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John Walton: Hello and welcome to The Chain, a special limited run podcast focusing on the supply chain around the 2026 Aircraft Interiors Expo — from The Up Front, the home of in-depth independent aviation journalism on the passenger experience.
The Chain delves deep into the often creaking seats, cabins, and interior supply chain, sitting down every episode with an industry expert from a company that makes up a key part of the chain.
I’m The Up Front editor in chief John Walton, and today I'm joined by by Alexis Gabillon. Alexis. Would you please introduce yourself?
Alexis Gabillon: Hello, John. I'm very pleased to to meet you. I'm Alexis Gabillon — I'm the CEO of Insperial Group.
John Walton: Every episode we start off with the same questions: what do you do, where are you in the supply chain, and who selects your product for inclusion in the cabin?
Alexis Gabillon: At Insperial we are a global surface material provider. And we sit at a very specific cornerstone in the supply chain. In fact, we are able to deliver materials which can customize any surface inside or out of an aircraft, from the exterior decals to the interior laminates, to the genuine leather, artificial leather, or very high end upholstery material, thanks to our three brands.
We have three brands as part of the group: the first one is Adhetec, the expert for decals. The second one is Perrone, which is the the expert for genuine leather and artificial leather. And the last one is MGR Foamtex, which is the expert for soft walls and really high design surface material.
And, but on top of the materials that we are supplying, we are also supplying an end-to-end solution. So not only we supply the material, but we try to supply also all the service that goes around: from the supporting design to the tools to install to all the consumables that will support our customer to be really part of the solution and do it right first time, all the time.
And as far as who is selecting us, basically we're working with all the industry players. So obviously it very often starts with some designer or aircraft OEM, or component equipment manufacturer designer, or it could also be directly the airlines or the MRO center.
We play with, we are working with the entire industry basically.
John Walton: Is there a “most often” for who selects your products? Is it, do you mostly get contacted by designers, for example, for line fit programs, but for retrofits, the MRO house? Is there a trend there that, that you can identify?
Alexis Gabillon: It really depends on what we are talking about. So when you discussing about materials which are really as, I would say, a baseline of the aircraft, it is most likely the aircraft OEM or the equipment manufacturer. When we are going to vary something that is in link with the identity of the airline: a laminate or leather, it'll be most likely directly the airline, or the design film that is working with the airline to start with.
But it's always a game with multiple actors. You not only discussing only with one, you need to make sure that all the party are having, are being satisfied. So the technical aspect need to be satisfied. The design aspect need to be satisfied, and also the, obviously the operational and the purchasing aspect has to be satisfied.
So it's always a game with multiple players.
John Walton: Thinking about where your raw materials come from, what is that? Who are your suppliers, as it were for your raw materials?
Alexis Gabillon: Do you mean who we are sourcing our material to, or we are selling our material to?
John Walton: who do you source from?
If you are — for example, for your natural leathers, obviously that is somebody who has cows, I would imagine.
Alexis Gabillon: Basically, obviously for leather clearly we are sourcing from — it depends the stage we take the leather, but it's come from some tanneries and there's different variation of it.
And also after, for the other product, it's mainly some chemical companies: we deal a lot with product which are dealing with chemistry in a way or another. So it's very often very large chemical companies. And after we incorporate all the product and do the transformation in order to deliver to deliver finished product to the industries that corresponds to the need and the application.
John Walton: Okay. So in terms of your product supply chain, what's the state of play? Are things good, are things tricky, are things complicated?
Alexis Gabillon: Well, we are clearly in a phase of strong recovery past COVID. It's clear that there's a significant level of pressure on the supply chains.
Demand is clearly increasing faster at the capacity in many areas. And so everyone is under a strong pressure, and it is clear that now customers don't only look for nice design. They're also looking for reliability and and being able to deliver good and on time every time. And to have great level of flexibility
John Walton: I guess my question diving a little bit deeper is. Are you currently delivering on time? Are the people who you are delivering to delivering on time, so you know, are they having to warehouse your products for a long time? For example, does that throw up any issues?
Alexis Gabillon: We generally do carry stocks. The time where you are 100% Lean is not possible to happen and to be in our industry. So in fact, we invest in stock for plenty of our upstream products. The reason for that is really to protect our end customer and also to make sure that we secure all the disruption of the downstream supply chain.
So downstream, supply chain is suffering also lots of change due to all the complexities we're having in our current world. Talking about trade wars, talking about also all the regulations that are happening in, into into the chemistry world, for example. It's clear that we're not anymore in a world where, okay, you can operate with no stocks and all that.
It's not working like that. You need to have stock in your facilities in order to be prepared to support any demand from your customers.
John Walton: One of the things that that I know, I remember talking about pre-COVID, with a lot of companies in the supply chain is lean manufacturing, lean supply chains. What do we call “post-Lean” supply chain? Chain? What's the new model?
