Airbus announces further cost cutting

Extending the programme it calls Power8 to Power8+ is designed to deliver cost savings of €650 million in 2012, adding to the Power8 target of € 2.1 billion for 2010. The company, which is owned by the French group EADS, said Power8+ represented a contribution to an EADS €1 billion cost cutting initiative and will be partly achieved by extending the Power8 initiatives up to 2012 (€ 350m) and partly by “further internationalisation of engineering and manufacturing work” (€ 300m). The new target did not envisage plans for any further job losses, it added. Power8+ is Airbus'. Airbus CEO Tom Enders (pictured) said Power8 was the centrepiece in Airbus' restructuring and integration efforts. “We have been very successful in achieving our targets so far," he added. "However, markets and competition remain challenging. Further measures to improve our cost base and overall efficiency are necessary to secure the long-term competitiveness of our company. By pushing forward with internationalisation we secure growth, we take advantage of lower cost structures, we access talent on a world-wide basis and, simultaneously, support employment and core competences in Europe."