Boeing Goes Live with Western Data Systems ERP for T-45 Military Aircraft.

CALABASAS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 27, 1997--Western Data Systems (WDS) Monday announced that The Boeing Co. is now using the CompassENTERPRISE client/server Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system to manage production of the T-45 Goshawk military aircraft in its St. Louis manufacturing facility.

The T-45 is the first military aircraft program to go live with the company's new Integrated MAnufacturing Control System (IMACS) which is founded on the WDS ERP software.

Over the next 20 months, IMACS implementation is being expanded to include all Boeing military aircraft and missiles manufactured in St. Louis, including the F/A-18 Hornet, the F-15 Eagle, the AV-8 Harrier, portions of the C/17 Globemaster, and the Harpoon and SLAM missiles.

First Use of COTS Client/Server ERP Software for Major Military Aircraft Assembly

This implementation is significant in that it is the first use of a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) client/server ERP software product to plan and manage the assembly and production of a major military aircraft.

Until now, aerospace and defense companies have typically used expensive mainframe or in-house developed software for aircraft resource planning and control. The use of COTS software represents an important step in reducing costs while improving responsiveness to schedule and design changes during the life of an aircraft program.

With nearly 23,000 employees and more than 10 million square feet of space, the St. Louis manufacturing facility of Boeing is one of the largest aircraft and missile assembly plants in the world.

St. Louis is the headquarters for McDonnell Aircraft and Missile Systems, one of three business units in the Information, Space, and Defense Systems (ISDS) group of Boeing.

On Sept. 29, the company converted T-45 program operations to IMACS throughout the sprawling facility, including major assembly, sheet metal and machining fabrication, composites, subassembly, and raw materials areas.

The core of IMACS is the current version of Western Data Systems' CompassCONTRACT, release 6.1. Other CompassENTERPRISE components used in IMACS include the CompassBOM and CompassPLANNER graphical workbench products, and the CompassTRAK time and attendance and data collection system which will be brought up later this year.

In congratulating the project team of more than 150 people, John Van Gels, vice president and general manager of Production Operations, said, "The IMACS team has achieved a major milestone in realizing McDonnell Aircraft & Missile Systems' goal to significantly increase our rate of return on net assets.

"We look forward now to moving all major programs to this more streamlined approach to aircraft production."

"Implementation of IMACS moves us into a more responsive and efficient manufacturing environment. IMACS effectively ties our entire internal and external supply chain to the final delivery schedule," said Bob Rice, director of Production Control Management.

"IMACS represents a significant re-engineering of McDonnell Aircraft & Missile Systems' approach to aircraft production. This implementation signals the introduction of leading edge technology at the St. Louis site," said Bill Duncan IMACS program director.

"More importantly, the use of the Western Data Systems commercial-off-the-shelf ERP software enables us to employ industry- best practices in many of our key business processes," added Duncan.

Advanced Client/Server Architecture Critical to Managing Complexity of Aircraft Production

The IMACS database contains more than 500,000 parts and more than 3 million bill-of-material (BoM) records for the T-45, F/A-18, F-15, Av-8, and portions of the C-17 aircraft, as well as the Harpoon and SLAM missiles.

The T-45 BoM alone has 47 levels. The T-45 production plan includes schedules for 39 aircraft and 1,500 spares items. More than 900 people are already interacting with the system, with as many as 625 concurrent users and real-time interface processes, and this number will grow significantly as the additional programs are brought up.

With these massive data and user volumes, system performance was a crucial issue to usability of the software. A highly scaleable client/server architecture was needed to handle the concurrent user levels, and only an advanced MRP planning process could handle the data volumes and sophisticated multi-contract planning algorithms this environment requires.

The CompassENTERPRISE three-tier architecture provided the flexibility to handle the online user levels, and WDS worked with systems partners Hewlett-Packard, Sun Microsystems, and Digital to develop a whole new approach to MRP planning that fully leverages parallel processing technology to reduce run times by an order of magnitude.

This new MRP processor is now standard with the currently available release 6.1 of CompassENTERPRISE.

