Defense industry supply chain faces problems and delays at all levels because of the coronavirus pandemic
WASHINGTON – On the morning of April 2, companies up and down the Pentagon’s supply chain got an email from Eaton Aerospace, a mid-tier supplier that provides parts such as fuel pumps and hydraulics to defense primes for aircraft like the KC-46 tanker and F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Defense News reports. Continue reading original article
The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:
20 April 2020 -- Because of the coronavirus pandemic, "the whole supply chain is a mess right now,” said an employee of one electronics manufacturer that provides components for commercial and defense products, who described challenges with working from home and retaining workers on the production line.
Up until last month, financial analysts would have seen commercial sales as a major boon to the overall health of a defense industry supplier, but that has changed, as the economy has taken a nose dive.
Small businesses that form a core of the Pentagon’s future technological development may be particularly vulnerable; there are roughly 50,000 small businesses that provide innovation support for the DOD, all of which is vulnerable to economic upheaval.
John Keller, chief editor
Military & Aerospace Electronics