Boeing looks to bump up 787 production

Published 10:21 am Tuesday, November 20, 2007

The Boeing Co. is talking to Toray Industries Inc. about boosting the amount of carbon fiber composite material the Japanese company can produce for Boeing’s 787 jet, according to Bloomberg.

Toray’s chief executive says Boeing wants to the company to supply enough of the carbon fiber material to build 14 787 Dreamliners each month. That’s up from 10. The company’s chief executive said the increase is due to “faster-than-expected” demand for the Dreamliner.

Boeing has 736 firm orders for its Dreamliner. The plane is six months behind schedule due to production and supply chain issues. Recently, 787 supplier Vought acknowledged that it had asked Boeing for help in increasing production.

With a goal of turning out 109 Dreamliners by the end of 2009 (just three behind schedule), Boeing undoubtedly wants to avoid creating havoc for customers. Airlines like Emirates are still dealing with the difficulties that Airbus caused when it delayed the A380 by two years. Emirates expansion plans into Australia have been slowed due to the late-arriving A380, reports The Sydney Morning Herald.