Groupe Meloche - Reaching New Height of Supply Chain Operational Excellence

In an increasingly innovative and connected world, many individuals and teams rely on aerospace transport to conduct trade, explore new places and make meaningful memories. As aircraft continues to play a pivotal role in our day-to-day lives, companies like Groupe Meloche are pushing the limits of aviation and soaring to new heights by developing innovative solutions for keeping the world connected. 

Groupe Meloche is a Canadian aerospace manufacturing company founded in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Quebec. Their expert team of manufacturing professionals works to design, machine and distribute several complex components used in both military and commercial aircraft. From aero-engine products such as oil nozzles and airfoil sleeves to structural elements such as beams and supports, Groupe Meloche’s components are used in aircraft flown by industry names such as Bombardier, Airbus and more.

The company currently operates across five production sites and an innovation center in the province of Quebec. Their facilities are home to over 60 machining and CNC turning centres, and the company offers services for complex machining processes for aluminum, titanium and more-- capabilities that have helped the company gain recognition as a reliable business partner from many aerospace market stakeholders. The company’s AS9100, ISO 9001 and Nadcap certifications additionally exemplify the team’s commitment to robust industry standards and their deep understanding of the complexities involved with producing components that operate kilometers above Earth.

An excellence-driven network

Along with their state-of-the-art facilities and capabilities, Groupe Meloche is also home to a talented team of over 150 machining and manufacturing professionals that ensure each piece is produced with attention to quality and detail-- even on tight deadlines.

Since Réjean Meloche founded the company in 1974, Group Meloche has focused on diversification and integrating young, dynamic perspectives into the business. Today, the company is run by Réjean’s son Hugue, who serves as Group Meloche’s President and CEO and has continued to lead the business with a keen eye for emerging new ideas in the world of manufacturing.

The supply chain side of the operations is led by Marion Alazet-Lebourg the Senior Director - Supply Chain and Program at Meloche Group. She leads her team to continuously improve how her supply chain operate as well as support Groupe Meloche’s extensive network of suppliers.

These suppliers plays a fundamental role in the company’s operations by providing the team with specialized parts needed in the component production process.

Marion Alazet-Lebourg at the 2023 edition of the “5@7 des achats” along with Grégory Bender, Procurement Expert et Team Lead chez Hydro-Quebec et Sophie Maurice, Consultante exécutive Achats in a panel about supplier diversity.

Marion is a senior manager with 10 years of experience in the aerospace sector. She has a strong ability to accurately identify business needs and develop solutions to reduce costs, increase profits, build strong supplier relationships as well as improve internal and external customer satisfaction.

The Groupe Meloche team takes great pride in its network of suppliers-- grading each supplier regularly using a rating system that takes into account quality, delivery, and service responsiveness. With this system, the company can provide suppliers with feedback over the course of their business relationship, thereby ensuring that both parties can improve long-term.

Automating a supply chain

As an industry leader in the aviation space, Groupe Meloche has invested heavily in advanced technologies that enhance their manufacturing process. The company has acquired multitasking equipment to reduce assembly times, machining simulator software to streamline the production of new complex parts, and several other tools that leverage the possibilities of automation and Industry 4.0. The team focuses heavily on continuous improvement, citing the importance of seamless communication throughout the company’s entire network to achieve growth.

Groupe Meloche’s culture of continuous improvement, curiosity for innovation through automation, and deep understanding of the complexity of supply chains make the company an ideal fit for the Axya platform.

Marion from Groupe Meloche and Felix from Axya at a networking event sponsored by Aeromontreal.

Axya enables Groupe Meloche’s procurement team to further digitize their supply chain procedures -- providing standardization and visibility into procurement activity. Axya’s source-to-pay software has enabled teams to standardize and automate previously time-consuming tasks such as consolidating data.

Strategic Sourcing Module, allowing procurement professional to follow their procurement activity
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The platform helps Groupe Meloche’s procurement team save time involved with copy-pasting quotation data from various sources and provides the team with access to supplier quotes in a digitized location that employees can access from anywhere.

These features allow the team to gain further data on supplier performance, archive quote data to track price changes and share KPIs with suppliers and the greater Groupe Meloche team to gain a big-picture understanding of the company’s supplier network.

Example of 4 KPIs we can track within the platform: supplier engagement, time to respond, status of request, and response amount for suppliers.
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As Groupe Meloche continues to serve its customers as a trusted name in the aerospace manufacturing industry, the company’s use of new innovative methods in both procurement and manufacturing stands as a testament to its dedication to efficiency, quality and exemplary customer service. With a focus on continuous improvement and innovation, Groupe Meloche and its ever-improving network of suppliers are prepared to stay ahead in the industry for years to come.