Track: Modeling and Simulation

Abstract

Despite being a significant element of Quebec’s industrial economy, employing tens of thousands of personnel, very little is known for certain about the state of obsolescence management in Quebec’s aerospace industry amongst academic circles. For the last decade, it has been assumed that the same challenges and shortcomings that apply to the American aerospace industry, which are well documented, applied to Quebec as well. With the Consortium for Research and Innovation in Aerospace in Quebec pushing for the adoption of novel technologies such as electrically powered aircraft, a critical point has been reached where the actual weaknesses and strengths of the aerospace industry in this domain must be assessed in order to prepare for the upcoming transitions. While at the time of writing this report, research is still ongoing, certain interesting information points have already been uncovered. Despite previous assumptions that the industry was handling obsolescence on reactive basis, in the gas turbine sector, obsolescence is generally managed strategically as a result of product support obligations. More work is yet to be done in order to fully understand the industry landscape, however, these findings are an encouraging sign that the industry is moving towards more sustainable practices.