please read the research and do a critical analysis on this

300-400 word limit

1. Write a 300-400 word critique of the analysis in Word (or equivalent). Apply the usual APA formatting for titles, headings, and any references you may use.
2. Ask questions and make observations about the case methodology, type of data and sources used, and manner in which he or she approached the analysis.
3. Include questions, observations, and suggestions about how what they did in the case study might apply to the analysis of their chosen company for the final project.

4. Respond to the critique by answering your partners questions and defending your choices. Response to critique - any length.
   1. These responses should be a reply within the discussion itself (not an attached Word doc) and should follow the same format in terms of length and style as a Peer Response in a Discussion.

here is the research

Introduction

This case study report aims to analyze the supply chain and supply chain process of WestJet Airlines Ltd. WestJet Airlines Ltd. is a leading airline company in Canada that was founded by Clive Beddoe in 1994. The company provides low-cost airline services to its customers which makes it distinct from its competitors in the aviation industry. The company uses the single fleet model to reduce the cost of its maintenance and operations. The company faced occupancy issues during the economic crisis period between 2008 and 2009.

1. WestJet major services, supply chain management and the process

The supply chain in WestJet Airlines Ltd. is highly important because of its role in saving the expenses of the business operations of the company. WestJet Airlines Ltd. has achieved success through the effective implementation of supply chain strategies. The profit margins of the maintenance repair and overhaul are greatly reduced due to outsourcing. WestJet Airlines Ltd. faces many supply chain management challenges (Amin et al., 2018). The company faces the risk of losing its competitive advantage because of emerging markets with fast fleet development. With increased internationalization, the company faces various challenges such as immature logistics network, unskilled workers and so on. The customer base also significantly increases with emerging markets (Bell and Sherlock, 2020). The company must focus on customer behavior, studying their competitors and gaining knowledge about advanced technologies which will help the company to deliver services and products according to the expectations of customers. Inventory management and strategic global partnerships are also some of the challenges faced by the company.

2. Supply chain process

The supply chain process plays a crucial role in maintaining the competitive position of WestJet Airlines Ltd. in the market and has become a fundamental element of the company. The responsibility of the operations and procurement department of WestJet Airlines Ltd. include effective management of raw materials, information, and data. The primary role of the procurement and operations department of the company is involved in developing an effective internal value chain. The operations and procurement department of the airline company aims to be the suppliers supplier to the consumers (Blanchard, 2021). In any case of problems faced by WestJet Airlines Ltd. regarding the operations of the aircraft, the logistics, operations, and procurement aspects of the airline company have to undergo complete reconstruction by the supply chain management team. In previous years, when an aircraft of the company faced problems in its functioning, the procurement and operations department of WestJet Airlines Ltd. were relieved of their responsibilities and a separate department was created to handle the engineering aspect of the company (Gillen and Morrison, 2017).

3. Effectiveness of supply chain of WestJet

The supply chain under this department can be characterized as the management team whose responsibility is to combine the effects of every company that is involved with the manufacturing, distributing, and selling of airline services and products. This department of the company mainly deals with transactions occurring between suppliers and manufacturers. The finished goods are supplied to the distributors and then to the final customers. This new attitude towards the management of procurement and operations of the company allows all stakeholders associated with the manufacturing and distribution functions, to be a part of the supply chain. The newly established engineering department of the company is regarded as one of the finest facilities that implement leading-edge technology for the servicing and repair of aircraft components (Heppa, 2018).

The maintenance contracts are outsourced to third parties by this department to assist the whole fleet of WestJet Airlines Ltd. with advanced technology. The company has recruited skilled individuals with comprehensive knowledge about the fundamentals of the supply chain, whose responsibility is to effectively manage and implement every aspect of logistics, planning, maintenance, quality, and engineering to achieve the industry targets. The engineering department of the company also has a procurement section that facilitates the airline services through effective management of every outsourcing and contracting contract of all the components of aircraft including catering services, spares, fleet equipment and many more (Hyndman and Menezes, 2021). This procurement section is divided into four divisions which are cabin, airframe systems, avionics, and power plans. The entire workforce of this procurement section operates as a cross-functional team through the implementation of a specific process method of mitigating the expenses of spare components bought from multiple vendors. The complex process of procurement and sourcing is simplified through this process which enables the company to bargain with suppliers and influence purchasing power across multiple departments (Karun Kumar and Kesava Rao, 2020).

To meet the supply chain requirements of WestJet Airlines Ltd. at the maximum level, every skilled individual of all the departments of the company is included in this team. The responsibility of this department includes maintaining friendly relations with suppliers to acquire their best delivery services and products which ensures maximum customer satisfaction. Strategic sourcing facilitates the selection of the preferred supplier by uniting the suppliers' database. The skilled workforce of this department efficiently maintains the standard of the aircraft which is of the highest importance in the airline industry (Kumar and Rao, 2019). Various activities of the airline company such as proper management of guarantees and warranties, contracts management, agreement with electronic recording of documents and so on, are executed by the dedicated management team for handling goods support and warranty issues.

WestJet Airlines Ltd. has formed strategic alliances with Airbus and Boeing for procurement operations which have helped the company to achieve improved efficiency and transparency in the resource activities. The company has also implemented the strategy of rewarding suppliers for suggesting cost-efficient schemes for procurement which has helped the company to achieve increased productivity of the fleet and develop a competitive attitude among suppliers (Amin et al., 2018). WestJet Airlines Ltd. uses third party logistics (3PL) partners for their logistics management and repair management. By switching to third party logistics, WestJet Airlines Ltd. has acquired warehouses and huge truck fleets by generating profit from the economy of scale. The advantage of economy of scope is also attained by the company by mitigating the expenses and increasing the net worth of the airline. Based on the type of third parties logistics partner such as parts based or IT-based, the company can attain the advantages of these economies which assists the logistics to operate more efficiently and improves the repair management as well (Bell and Sherlock, 2020).

A considerable number of resources and money are required to obtain assets essential for establishing distribution networks and agencies. Outsourcing logistics help to reduce the financial risks associated with establishing distribution networks by spreading the financial risks to third-party logistics partners. The company pays a huge amount of money to workers to efficiently execute the operations of logistics and repair managers. A significant amount of capital is saved for the future development of the company by outsourcing these operations. The supply chain network of WestJet Airlines Ltd. can be classified into three interconnected chains (Blanchard, 2021).

The engineering department of the company with a procurement division provides high-quality services and aircraft within the fleet to satisfy the needs of passengers and customers. The supply of aircraft according to the preferences of the company is ensured by the agreement between the procurement division and supplier of the department which is Product Support Agreements (PSAs). The agreements between these suppliers and their direct suppliers ensure the production of only high-quality raw materials for efficient construction of the fleet.

Conclusion

From this case study report, it can be concluded that the supply chain strategy implemented by WestJet Airlines Ltd. helps the company to efficiently analyze its performance and enables the company to provide high-quality products and services to its partners and customers. The supply chain strategy of the company follows its business strategy which assists the company to attain a competitive advantage. This case study report also provides comprehensive knowledge about the logistics of the company which helps the company obtain maximum profit and maintain a low inventory level.