Quality  (Certification)

AS9100 Rev C Certification

Leading Edge Fabricating, Inc. has achieved compliance with the new, stringent AS9100 Rev C quality system requirements for aviation, space, and defense markets. This new revision of AS9100 includes an increased focus on risk management, supplier management controls, on-time delivery, and product conformity measurements, including taking appropriate actions against vendors when planned results are not achieved. The quality audit was conducted by QMI-SAI Global, a leader in management systems registrations for clients throughout the world.

Click here to view the AS9100 Rev C Certificate

Nadcap Accreditation in Fusion Welding

Over the past year, as part of its ongoing continuous improvement program, Leading Edge Fabricating, Inc. has been upgrading its Quality and Welding procedures, processes and practices to meet the stringent requirements of Nadcap (National Aerospace and Defense Contractor Accreditation Program). LEFI is pleased to announce that in January 2011 it has achieved Nadcap Accreditation for Welding.  This Accreditation represents a major milestone in Leading Edge Fabricating’s continuous drive of providing its customers with the highest level of product quality.

Click Here to view the Nadcap Accreditation in Fusion Welding

Reference Libraries

How set up cost effect pricing

In custom manufacturing - whether for machine parts from Leading Edge Fabricating, printed brochures from a printer or stuffed teddy bears, setup costs are often the main factor in the price when ordering just one or a few parts. This is why custom manufacturing costs more than off-the-shelf products. For example if you design a threaded bolt in the CAD and want to order one or a few pieces don't expect to pay what you would pay for a stock item at a hardware store.

The reason is that a custom manufacturer has to go through several steps whether you order one or many parts. For example, even for quantity one of a simple part here are some the steps Leading Edge might go thru for an order:

1. Review the order
2. Locate material in stock or order material
3. Program the machine
4. Setup cutting tools
5. Setup a way to hold material during cutting
6. Test run the program
7. Run the parts
8. Perform initial inspection
9. Debur the edges
10. Clean the parts
11. Perform final inspection
12. Pack the parts
13. Ship the parts
14. Log the shipment on the database

Nevertheless, Leading Edge Fabricating strives to keep setup costs as low as practical and is usually competitive compared to other custom manufacturers even at quantity one.

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Follow these thoughts and "Keep It Simple".

1.  Remember the KISS rule:  (Keep It Simple Stupid), sure, fancy parts look good, get all the ogles and awes, but they generally don’t WORK well.  Simple is cheaper to make, cheaper to repair, MTBF (mean time between failures) is longer, and easier to operate.

2.  Understand what you are designing, from all facets, not just the part, but how that part interacts with its environment.  Understand the entire process, not just one little snippet.

3.  Do NOT TOLERANCE ANYTHING that doesn’t absolutely have to have a tolerance.  Use a general border tolerance, like ISO 2768.  Tolerance fits, and other critical features, and ONLY those things.  A General Note tolerance for bolt hole locations and other common features is perfectly acceptable and preferred by many in the machining trade, and it UNCLUTTERS the drawing.  Remember, typically, you do NOT need a +/-0.002” tolerance on a bolt hole location.  Tolerances cost money, pure and simple.  The more tolerances, the more the part costs.  The tighter the tolerances, the more it costs.  Even if you give +/- 3mm for tolerances, but you tolerance every feature on the drawing, your part will COST MORE.  Job shop guy scanning a drawing for quote sees 100 toleranced dims on a drawing….he jacks the price up; it’s a fact of life.

4.  Learn the practical application and practical meaning of GD&T tolerancing as it applies to making parts.  A true position tolerance is generally NOT needed on everything on a drawing.  True position is NOT a “catch-all” tolerancing method, as so many seem to think.  Again, refer to item #3 above.  Use the proper GD&T tolerance for only those features that absolutely require it.

5.  Most do this, but take into account when you design a part, what stock raw material sizes are readily available.  Your goal as an Engineer in search of much cheaper parts is to reduce the amount of machining needed to produce your part as much as possible.  If it can be made from 1”x4” saw-cut bar stock, it will be MUCH cheaper than a part where a custom sawed 1-3/16”x4-1/8” piece of material is required.  DEFINE what overall size of material is needed to produce the part on the drawing.

