Breadth and depth of technological capabilities in CoPS: the case of the aircraft engine control system

This paper documents the case of the aircraft engine control system. It aim s to offer a detailed picture of the dynamics of the technological capabili ties of aircraft engine manufacturers in relation to a specific and increas ingly important engine subsystem, namely the control system. It draws on a combination of detailed qualitative and quantitative data to construct two measures of firms' technological capabilities, namely breadth and depth. Th e paper shows that engine manufacturers develop and maintain a broad and de ep range of capabilities in-house in order to retain their systems integrat ion capabilities over time. In particular, as regards the breadth, the pape r shows how engine makers have responded to the shift in technologies under lying the control system by enlarging their breadth of capabilities through dedicated in-house investments, as well as by forging links with universit ies and specialised suppliers. As regards the depth, the paper shows that e ngine makers do not only focus their capabilities on the architecture of th e engine control system, but they deepen them also in component technologie s. The paper argues that engine manufacturers need a deep understanding of components' inner functioning in order to be able to specify, assess, test and integrate components produced externally into the engine, as well as to coordinate and benefit from changes arising from fast-moving technological fields, such as digital electronics. On the basis of these results, it is argued that there is no perfect overlap between the technological boundarie s and the production boundaries of firms developing complex, multitechnolog y products, such as aircraft engines. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All ri ghts reserved.