The UK's Farnborough airshow has traditionally offered a platform for some of the aviation industry’s biggest hitters to flaunt their wares and generally show-off for a week in front of the world’s media. This year, however, there promises to be a slightly more downbeat feel to an event that has acted as a magnet for the great and the good since it was first held in 1948.
 
And from a procurement standpoint the biannual show promises to make for fascinating viewing over the next seven days. No industry has been hit harder by the "perfect storm" of global economic conditions, and the 140,000 or so aerospace and defence professionals descending on the South of England this week will have one word on the tip of their tongue.
 
The soaring cost of fuel is hitting every business hard, but airlines are feeling the pinch more than most, and on a day when Airbus said that rising fuel prices were actually boosting its order books – “we have the most energy efficient aeroplane in the world – the aeroplane of the future,” according to EDS CEO Louis Gallois – those involved in aviation procurement will undoubtedly be on the lookout for potential avenues for further cost savings from green innovations.
 
The potential of securing package deals that include both the servicing and repairing of aircraft is another area which companies will increasingly be looking towards procurement to secure, and is likely to be another key emerging trend as firms look to gain greater control of their spend.
 
One thing that does seem certain is that the news coverage this week is far more likely to centre on procurement issues rather than headline-grabbing orders – the perfect storm has already taken care of that.