In Shanghai’s Lingang district, a quiet revolution is unfolding inside GE Aerospace’s On Wing Support (OWS) workshop. Not long ago, massive aircraft engines—each heavier than three tons—sat motionless at fixed workstations, waiting for repairs to slowly unfold.
In Shanghai’s Lingang district, a quiet revolution is unfolding inside GE Aerospace’s On Wing Support (OWS) workshop. Not long ago, massive aircraft engines—each heavier than three tons—sat motionless at fixed workstations, waiting for repairs to slowly unfold. Today, they glide along a dynamic production line: arriving, being torn down, fixed, and put back together, then departing in a steady stream. This shift, driven by GE’s FLIGHT DECK lean operating model, has turned a frustrating backlog into a story of innovation—and it’s all thanks to a team willing to rethink the rules.
When the Shanghai OWS facility opened in July 2023, it was hailed as a milestone: GE Aerospace’s first quick-turn site in China, serving airlines across Asia with repairs for CFM LEAP and CFM56 engines (products of CFM International, GE’s joint venture with Safran Aircraft Engines). Its mission: handle module repairs for critical components—fans, compressors, turbines—and get engines back in the air fast.
But early on, the team hit a wall. Using traditional methods, engines stayed at fixed workstations through three stages: disassembly, module repair/replacement, and reassembly. On average, this took 95 days. Then supply chain disruptions struck. “Parts that needed overseas repairs—like certain turbine modules—would take weeks longer than planned,” says site leader Wang Tao. “Engines would sit idle, tying up our technicians and tools. By Q1 2025, we had a backlog of LEAP engines, and we couldn’t meet our commitments to customers. It was demoralizing.”
The solution emerged from a conversation with Global OWS leaders. Farah Borges, Vice President of Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul, posed a question: “What if we stopped treating engines like stationary projects and started moving them, like on an assembly line?” With backing from Global OWS Leader Alexander Henderson, Wang’s team decided to test a “flow line” approach.
Instead of staying put, engines would now progress through stages: after disassembly, they’d move to a holding area until module repairs were ready, then flow to reassembly. To make this work, the team adopted heijunka—a lean strategy that uses “buffer storage” to keep the line moving even when parts are delayed. They added 10 storage stands for core modules and low-pressure turbines, creating space to hold disassembled engines without blocking the flow.
The storage stands became a testament to local innovation. “We could have imported them, but that would have taken months and cost a fortune,” Wang explains. Instead, the team partnered with Chinese manufacturers to design and build the stands. The result? Stands that matched imported quality but were delivered 75% faster and cost 67% less. “That’s a game-changer for reducing turnaround time,” Wang says. “We didn’t just solve a bottleneck—we did it in a way that’s sustainable for our budget.”
The flow line transformed more than just the workshop—it redefined the team’s daily work. Technicians, once responsible for every step of a repair, now focus on specific phases: one group specializes in disassembly, another in module repair, and a third in reassembly. “It’s like a sports team—each player masters their position, and the whole team performs better,” Wang notes.
Freed from juggling multiple tasks, the team also redirected resources to customer support. “We can now send more field service engineers to airlines to help with on-site issues,” Wang adds. “And as efficiency grows, we’re planning to hire new talent to build a clearer career ladder—so everyone here sees a path to grow.”
The impact was striking. After FLIGHT DECK was fully implemented, turnaround time improved by nearly 40%, and deliveries jumped from 1 engine in Q1 2025 to 9 in Q2. Airlines noticed: “We’ve had customers tell us they’re relieved to see their engines moving faster,” Wang says.
But the work continues. The team is now splitting each phase into smaller sub-zones to avoid backtracking—for example, ensuring tools for the final reassembly step are placed right next to the previous stage. They’re also updating daily visual management boards to track progress in real time, making it easier to spot and fix delays.
“FLIGHT DECK is about behaviors—how we communicate, solve problems, and put customers first,” Wang says. The model is gaining traction globally: Cincinnati’s OWS facility will adopt it, and Wang will soon share insights with Seoul’s site.
“Engines flow better now, but so do we,” he reflects. “This isn’t just about fixing engines faster. It’s about building a team that thrives on improvement—one that keeps getting better, so we can keep getting people home safely. That’s the real power of what we’re doing here.”
——
Xingruijia
Original factory direct supply, quality assurance - GE module professional supplier
Consult now to obtain the latest technical information and quotation for GE modules!
·Manager: Jinny ·E-mail: sales1@xrjdcs.com
·Tel: + 86-15359273791（WhatsApp） ·Wechat: + 86-15359273791