"The data volumes inherent to prime contractor aircraft production create quite a challenge, but WDS and HP have worked well together to help Boeing deploy this new technology to achieve target performance levels," stated Duke Kentner, WDS project manager.

Integration with Other Systems and Supplier Cooperation Also Critical

As an important part of the IMACS implementation, CompassENTERPRISE has been interfaced with PeopleSoft human resources and financial applications, and with a number of in-house legacy applications.

Most of the interfaces are real-time, running concurrent with on-line users to keep all systems continually up to date. The interfaces utilize standard CompassENTERPRISE transaction processors combined with use of Oracle triggers to achieve close two-way integration and data integrity among the various applications.

In addition to the Boeing/WDS project team, Oracle, Hewlett- Packard, and IBM Global Systems have played important roles in the IMACS program.

The Oracle7 RDBMS provides the data foundation for CompassENTERPRISE, and the system is driven by Hewlett-Packard HP 9000 servers. IBM Global Systems provides the facilities management for the entire technical infrastructure.

IMACS to be Rolled Out to All Programs by 1999

The IMACS project was initiated in 1995, with CompassENTERPRISE and Western Data Systems being selected in July of that year.

Now, with the T-45 program in production, the IMACS team is working to bring the St. Louis portion of the C-17 program up on the system within the next eight months, followed by the F/A-18 in early 1999, and all remaining programs by mid-1999. At that point, all current and future St. Louis programs are expected to utilize the IMACS system.

About the T-45 Goshawk

The T-45 Goshawk is the centerpiece of the U.S. Navy's T-45 Training System (T45TS) used to train Navy pilots to perform key tactical maneuvers. In addition to the actual aircraft, the T45TS includes advanced flight simulators, computer-assisted instructional programs, a computerized training integration system, and a contractor logistics package.

The integration of all five system elements produces a superior pilot in less time than previous training systems. With its new "Cockpit 21" digital cockpit, the T-45 can be used to train pilots destined for the F/A-18 Hornet, the AV-8 Harrier and other sophisticated carrier-based aircraft.

Production of the Goshawk is planned well into the next century. Production deliveries began in 1992, with deliveries occurring at a rate of roughly one aircraft per month. As of March 1997, 75 aircraft have been delivered, and Navy procurement plans call for delivery of an additional 187 aircraft over the next few years.

About Western Data Systems and CompassENTERPRISE

Western Data Systems is the leading supplier of commercial-off-the-shelf Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solutions to aerospace and defense manufacturers and maintenance, repair, and overhaul facilities.

WDS customers around the world include industry leaders throughout the commercial and military aerospace supply chain as well as government logistics facilities operated by the Department of Defense.

Unlike other ERP developers, WDS has focused on the special needs of the A&D industry for many years, and delivers the advanced functionality required by this demanding industry today.

CompassENTERPRISE is an integrated family of client/server ERP applications to support manufacturing, engineering, procurement, quality, cost, and contract management.

CompassENTERPRISE has been developed in cooperation with industry leaders to support the principles of lean manufacturing and the agile enterprise while maintaining strict control over product costs, schedules, and configurations in both military and commercial production environments.

A unique feature of CompassENTERPRISE is the full integration of special capabilities for the MRO environment with the base functionality. CompassENTERPRISE is closely integrated with the Oracle RDBMS and Oracle financial applications to deliver a comprehensive world-class business management solution.

CompassENTERPRISE is scaleable to meet the needs of companies and sites with concurrent users ranging from just a few dozen to thousands.

For more information about Western Data Systems and CompassENTERPRISE, contact Mary Lou Miller at 818/880-0800 or [e-mail], or visit the WDS Internet Web site at www.westdata.com . -0-

Note: The WDS logo, CompassENTERPRISE, CompassCONTRACT, CompassBOM, CompassPLANNER, and CompassTRAK are registered trademarks of Western Data Systems of Nevada Inc. Any other product or company names mentioned are used for identification purposes only, and may be trademarks of their respective owners.

CONTACT: Western Data Systems, Calabasas

Mary Lou Miller, 818/880-0800, fax: [phone]

e-mail: [e-mail]

http://www.westdata.com