I hate to prank your management, but you've got to be kidding! I'm sure you're not the first to do this, but this is the first I've ever heard, it's usually the other way around. I'd check the background of the knucklehead making this decision and be willing to bet, he's not a very good manager. If money is that tight, just download them for free off of Airnav.
I am not getting on you, but someone in your organization isn't doing his/her job. Charts & Plates ( known as "navigation subscriptions " to the owners) are supposed to be part of the operating cost of the airplane and passed on to the owner.
I'd be willing to bet that a cost analysis of each aircraft hasn't been done and the manager is just using standard numbers for similar aircraft. This is what quite a few managers do when they don't know how to do it correctly.
That being said, Jeppesen is the world wide leader in Navigation Charts and I've used them for decades along with training on them. I wouldn't know where to find a training site for the NOS Charts which would require ground training for your 135 ops.
The 2 biggest ways to save money is fuel and maintenance. Get 5-6 contract fuel accounts such as Colt, Arrow Energy, World Fuel, Phoenix, or Jet Fleet International. You will see results in a few months. Also, make sure that you have someone dependable in overseeing maintenance. A good pit bull overseeing maintenance will allow for efficient work and keep the pricing down. A good DOM is hard to find. Also, pick 1-2 hotel chains and agree to a set price. I currently use Marriott hotels only and have negotiated a set price across the board for all their hotels. ( marriott, residence inn, courtyard, etc) I gaurantee them "X" amount of stays a year and get a set price for this. That way you're staying at nice hotels but paying less and if you charter and get $600/night, you'll be making more money.
