Aerospace Sets A High Bar

I have had the opportunity to work in several industries machining parts and programing machine tools over the course of the past 32 years. Without a doubt, machining parts for aerospace companies is the most demanding. Of course, the compensation reflects the difficulty.

The global aerospace parts manufacturing market reached $913 billion in 2023, according to Grand View Research, a market research and consulting company headquartered in San Francisco. Grand View Research also noted that the market segment is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 4.2% through 2030.

As rewarding as aerospace machining can be, however, breaking into the aerospace market is not easy.

Aerospace work is challenging for one simple reason — safety, which we all appreciate when flying. Component failures on an airplane can cause catastrophic problems. Because of the critical nature of aerospace parts, engineers subject their part designs to countless calculations, physical tests and multiple design reviews to ensure everything is right. There is little allowance for error, and every feature is tightly controlled to ensure the component functions as designed and tested.

For shops not currently in the market, even getting the opportunity to submit a quote can be a challenge. Sourcing teams in large aerospace companies are under extreme pressure to control costs while improving inventory turns and ensuring there are no stocking issues. It is a challenging role, so keep in mind that buyers have limited time to process new vendors through a bureaucratic maze.

They are also hesitant to accept the risks associated with poor quality, late deliveries or working with vendors who lack financial stability. These combined elements can make it almost impossible to get an opportunity to quote, if you can even get the opportunity to talk to someone in sourcing.

Winning the work is only the beginning. Next comes the qualification process that, when complete, demonstrates the vendor is capable of successfully manufacturing the part with no quality issues. While I’m sure most shops have been through some kind of qualification before, aerospace qualifications are on another level.

Qualifications for the aerospace industry are intense. Most machined parts require 100% dimensional inspection. That means every single dimension on the drawing will be measured, usually on a batch of parts, to demonstrate that the machining processes are repeatable and success is not a one-off event. There is no allowance for error, and one incorrect dimension on one part can sink the qualification.