6.  While taking #5 into account make SURE you either give or allow the machinist to make whatever qualified surfaces are needed to actually produce the part within tolerances on his machines.

7.  Take into account what sized, lengths and shaped cutting tools are commonly available, and those that the machinist probably has readily available on hand.

8.  While you are thinking about #7, and designing your part, think about how many different tools it will take to produce your part.  The more tools, the more it costs.  Consider tool changes to be set-ups, for that is what they truly are.  Consider putting a tool list on the drawing, of what you had in mind when you drew the part.  This little tid-bit of information can give the guy quoting your parts.

a.  a handy reference

b.  allows him to better follow what you had in mind when you drew the part.

Consider including a drawing of the geometry of any special tool needed to make your part right on the drawing.

9.  On the same subject, the larger diameter/radius tools you allow the machinist to use on your part, the cheaper it will be.  Generally, larger tools can be fed much faster, decreasing machining time considerably.  Decreased machining time directly == less cost.

10.  Think about what operations are needed to produce the part.  How many times does the machinist have to re-fixture it to cut your features?  Is the machinist going to have to make a fixture to hold the part, or can it be held in a plain and readily available vice, collets or chuck?  The more set-ups there are involved in making a part, the more it will cost.  The more special fixtures he has to make, the more it costs.  Even soft jaws.  You can even call the shop you are using and ASK what size soft jaws he has on-hand, if the diameter isn’t truly critical.

11.  Do you “really” need that slick finish?  90% of the time….NO.  So why specify it?  Slick finishes cost $$$.  Specify a more than reasonable Max Ra, and let it be.  99% of the shops out there will send you a good looking part, at no extra charge, because it reflects on their business visually.  Most shops, if you specify a fine finish, will GRIND the part.  GRINDING is EXPENSIVE.

12.  When you design your part features, make sure you do not forget the following items:

b.  Large enough undercuts for ground meeting faces that the machinist doesn’t have to dress the corner of the wheel and re-pick up on the part a half dozen times.

c.  Min/Max chamfer sizes – can be a note.

13.  Reduce Grinding and EDM work to the absolute minimum.  Allow hard turning if possible.

14.  Pick out a good, feature-defined datum from which to dimension.  A large hole or the corner of a square part.  You want something, if possible, accessible from any orientation that the machinist must fixture the part to machine another feature.  If he can use the same datum for all set-ups, the parts will be cheaper, as the probability of something going awry are greatly reduced.  Dimensioning from a theoretical point in space, or an arc where the center lies off of the part WILL cost you money, guaranteed.

15.  Keep dimensions readable, traceable to the feature and uncluttered.  If two dimension lines show up close together, either put a note on one dimension that clarifies to what feature it refers, or see #16 below.

16.  Define smaller features in a scaled bubble view.  Use auxiliary views, section views and cut-away views to show features in a more clear manner if they might at all be questionable.

17.  Dimension logically.  I cannot stress this enough.  Keep dimensions of a feature in one view, if possible.  A machinist having to hunt all over the drawing for dimensions to a feature causes errors, frustration, and added expense.  Try to apply dimensions in a logical flow of the most probably machining sequence of the part.  If it is a round part with milling, put all the diameter information in one or two views, if it doesn’t get cluttered or unreadable, and all the milling information in another view or two.  The machinists won’t be distracted by dimensions for features he isn’t machining.  Many times it is possible to lay out the dimensions in a manner that flows with the manufacturing progression of the part.

18.  Put your direct contact information on the print, if allowed by company policy.  If there are any questions, the machinist can call and clarify.

19.  You can learn a great deal from the machinist on how to make parts less expensive, if you LISTEN.

Remember:  The more information you can convey quickly, clearly, and logically to the machinist on a drawing, the cheaper your parts will be.

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What are the benefits of certification to the AS9100 standard?

