AIR CANADA

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AIR CANADA

• High Level Structure Processes
• related to the In-Flight Organization
• Brian J. Robinson
• Consultant en approvisionnement

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• AIR CANADA
• 1- ROLE AND RESPONSABILITIES
• 2-BUY DIRECT  PROCESS
• 3-BUY THROUGHT (KITCHEN OR BROOKER). PROCESS
• 4-BUY ON BOARD PROGRAMM PROCESS
• 5-INFLIGHT PRODUCT
• 6-COMMISSARY PRODUCT
• 7-PRODUCT DESIGN NORTH AMÉRICA-WORLD.
• 8-FUTUR TOTAL SOLUTION PRODUCT.

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The In-Flight organization Roles
Responsibilities

• A Vice President
• Senior Directors
• General Manager (Dining)
• General Manager (In-Flight Logistics Products)
• Managers (Planning Forecasting)
• Buyers
• Buyer assistants
• Manager (Strategic Purchasing)

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A Vice President

• Oversees all areas of the In-Flight Divisions
  including the on-board Flight Attendants

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Senior Directors

• Day to day operations and budget controls
• All areas of Purchasing, Dining Services and
  Warehouses report directly to this position.
• Strategic purchasing and marketing personnel
  report indirectly to this position but directly
  to their own Branches.

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General Manager (Dining)

• Very similar to a Senior Director
• More day to day operational involvements.
• Reporting to this position are
• The Executive Chefs
• On-Board Stowage
• people who, with the marketing branch design the
  menus.
• Works very closely with the Caterer and is
  responsible for the majority of the food budget

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General Manager (In-Flight Logistics Products)

• Responsibilities include all of the purchasing
  day to day operations along with all of the day
  to day warehouse activities
• Reporting directly to this position
• management personnel responsible for all the
  buyers
• all the in-flight products such as the wines, on
  board liqueurs, hard liquor, snacks, pillows,
  blankets, soaps, beverages, plastics, glass,
  cutlery, amenity kits, garbage bags, headsets ,
  all paper products, galley equipment and a host
  of other products
• Any shortages regardless of reason are frowned
  upon by senior management, bottom line the
  customer must always leave with the ultimate
  experience in service and product availability.

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Managers (Planning Forecasting)

• Reports to a GM and usually has various buyers or
  assistant buyers reporting into the position
• Planning and forecasting parameters which are
  driven by the flight schedules
• If these parameters are misleading, the end
  result can be disastrous and extremely costly.
• Each month, this position must report on the
  financials of the past months buying activities.

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Buyers

• Report directly to the Manager but indirectly to
  the GM
• Responsible for the initial provisioning of
  products, placing orders and following up with
  the suppliers
• Interface daily with transportation companies
  both internal and external, caterers and internal
  warehouses
• Duties also include day to day metal and galley
  equipment transfers from station to station

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Buyer assistantsand clerical

• Basically, these positions are there to support
  the buyers in their workloads
• Clericals mostly administrative for internal
  purposes only.

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Manager (Strategic Purchasing)

• Negotiate the contractual agreement between Air
  Canada and the Supplier.
• Absolutely nothing should transpire before an
  agreement is negotiated, documented and signed.
• Works closely with the Marketing and Day to Day
  Purchasing Departments

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Marketing and Day to Day Purchasing Departments

• 1) Dining Services
• 2) Purchasing (day to day operational)
• 3) Strategic Purchasing
• 4) Logistics
• 5) Marketing
• Their Mission An innovative team that
  consistently delivers quality added Services
  Products to our customers, along with always
  striving for a competitive edge in the industry.

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Mission Values and objectives

• An innovative team that consistently delivers
  quality added Services Products to our
  customers, along with always striving for a
  competitive edge in the industry.
• Values
• Integrity
• Leadership
• Responsibility
• Accountability.
• Objectives To effectively manage all aspects of
  these services products along with providing a
  balanced budget to meet corporate targets and
  customer expectations.

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Roles

• Specification development
• Purchasing Strategies
• Vendor Selection
• Warehouse management

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Specification development

• Begins by someone suggesting a change to either
  an existing product or an idea for a new product.
  
