Boeing has signed an agreement with Honeywell Aerospace that will allow them to significantly reduce an airline's maintenance costs by providing expendable parts.

The companies teamed as part of Boeing's Integrated Materials Management (IMM) initiative. Through this program, Boeing and suppliers like Honeywell maintain an airline's inventory of spare parts - providing items as needed. By reducing the airline's own inventory, IMM reduces the airline's cost of doing business.

Honeywell is a supplier of consumable hardware products and services and a distributor of standard, proprietary and hard-to-find parts. They provide 725,000 parts from 150 global manufacturers and 2,600 suppliers.

"Adding Honeywell Consumable Solutions to the Integrated Materials Management family of customers and network suppliers is a strategic move for both Boeing and our customers," said Joe Brummitt, director of the IMM Program. "The IMM suppliers and customers will greatly benefit from the extensive knowledge and experience that Honeywell brings to the expanding IMM business scope."

IMM is considered the next step in expanding Boeing services to suppliers throughout the world to provide value for airline customers and supplier partners by building on existing materials management programs with airlines. Current customers for IMM include AirTran Airways, All Nippon Airways, Delta Air Lines, Japan Airlines, KLM, Japan Transocean Air, Singapore Airlines and SIAEC. Network supplier partners include WS Wilson, Honeywell, UFC Aerospace, Satair, Hamilton Sundstrand, Avio-Diepen, and the Boeing subsidiary, Aviall.