As we have moved to virtual briefings, I have increasingly been excerpting short video segments (with permission) as part of my Analyst Cam series.
This time it is Torsten Welte, Global VP and Head of Industrial Business Unit for Aerospace & Defense at SAP.
As you see in the image (and much more in the video ) below, the coverage is mammoth but as he says it's only the "guys that make the toys, not play with the toys". SAP's Travel and Transportation Group covers the airline operators, the Public Sector group covers space agencies like NASA and ESA, SAP's SuccessFactors and other units cover the human side of these large customers.
I tell him I am envious he gets to go to Paris, Farnborough and other airshows. The technology in modern spacecraft, avionics, eVTOLs and naval equipment he covers is drool-inducing and the design, manufacturing, monitoring, maintenance, earned value calculations, contract management have all evolved to keep up. Torsten talks about smart factories, digital twins, augmented reality, robotics, ML-enabled inspections and more as part of the solutions SAP and its ecosystem is delivering.
When we recorded the session, he was getting ready for the industry Innovation Day SAP hosts every year. This year it was in Huntington Beach, CA.
Torsten told me later they had “over 250 experts from the industry. During the innovation days, the community comes together to network and exchange their best practices and learnings. Our host company provides insights into their operations and innovations. This year, Northrop Grumman was our host. Besides touring their facility, we got insights on the James Webb (telescope) project. Truly an amazing innovation in technology and how it was launched in space.”
“Presenters showcased projects which tackled supply chain planning and manufacturing constraints. It was all about visibility and operational improvements through digital. They showcased solutions to manage data to make the right decision to improve throughput, cost, optimize constraints, and stay flexible.
Very exciting to see SAP solutions helping the industry to not fly blind.”
Torsten does a really nice job covering all of that in half an hour.