Airbus’s board of directors has approved a proposal by CEO Tom Enders to further integrate its group structure with Airbus Commercial Aircraft into a single entity effective January 2017, the company announced on Friday. Under the new structure, Enders will continue to serve as CEO while current Airbus Commercial Airplanes chief executive Fabrice Bregier will become COO of the group. Bregier will at the same time assume the title of president of Airbus Commercial Airplanes. The move is part of a continuing effort by the European manufacturer to reduce costs that are comprimising the profitability of several Airbus programs, including the A350 widebody.
“In July, we launched a transformation program that is heavily focused on digitalization of the company’s core processes and tools,” said Enders. “It will impact the way the company and its employees will work and the way we organize Airbus in the future. Lean structures and speedy decision-making are prerequisites for the success of the digital transformation. The merger of Airbus Group and Airbus paves the way for an overhaul of our corporate set-up, simplifies our company’s governance, eliminates redundancies and supports further efficiencies, while at the same time driving further integration of the entire group.”
In a written statement, Airbus said the details of the merger and its resulting effects stand subject to discussions with the social partners on the group, at national and divisional levels.
The latest efforts build on years of what Airbus calls integration and normalization steps. In 2012 the company combined its human resources and finance departments of both Airbus Group (the EADS) and Airbus. The group also relocated its headquarters to Toulouse. The next year the company reshaped it corporate governance and shareholder structure, moving away from a Franco-German joint venture to a fully independent board and a free float of more than 70 percent. Later, the company rebranded from EADS to Airbus Group and saw a group-wide integration and streamlining of more functions.