• usually originates from the Marketing department,
  
• Marketing usually tries to justify that this
  change will positively affect the end user and
  bring value to the company. However, actually
  identifying these results can be extremely
  difficult to do.
• Will a person book a flight on an airline based
  on the coffee it serves? On the seats it
  provides? On the service it provides? On its
  schedule? On its food? On its entertainment? On
  its overall safety? Or finally on its price?
  Difficult to conclude .

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Note

• The time it takes for an idea to be researched
  and finally developed can be a lengthy time
  frame. Sometimes even a year or two.
• Be Patient, yet assertive in a positive way.
• Try to work as close as you can with individuals
  and share your experiences and expertise freely.
• This is your field of expertise, not
  necessarily the airlines.

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Specification development

• Try to offer as much innovation as you can
• Being different means being unique
• airlines are always looking for that Competitive
  Edge.
• Food work as close as you can with the
  Executive Chefs.
• Space, Time and Preparation are three most
  difficult challenges for our Chefs.
• Work closely with them as they have the expertise
  in this field.

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Buy direct process

• Through a caterer
• Caterer initiate a purchase order with a supplier
  based on the agreement initiated between
  strategic purchasing and the supplier
• caterer is responsible to plan and forecast for
  the airline
• product is then delivered directly to the
  caterer, bypassing Air Canadas internal stores,
  thus speeding up the delivery process and
  reducing storage costs
• caterer send an invoice to Air Canada with a
  potential slight margin to cover their costs.

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Buy through Broker

• Broker is responsible for the initial layout of
  monies associated with the purchase of products
  along with the forecasting and planning
  parameters, purchasing, transportation,
  warehousing and administration
• Air Canada still has the final say in choosing
  the product(s) but going forward and with time
  that will eventually change
• Based on the volumes that the third party uses,
  there stands to be Cost savings that can be
  shared between the two parties, once again
  leading to a unique partnership and giving the
  airline an edge on other airlines

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Buy On Board

• The purpose of this program was to reduce the
  Airlines cost on certain routes while still
  maintaining customer satisfaction
• The caterer along with the Air Canada chefs
  designed certain fast foods that they believed
  the passenger would appreciate and purchase
• The entire onus was and still is on the caterer
• If thirty meals were boarded, then hopes were
  that thirty meals would be sold, anything less
  meant that the caterer took the loss

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In-Flight Product(s) Commissary Products

• Usually begins with an idea or an aircraft
  requirement
• Marketing mechanisms and reports to measure
  trends and passengers wants and dislikes
• Plan and action items are assigned. This usually
  means developing a specification and asking
  strategic purchasing to source a product sample
  from numerous suppliers
• Type trial
• If the type trial turns out to be positive, then
  Strategic Purchasing will begin the negotiation
  process

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• Day to day operations manager involved with
  strategic in developing the planning,
  forecasting, warehouse and FOB points.
• Strategic will formulate the contract and
  interface between the supplier and In-Flight
  Executive. When all the proper documentation has
  been signed on both sides, then the purchasing
  process will begin, cutting purchase orders
  identifying ship to locations.
• Sometimes depending on the time frame, the
  supplier may be asked to ship directly to the
  Caterer or to the Air Canada commissary stores
  points which today reside in Montreal, Toronto
  Vancouver.
• The on board stowages staff will send out a
  communication in advance to all the caterers
  advising them of the change in product.

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Product Design North America.

• Again begins with either an Idea usually
  initiated in Marketing.
• Remember restrictions with space is usually the
  one that takes highest priority.
• However, on the food side, preparation and time
  must also be extremely critical (John Boerkamp)

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• Any new enhancement or change to an existing
  product, usually takes the same process route as
  adding a new product on board,
• Idea,
• Samples,
• Type trials,
• Negotiations,
• Purchasing,
• Warehousing
• Final delivery of product to the aircraft

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Future Total Solution Product

• Low-Cost, no frills airlines vs High End Products
  and service
• Be involved in the industry.
• Learn and try to understand the passengers wants
  and needs, and most importantly be Patient,
  Observant and Innovative

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• Brian J.Robinson
• Senior Consultant Supply Chain Logistics
• Company NetBiz