Alexis Gabillon: I think you can't oppose the two of them. I think that you need to be efficient. You owe efficiency to your customer and to your shareholders. So you need to be efficient, but at the same time believing that in the current world where, programs are coming to the market at pace post-COVID, which is increasingly high, which with lots of variation, with lots of movements. The crisis of the engine that we are facing in the industry currently is clearly impacting the refurbishment programs. What does it mean? It means that what was planned is not anymore planned. So you need to adjust to that. So at the same time that you need to be efficient, you need to be able to absorb a certain level of flexibility.
So if I would have, post-Lean, is make sure that your system is as lean as possible where it can be, and as flexible as it has to be where it needs to be. So we need to invest in in clearly in scaling the organization to absorb shocks, but also in a lot of efficiency and cutting the the operations, which are not value added as much as we can.
John Walton: Yeah, I mean that, that makes sense.
It's fascinating to observe how different companies are doing that, as I talk to more folks for the podcast.
Looking above you, in the chain, so to the people who you supply. We've talked about this a little bit, but what are the key challenges that are affecting you there? You discussed the engine situation which means, of course, that programs aren't happening, programs are happening on different timescales — but what are those challenges? And how are you resolving them?
Alexis Gabillon: The clearly upstream the core problem is is volatility. And in some cases really unrealistic expectations. Customers above us: they're really under an intense pressure. And often they're looking now to suppliers to absorb last minute changes: compressed lead time, shifting priorities also linked to the crisis that we just discussed about the engines.
But not only that, and also lots of variation and lots of elements that they're suffering. So really the uncomfortable truth is that demand planning — quality has really deteriorated in many programs. So in front of that, it's what I was mentioning earlier is that we need to, we are having a very deliberate response, which is twofold.
First we invest in scales to absorb shocks. But we also enforce discipline: flexibility only works if supported by constant honest communications and clear trade-offs. And so it's what we try to have in relation with our customer.
John Walton: Interesting. So in terms of the changes that, that your customers and the people above you in supply chain are asking for, can you give us an idea of the scale of those changes? Is it, for example: “we ordered this material, we need this material in a slightly different specificaion? Or is it more: “we thought we needed this material, but actually we've changed the design of this because the seat is so late and we've gone with a different seat manufacturer, say, and so we need something entirely different”? What are the — are there any dynamics there that you can identify?
Alexis Gabillon: Yeah it's really some changes in the planning, that there’s a different aspect — and there's some, in some cases, you have a change in the planning. Say: okay, we were planning to do a refurbishment and finally we're not doing that one and we are doing another one. Or because they’re facing some constraints in their operation and so they're changing their plan and in lieu of doing doing certain aspect in the retrofit, they will be going for full retrofit programs with a change of the seats, change of the liveries. So we are seeing lots of different variable on that.
I must say also that the regulation is much more stringent. So we also are facing from time to time some need to change the material because of — or change the stackups because — the burn test is not working. And at the same time, this happened at the very last minute because we are supposed to deliver product for next month, but the design is not yet frozen.
So you, you are facing all those complexities and those tension, and it's where here we need to try and be clear about, okay, what is possible and what unfortunately will take a little bit more time.
John Walton: That makes sense. And how do you resolve those problems? Because some of those problems seem relatively more simple than others in terms of fixing them, right?
Alexis Gabillon: Clearly the the way to fix is program management: a key piece of the resolution is making sure that we are having people in front of customers capable to understand the problem, transfer the information and securing. The second aspect is is clearly to scale in, invest in capacity.
So we have multiple program of increase, or of capacity growth. For example, MGR Foamtex will investing into a new plant that they will will move the operation in that new plant in the second semester, and it'll allow to double the capacity of MGR Foamtex, for example. So the capacity increase will also increase flexibility.
Another aspect is — every time we can, is to and every time we have some idea of of planning — early investment into material, so we can really react fast. So those are examples of what we could do into the supply chain into, in order to facilitate and mitigate those constraints.
John Walton: So thinking about the level of recognition among your customers of the need for this increased project management and program management, I’m struck by one of the themes out of the last RedCabin event in Dublin, for example, which is much earlier engagement with suppliers, well before ITCM kind of meetings…
Alexis Gabillon: True.
John Walton: Are you seeing that is happening? Does it need to happen more? What's your take on that?
Alexis Gabillon: Clearly it has to happen more. Is it really happening? Yes and no. And yes, we're having some contacts with some people way before ITCM, way before even they have started to do their concrete project discussing about what are they offering and what are the possibilities.
Is it really systematically and from a market, global market perspective happening more than before? Not really sure, because also because the airlines need to deal with their operation. We need also to acknowledge that, yes, we are part of the system, but they need to fly aircraft.
