Challenges of supplier engagement in early stage technology development in the context of hydrogen propulsion equipment development for aircraft are uncovered. The challenges are viewed from the perspective of the engineering team members within the Liquid Hydrogen storage and distribution department in Airbus’ ZEROe project. A qualitative action research approach is taken to gain an in-depth understanding of the context and the stakeholders’ perspectives. Through interviews, observational studies, and document analysis, a code base is developed and analysed.

At the highest abstraction level, the analysis finds that uncertainty around hydrogen technologies for aviation drives the supplier engagement challenges. When requirements, specifications, deliverables, and development timelines are uncertain, suppliers are in many cases unable to engage. Concretely, the technological uncertainty leads the engineers to be overly cautious in the development of their equipment’s requirements. Over-caution leads to very challenging or impossible requirements which overload suppliers, especially non-aerospace suppliers. This ultimately leads to unsuccessful engagement, limiting the learning potential. Consequently, the lack of learning fuels the uncertainty in a perpetual positive feedback loop.

This research proposes two roadmaps detailing behavioural change through a ‘mindset shift’ of the internal stakeholders to break the uncertainty-fueled cycle mentioned above. The roadmaps link the ZEROe developments until 2030 with the value proposition to suppliers, assets and processes, and the development deliverables. Additionally, the research findings are implemented in the communication materials the engineers use during the Request For Technical Information (RFTI) phase towards suppliers. Through using lessons learned from earlier engagements, the requested RFTI process deliverables are tailored. By building up the technical complexity and load throughout the development, suppliers are less overwhelmed at the start, improving the chances of successful engagements.