of sortie but the flexibility we use routinely to get the most out of our available assets has always been our greatest strength. Even if we have only one serviceable ac, we'll invariably try and get something useful out of it even if its just SCT (yes its punching holes in the sky but its still of use to the aircrew). It may not be what had been planned the previous day when drafting the flying programme, but its better than nothing. Under LEAN, we can't even achieve that. The same applies on the engineering side. An ac can land with any number of snags of varying complexity, for example a quick box change to a UFCM or birdstrike. In order to respond quickly to any eventuality we need a responsive and reliable supply system based on a repair facility model and not a production line. IMHO, you simply cannot have both.

 

[Stax]

Norman! Nice to see you back where you belong, if you think Lean is bad, wait until S&T comes along and turns your Sqn into "the 1970's house"

 

[shoutingwind]

now our lovely little air base in wiltshire has returned to the split type line- and once again 24/30 reign supreme- are we still leaned?

 

[Billy Whizz]

now our lovely little air base in wiltshire has returned to the split type line- and once again 24/30 reign supreme- are we still leaned?

Yes - extremely leaned once all the overbourne posts are gone and you're working with approx 100 less people than you are now! DT_Xtremez_03:

 

[shoutingwind]

cheers Billy- just thought i'd check!

 

[Billy Whizz]

cheers Billy- just thought i'd check!

No probs Shoutin! Enjoy the manpower why its there! Still looking for a job back at good ole Lyneham! You never know what you miss till you leave! DT_Xtremez_30:

 

[fat lazy techie]

Left Lyneham and am now starting to enjoy life again. I know what I am doing from day to day, haven't got any pressure from above (well not much) and the goalpoasts are pretty static.

$hiting
What's this $htie about 24/30 reigning supreme? From what I recall it was 47/LXX that had the premiere engineering personnel. Where's the engineering in changing boxes to make an engine work? Computer says no......(cough). Get out and do some propper spannering!!!!!

 

[shoutingwind]

What's this $htie about 24/30 reigning supreme? From what I recall it was 47/LXX that had the premiere engineering personnel. Where's the engineering in changing boxes to make an engine work? Computer says no......(cough). Get out and do some propper spannering!!!!!

Well 47/love 'n'' kisses are a cool bunch of people who work very hard to keep their leaking flying crates in the air, but as a J sumpie my loyalties are first and formost to club 24/30.

 

[fat lazy techie]

Club 24/30, is that the combined iq now that wobbly is away in the happy holiday resort of Basrah?

If your oh so shiney, paint free, Js clock up as many hours as the old girls then I'm sure they will leak just as much. Till then.............

 

[shoutingwind]

Club 24/30, is that the combined iq now that wobbly is away in the happy holiday resort of Basrah?

If your oh so shiney, paint free, Js clock up as many hours as the old girls then I'm sure they will leak just as much. Till then.............

chill mate- i like k's they are fine aircraft that have been doing their jobs for a long time. j's just have more shiny flashy lights and stuff to play with and the computer rigs the engine- happy days!

 

[fat lazy techie]

The K is more than just fine!!!!!DT_Xtremez_25:
That is the problem, people are becoming more dependant on little black boxes to set things up, where the fark is the engineering in that? So long as there are cables, pulleys and springs I know my manual skill level will never drop. As for computers telling you what bits to change, where has all the good old fault diagnosis gone? Or is it just too hard for todays modern generation to read a book and think?