Skip to main content

Smart operations in the manufacturing sector

Creating a connected aftermarket

To help manufacturers navigate the complexities of creating a connected aftermarket, this report delves into emerging market trends and explores how to overcome common challenges to create a pathway to sustainable growth.

Unlocking value with a connected aftermarket

As manufacturers tap into the potential of the connected aftermarket, they stand to realize benefits such as enhanced throughput and schedule accuracy, improved spare part availability, greater labor efficiency, fewer maintenance events, better contract management, and reduced cost to serve.

Learn how Deloitte is helping to create a connected aftermarket

A leading aerospace OEM wanted to improve their aftermarket business to increase uptime and parts availability. With cumbersome and non-standard processes, however, they could not connect their spares and maintenance needs to their core business. At the same time, they lacked appropriate tools to see data in real-time, hampering their efforts to balance their near- and long-term planning requirements.

The solution

Using the connected aftermarket approach, Deloitte Consulting LLP helped to:

  • Refine process blueprinting by mapping key aftermarket steps, defining integration points, conducting fit-gap analysis, and supporting system changes.
  • Gain real-time demand visibility by integrating inventory and field systems for a centralized dashboard, auto-calculating performance metrics, and embedding new analytical processes.
  • Enhance decision-making by automating repeatable steps, connecting systems to monitor repairs, isolating site and supplier issues, and accelerating decisions with data-driven options.
  • Integrate aftermarket with core business by embedding forecasting and demand planning into production data and establishing a "digital thread" to track supply shortfalls, engineering changes, and at-risk demands.

The results

  • An improvement of 25% in spare parts availability
  • A reduction of 20% in customer wait time
  • 2.5 times improvement in forecast accuracy

A leading equipment rental company in the construction, manufacturing, and industrial space wanted to modernize their customer service. Due to complex industry dynamics—such as supply chain disruptions, labor shortages, and extreme climate conditions—their customers were approaching their operations in new ways. To help customers optimize their productivity, the company wanted to leverage data-driven solutions to deliver more value through access to fleet management and logistics technology.

The solution

Using the connected aftermarket approach, Deloitte Digital helped design a digitally enabled solution to make equipment rental and management easy and intuitive. Over an 18-month journey, the teams reimagined the equipment rental experience, bringing into a single platform data and capabilities powered by leading-edge technologies. The new digital platform helps empower customers to capitalize on their own strengths while easily and efficiently drawing from the company’s fleet management knowledge—through rich data made available in an easy-to-use, mobile-enabled format across the equipment rental cycle. Features include reserving equipment, tracking delivery, monitoring equipment performance, managing equipment operation, and having full billing visibility.

The results

  • Quarterly growth of 26% in new digital accounts
  • Growth of 154% in telmatics alerts
  • An increase of 100% in the use of digital service calls

A major aerospace and defense manufacturer was contracted to perform planned modifications to a client’s used aircraft fleet. However, 50% of the required work was not identified or scoped until the aircraft arrived at the MRO facility, disrupting labor, parts, and tooling plans.

The solution

Using the connected aftermarket approach, Deloitte Consulting LLP helped them:

  • Standardize their planning process based on industry leading practices to enhance efficiency.
  • Integrate forecasting into their new planning process by analyzing frequent “over and above” work logged in their discrepancy reports.
  • Create precedence maps displaying critical paths and resource-loaded crew plans for each scope of work.
  • Develop visual management tools that simplified communication between “the top floor and the shop floor” around MRO status, dependent tasks, and constraints/needs requiring leader-level resolution.

The results

  • Span compression of 30% by optimizing planned and unplanned work.
  • 25% increase in throughput
  • 10-15% margin lift

"By turning end-of-life systems into a unique opportunity to transform customer relationships and operational realities, a connected aftermarket approach could put manufacturers on the path toward building long-term competitive advantage"

- Ajai Vasudevan, Global Leader for Smart Operations, Energy, Resources & Industrials, Deloitte US

Did you find this useful?

Thanks for your feedback