Boeing and Fujitsu have established a strategic alliance in which the companies will develop a service to enable greater efficiency in aircraft maintenance operations, Boeing announced last week.
The partnership will employ Radio Frequency Identification Devices (RFID) and Contact Memory Buttons (CMB) to allow customers to use these technologies without needing to retrofit their own fleets.
"We have been working with Boeing for more than five years to promote RFID implementation in the aviation industry and we are very excited to start this project jointly," said Mitsutoshi Hirono, corporate vice president Fujitsu Ltd.
The goal is for airlines to be able to reduce costs by reducing inventory and manual data entry errors without having to create new processes.
Under the new alliance, Fujitsu will provide Boeing with a globally-shared platform that includes automated identification technology devices, device readers, software applications and a system integration and deployment service. Boeing will tailor solutions for each customer's needs, integrate those solutions into the customer's operational environment and establish a long-range plan that will expand automated identification technology solutions across the customer's enterprise.
Boeing plans to launch this service in the first quarter of 2012. The service will be available for Boeing and non-Boeing fleets and will be rapidly adaptable to any customer.
"Our customers have told us they need these types of innovative solutions to improve operational efficiency," said Per Noren, vice president, Boeing Commercial Aviation Services, Information Services. "We see an opportunity for the aviation industry that surpasses past expectations in establishing this partnership with Fujitsu."
