Supply chain disruptions fuel Boeing’s vast stockpile of 787 Dreamliners

Boeing Co., the world’s second-biggest aeronautics company after Airbus, has suffered through more than three years of supply chain disruptions during the development of its vaunted 787 Dreamliner. The company is slated to receive government approval for the aircraft this week, but it is projected to spend most of 2012 reducing its record inventory, Bloomberg reports.

The delivery of the first Dreamliner was repeatedly delayed as a result of disruptions emanating from Boeing's complex supply chain, which critics assert suffers from a lack of strategic sourcing. The manufacturing inefficiencies resulted in a spate of missed deadlines, and prevented Boeing from achieving business cost reductions during manufacturing.

Boeing had collected $16.2 billion worth of inventory related to the 787 through June 30, according to the news provider. In fact, the U.S.-based company had so many in stock it ran out of room to park them.

The Federal Aviation Administration is expected to approve the plane for commercial flight on August 26, but Boeing has a long way to go as it works to empty its vast supply of the energy efficient aircraft, experts say.

"It's a big bulge in the middle of the balance sheet, and it’s got to work its way through," Tower Wealth Management chief financial officer Bill Batcheller said of the company’s overstocked inventory.