AS 9100 certification provides the following benefits:

• Provides access to the best practices of the aerospace industry
• Demonstrates your commitment to deliver quality products and services to your customers
• Brings your quality management system to level with the global standard adopted by the aerospace industry
• Improves your new market / new customer prospects on a worldwide basis
• Reduces multiple expectations and number of 2nd and 3rd party audits
• Creates independent feedback to foster continual improvement
• Improved customer satisfaction
• Reduces organizational waste, inefficiencies, and defects
• Facilitates continual improvement in business processes and customer satisfaction
• Improves process consistency and stability
• Increased customer satisfaction
• Ongoing operational improvements that cut waste and reduce costs
• Fewer errors and lower return rates
• Greater productivity and improved performance
• Simplified documentation
• Greater audit and surveillance efficiency
• Greater access to new markets
• Meets requirements for suppliers of the major aerospace manufacturers, such   as GE Aircraft, Boeing, Rolls-Royce Allison and Pratt and Whitney.

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Need a certified welder?

Ever ask a welder “are you certified?” only to have him say “Yeah I’m certified, I certified 10 years ago on the big job.” Well guess what?  He’s not certified anymore if that was his only cert and he doesn’t work there anymore.  Welding certifications typically are not transferable and only good while you are employed by the folks who certified you.
If you took a welding test at an accredited AWS test facility, you can say you are certified (you have kept it up by submitting your forms and 10 bucks to the AWS every 6 months and have kept an auditable record of continued welding activity within every 6 month period).
Or if you are self employed and you have documentation of having welded a test weld under the conditions of a qualified welding procedure specification and to a certain welding code, along with the auditable record of continued welding activity within every 6 month period.

See where this is going?

  It gets worse… What welding code are you certified to?  What types of material are you certified on?  What positions are you certified to weld that material in? What process are you certified in?  What thicknesses are you certified to weld with what process and in what position and what material type?  open butt or consumable insert?  6010 or 7018?  plate or pipe?
No wonder there is so much confusion.

So just what does it mean to be a certified welder?

Welding certification means “Certification in writing that a welder has produced welds meeting prescribed standards. “
It also means that the weld was performed by using a welding procedure specification (WPS).  Prescribed standards usually means the weld met visual inspection criteria as well as other tests like x-ray, bend testing, fluorescent penetrant, or metallographic examination.  Welding certification almost always involves complying with a welding code or standard of some kind.  There are structural welding tests, pipe welding tests, aerospace welding tests, food service welding tests and more. Structural welding like you see on high rises involves compliance to the American welding Society (AWS) D1.1 structural welding code.  Pipeline welding as in “Alaska pipeline” usually involves the American Petroleum Institute (API) 1104 code book.  Pressure vessels and boilers have their own welding code book too (ASME Section IX) and so does the Aerospace industry (AWS D17).
The thing they all seem to have in common is this:
     *The welding procedure itself must first be qualified (or prequalified procedures can be purchased)
     *Each welder must pass a certification test that resembles the tests used to qualify the procedure.
     *Welders are only certified to weld within the limitations of the test they took to become a certified welder.

What does a welding certification test involve?

For pipe welding jobs, more often than not, a 6G pipe test is given.  That means the pipe is placed on a 45 degree angle and it is fixed….it cant be rolled or moved until its done.
Welding in the 6g position tests your ability to reposition your body, it tests if you can weld left handed, and it tests being able to weld in all positions, flat, horizontal, overhead, and vertical.
That’s why when you pass it, you are qualified to weld all positions.
For structural welding tests, very often a vertical (3G) and overhead (4G) test are given in either stick or flux core.
The test then has to pass visual inspection a fluorescent penetrant test, a bend test, a metallographic exam or x ray test.

Is there one single welding certification test that will certify me to weld anything?

Nope, not even close.  Different welding certification tests are given for material type, thickness, positions, etc. there are many, many possibilities of different combinations.  Fortunately, there is some overlap.
One welding test can cover many different positions and thicknesses... if chosen properly by the welding engineer .
How many different welding certification tests are there?  Just to give you an idea, the United Association of Pipefitters lists about 60 different pipe welding tests on their website…that only scratches the surface of the possible welding tests that could be given.

Can a company certify their own welders? Or do they have to use an outside agency?

A lot of people are under the misconception that a welding certification test must be administered by an outside agency in order to hold water.
That's wrong.
Many companies prefer to use outside agencies to ensure objectivity and to avoid conflict of interest but there is nothing in the welding codes to prevent companies from certifying their own welders.

Caution : It can be a complicated and confusing process if you are not familiar with welding codes and standards.

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