Materials Solutions, a Siemens business, has received accreditation from the National Aerospace and Defense Contractors Accreditation Program (NADCAP) for additive manufacturing in the aerospace sector. A reported first for a UK 3D printing company in this industry Phil Hatherley, General Manager at Materials Solutions, comments, “We knew that in order to deliver the highest quality parts for the aerospace sector we needed to get the NADCAP accreditation to show we were serious about working in the sector.”
“We want to be able to shift the perception of 3D printing from being a technology associated with prototyping to a viable option for the serial production of additively manufactured parts for a heavily regulated sector.”
NADCAP and the aerospace sector
NADCAP is a cooperative, industry-managed approach assessing the conformity of ‘special processes’ set by technical experts, suppliers, the National Physical Laboratory, and the National Measurement Institute.
It is universally recognized and incorporated by the aerospace industry for risk mitigation activity as it validates compliance with industry standards, best practices, and customer requirements. Both Italian metal 3D printing service provider Beam IT and QC Laboratories, Inc., a non-destructive testing (NDT) services company, have NADCAP approval for aerospace production.
Materials Solutions and metal 3D printing
Materials Solutions’ 3D printing facility in Worcester, UK, which 3D Printing Industry visited last year, features around 19 industrial metal 3D printers, including the EOS M 300-4. This technology is used to additively manufacture components for high-temperature environments found in gas turbines and jet engines as well as tooling applications, and lightweight structural parts.
The recent accreditation to Materials Solutions, established in 2006 and purchased by Siemens in 2016, will further enable the production and supply of metal 3D printed parts. Hatherley added, “The team are specialists in using additive manufacturing technology to solve complex engineering challenges for our customers.”
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Featured image shows metal 3D printed components. Photo via Materials Solutions.
