ESCP Europe Alumni Magazine - n°132 - Septembre 2010 - 21

Business
Europe seen from plane
By Christian SCHERER [84]

irbus industrial strategy is based on maintaining its position in its core activity (aircraft) despite the arrival of new entrants and by developing new business opportunities offered by the changing need of our customers, in particular in the field of e-services. Some details by Christian SCHERER, Executive Vice President, Head of Airbus Strategy & Future Programmes. Air transport has an increasing role in people’s lives and is an important catalyst for economic development globally. Note civil aviation represents 8% of world GDP (direct and indirect) for only 2% of CO2 emissions. It is a growth market and despite being cyclical, air traffic has doubled every 15 years. On average Airbus expects passenger traffic to grow at 4,7% per year and freight air traffic to grow at 5,2% per year during the next two decades. After more than ten years of parity between Airbus and Boeing (for jets over 100 seats and with ranges above 2000 nm), this relatively short duopoly, which started with the absorption of McDonnell Douglas into Boeing in 1997, will end with new competition from aspiring manufacturers, from China, Russia, Canada, Brazil and Japan, entering the short range market segment. This is, given the liberalisation and growth of air transportation, a natural development to which we must adapt.

ting cost efficiencies for our customers, thus allowing us to differentiate our product capabilities commercially. As a second priority we need to develop the new business opportunities identified as a result of the increased cost pressure on our customers, the airlines. Operator strategies have increasingly focused on their core business, i.e. selling seats and freight capacity. More and more activities linked to the aircraft (maintenance, material management, air traffic control, etc.) will be outsourced. Airbus’ goal is to develop a portfolio of competitive world class services, tailored to its customers’ needs. These services will be focused on Airbus core competencies (i.e. those close to the aircraft). One good example is our involvement in the future Air Traffic Management (ATM) systems for which we are committed to the two majors projects, SESAR (Single European Sky Air traffic Management Research) and NextGen, its US counterpart.

Internationalisation

We are a global

business, operating in a global market place and must therefore seek to simply spread our industrial and commercial risks more globally.

Innovation & new business

We will continue to differentiate our products through innovation. With new entrants likely to « emulate » our existing aircraft, it is a priority for Airbus to continue to « set the standards » for the next aircraft generation and to offer our customers the most eco-efficient, « game changing », aircraft. We are investing heavily in research into differentiating technologies to face higher fuel costs, labour intensiveness of aircraft operations, airport and air space congestion and to minimise our industry’s environmental impact. Examples of Airbus innovations include introducing the first twin engine wide-body aircraft, the first two-man cockpit, the first fly-by-wire passenger aircraft and the first use of composite materials for aerostructures. These innovations, a few among many, translate directly into opera-

Last but not least, we want to maximise the benefits from internationalisation, by increasing our international footprint in strategic countries in order to help capture the growth opportunities these markets present (Asia/pacific, Europe & North America). This is why, for example, we have invested in China, despite its own manufacturing aspirations. China alone will represent more than 10% of the worldwide demand for passenger aircraft over 100 seats in the next 20 years. By reinforcing our worldwide industrial presence, we will also benefit from the best the world can offer, in terms of cost-competitive engineering and manufacturing. We are a global business, operating in a global market place and must therefore seek to simply spread our industrial and commercial risks more globally. Airbus has been built on its ability to draw on the best that Europe has to offer and has evolved into worldwide company with one ambition: being a top performing enterprise making the world’s best aircraft. Given our international « DNA » from inception, we are uniquely positioned to become the centre of the only truly worldwide aerospace coalition, especially when our competitors remain largely « nationally » driven enterprises. l 21

ESCP Europe Magazine N° 132 - Septembre 2010

Table des matières de la publication ESCP Europe Alumni Magazine - n°132 - Septembre 2010

Couverture
Zapping
Sommaire
Editorial
Personnalité du mois - Britt ECKELMANN
Focus - La symphonie allemande
Itinéraires
Entretiens
Vie du réseau
Évolution professionnelle
Voyages - Le rallye des gazelles
A lire
École - Meet ESCP Europe Entrepreneurs
Fondation
Vie étudiante

ESCP Europe Alumni Magazine - n°132 - Septembre 2010