By Paul R Salmon FCILT, FSCM
The Golden Triangle: Why Supply Chain, Engineering and Commercial Must Work in Harmony to Deliver System and Platform Availability
In the worlds of defence, aerospace, and other asset-intensive industries, system and platform availability is more than a performance metric – it is a strategic imperative. Yet, too often, organisations treat the functions that underpin availability – engineering, supply chain, and commercial – as separate silos. The reality is that sustained availability can only be achieved when these three disciplines operate in harmony.
As one senior defence leader once put it:
“You don’t get availability from engineering excellence alone, from full warehouses, or from clever contracts. You get it when all three work together.”
So why is this harmony so vital? And what happens when it breaks down?
1. Engineering Designs the Solution, but Supply Chain Sustains It
Every availability journey starts with design. Engineers make critical decisions about materials, components, and configurations that lock in supply chain complexity for decades. For example, a platform designed with rare or bespoke parts may perform brilliantly on paper but could leave operators stranded when those parts are unavailable or take months to procure.
Consider the commercial aerospace sector. When Boeing developed the 787 Dreamliner, it embraced cutting-edge composite materials and a globally distributed supply chain. However, early production delays were compounded because many suppliers lacked the maturity to support these advanced components at scale. Airlines waiting for spare parts experienced grounded aircraft and significant revenue loss.
The lesson? Design for supportability is not optional. Early engagement between engineering and supply chain teams ensures that:
Components are selected based on availability and obsolescence risk. Platforms are designed for modularity, enabling faster repair and replacement. Commonality of spares across fleets reduces inventory burdens.
2. Supply Chain Keeps the Lifeblood Flowing
Even the best-designed system fails without a responsive and resilient supply chain. From predicting demand for critical spares to managing repair loops, supply chain professionals ensure that the right parts and services are available at the right time.
Amazon provides a civilian example of this principle. Its legendary availability – the “click-to-doorstep” promise – is not a result of good engineering alone, but of a finely tuned supply chain. Forecasting tools anticipate customer demand, warehouses are optimised for fast picking, and last-mile delivery is choreographed with precision.
In defence, the challenge is even harder. Supply chains must cope with uncertain demand signals, long lead times, and contested environments. When supply chain teams are brought in late, availability suffers:
Spare parts take too long to reach the front line. Warehouses overflow with the wrong items. Maintenance crews are left waiting for critical components.
Early collaboration allows supply chain to:
Influence initial provisioning levels. Model repair loops and optimise inventory placement. Build resilience into supplier networks.
3. Commercial Sets the Pace and the Boundaries
The commercial function is often overlooked in discussions about availability, but it is the glue that holds engineering and supply chain together. Contracts determine what suppliers will deliver, how quickly they will respond, and how risks and costs are shared.
A rigid contract can stifle innovation and adaptability. For instance, in the UK rail sector, overly prescriptive rolling stock maintenance contracts have led to situations where operators cannot respond quickly to unexpected failures. Conversely, performance-based logistics (PBL) contracts in defence incentivise suppliers to maximise platform availability rather than simply delivering parts.
The key is agile commercial models that:
Reward availability outcomes, not just transactional outputs. Allow for rapid changes in scope as operational needs evolve. Share data across the enterprise to drive joint decision-making.
The Triangle of Trade-offs
At the heart of availability is a constant balancing act between cost, performance, and risk. Engineering, supply chain, and commercial each bring a unique perspective, but only when they work together can trade-offs be optimised.
Think of it as a triangle:
Engineering drives technical performance. Supply chain manages flow and resilience. Commercial balances cost and enables partnerships.
If one corner dominates, the triangle collapses:
Engineering-led: you get high-tech platforms that are unaffordable to sustain. Supply chain-led: you get well-stocked warehouses but underperforming platforms. Commercial-led: you get low-cost contracts that fail to deliver when it matters.
When Harmony Happens: Real-World Benefits
When these disciplines align, the benefits are transformative:
✅ Higher Availability: Maintenance times reduce, spare part shortages disappear, and platforms spend more time operational.
✅ Lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO): Better designs and smarter supply chains cut through-life costs.
✅ Greater Resilience: Supply networks can absorb shocks, from pandemics to geopolitical disruption.
✅ Faster Response to Change: Agile contracts and data sharing allow organisations to adapt to new operational realities.
In Formula 1, for example, teams demonstrate this harmony weekly. Engineers design cars for rapid part replacement, supply chain teams deliver components across continents in hours, and commercial teams negotiate with suppliers for flexibility and speed. The result? Cars that are continually optimised and available to race.
When Harmony Breaks: The Cost of Silos
Without collaboration, failure is almost inevitable:
Defence programmes are plagued by grounded aircraft and unavailable ships. Energy companies suffer downtime because critical parts are on backorder. Tech firms miss product launches due to supply chain bottlenecks.
Silos aren’t just inefficient – they are dangerous in sectors where availability is mission-critical.
Five Steps to Build Harmony
Engage Early and Often: Bring supply chain and commercial experts into engineering reviews. Speak a Common Language: Develop shared metrics like Availability, Reliability, Maintainability, and Supportability (ARMS). Adopt Digital Tools: Use digital twins and predictive analytics to unite functions around data-driven decisions. Align Incentives: Structure contracts to reward collaboration and outcomes, not functional silos. Create Cross-Functional Teams: Embed supply chain and commercial experts into engineering teams from day one.
Conclusion: Availability Is a Team Sport
In complex industries, availability is not designed, purchased, or supplied – it is orchestrated. It demands harmony between engineering brilliance, supply chain agility, and commercial savvy.
The organisations that understand this – from defence primes to global logistics giants – achieve operational superiority. Those that don’t are left grounded, waiting for parts, or trapped in contract disputes.
The choice is simple: operate in silos and accept mediocrity, or build harmony and deliver excellence.
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