Their duty is to fly aircraft. So they're in front of this complexity of availability of aircraft, of the complexity, of the availability and the capacity of the industrial system in aerospace, that have been really strongly hit by the pandemic.
Post COVID, the world of the business class seat was really down. There was no program anymore. To survive, lots of company have been forced to reduce capacity drastically. So to resume all this is a challenge, clearly. And once again, within our group the clear example of the company, which is in contact with business class seat is MGR Foamtex.
And it's two years in a row with growth that is in excess of 35%. It is a kind of challenge that we are dealing with. When you are dealing with this challenge, it clearly means that yes, we are not discussing with all the program way before ITCM. So I think it'll certainly be happening in the years to come.
But but for the time being, it's not yet the norm.
John Walton: So the context from that growth, for example, that you're experiencing, obviously that's going to throw up question, questions for own supply chain right? So there's the parts of the supply chain below you who supply you. What are some of those challenges and how you resolving them?
Alexis Gabillon: The challenges for the supply chain below us, it’s clearly that we need to give them visibility. The more we can, obviously: this is the key challenge. And the way we do that is we we organize industrial system, planning the best we can with information we are having and implementing buffers.
Basically, buffers where it has to be. For example, with some some components we will source or we will take commitments not on the finished product, but on the components that will be within, will be engaged in the manufacturing of the component we need.
So doing, so we secure that we have the raw material upstream, we have the capacity booked and then we just have to specify the final product we need. So it's a lot of actions that we can take. So it's always investing in problem management, investing in supply chain management, and obviously lots of strong collaborations with them. Collaboration is making sure that we have a close contact and also making sure that we have some contracts in place that set the rules.
John Walton: As you say that, I’m reflecting on what two years of 35% growth means in terms of how you manage those supplies of yours, and that’s half as much again please — it's really fascinating.
So last question, and this is probably my favorite. I’m going to give you a magic wand, and this magic wand allows you to resolve one problem with the supply chain.
What is that problem? And what gets fixed?
Alexis Gabillon: We talk a little bit about that, but if I had the magic wand, obviously it'll be brutally simple, earlier and more realistic engagement across the supply chain. You will resolve most of the issue by that, because too many problems are the result of late decision or too optimistic assumptions.
So if we could have a commitment early on, definitely we resolve most of the elements. But at the same time, I think we should not kid ourselves. We need to acknowledge that forecasting will never be perfect. It's where, it’s why, the real competitive advantage is not only productions, but it's also the ability to react in front of realities that divert from the plans.
We need really to develop a supply chain that combines visibility with a strong level of humility and a strong level of agility.
John Walton: In concrete terms, what changes in this magic new world? Is it more pre-ITCM meetings? Is it more people involved at the ITCM stage? Is it deeper contact with airlines and designers at certain levels? What's, what does that look like?
Alexis Gabillon: Yes. I think that a portion is to have better access before into the — okay, what will be the projects, the plans early on, and before we go into the detailed designs. It's also, as much as we can, pre-certify the different stack ups. And so it's a collaborative work with seat OEM in order to secure that we have stackups which are pre-certified.
So obviously we will have some variation here and there and all that, but if we know that it’s only a delta qualification. We can certainly secure a lot of what's going on. And it's clearly working as much as we can to the late differentiation every time. We can also, so making sure that yes we scale up a little bit the way we approach and we do as much as we can, like differentiation. But at the same time, I'm telling that, I perfectly understand that any airlines want to set aside to any other, so that the customization — they don't want to look the same as the others.
It's part also of our industry, all [this] has clear limits. And it's where I'm back to, to my comment about that we need to maintain agility and acknowledge that people are coming to us in order to manage complexity.
So we also need to adjust our systems to handle this complexity and handle complexity means to have the right resource, the right capability and what it takes as a material pre-reserved in order to accommodate all this.
John Walton: Fascinating. Alexis, thank you so much for joining us on The Chain. That's been a really interesting discussion. Where our business, and readers find you to discuss more?
Alexis Gabillon: Obviously we'll be present at AIX. We’ll be in Hall 5 — I don't remember the place of our booth right now. But definitely we'll be there with a nice Insperial booth, and lots of novelty and especially toward design. And I think it'll be lots of nice tools too for airlines to try out our product. And plenty of other places around the world and all the main event of the industry, we will be present there for sure.
John Walton: Yeah, I'm looking forward to it for sure. In the meantime, how can people get in touch with you? Email, LinkedIn, website?
Alexis Gabillon: Yes. All of this. You can go to the insperial dot com website, and you'll find all our contacts and you can contact us through that through that platform and all the sites of our different brands: Perrone, MGR, and Adhetec.
John Walton: And of course, listeners, readers, you can find more of The Chain and all of our in-depth independent aviation journalism, focusing on the passenger experience, at The Up Front on theupfront dot media. We'll be back with another episode soon.
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