Compliance Testing – Trends and Developments
Compliance testing – Trends and Developments
By David Wilson, Director of Aerospace and Defence, TÜV Product Service Ltd
Published: January 2008 - World Defence Systems
The background
Demonstration Trials have always been common in the defence industry, not only to prove the systems or platforms in service, but also to measure their performance. A lot of time and money used to be spent gathering information and the knowledge gained over the years has been put to good use finding its way into many industry test standards. Laboratory testing was also used extensively as a means of proving that a product or sub assembly was fit for service. The test data for product testing was usually derived either from a Standard that was based on real measurements, or occasionally from actual trial data.
Pressures on time and cost have had a significant effect on the amount of testing that is performed today when compared to previous decades. System modelling coupled with knowledge of the performance of similar products is often used as a basis for demonstrating compliance. The process of balancing cost, risk and what you know about a product, against the pragmatic approach of testing is a good thing. For testing to be of value, the measurements and trials that underpin the Standards, need to be continually validated and improved to incorporate the latest platforms and technologies. Modern defence standards include many ‘near true life’ simulations which will allow designers to become more reliant on testing as a means adding certainty to the compliance process.
COTS - the Holy Grail
The decision to use Commercial Off-the-Shelf (COTS) products in military applications was made to reduce development costs, lead times and harness the latest technologies.
The decision was made in the 1980’s at a time of spiralling costs, in-service technology obsolescence and delayed programmes. In the right application, COTS equipment is ideally suited and there are some high-quality, reliable COTS products in service. This has been a credit to designers who have fully considered the intended operating environments when incorporating COTS into their solutions.
The poor performance of some early COTS equipment in extreme environments however has not been a surprise, since the original design margins were never good enough to operate at some extremes seen in service.
COTS equipment is here to stay however and advances in technology will reach the front-line quickly, benefiting service personnel who are well-trained to adapt to the latest technology. New suppliers of high technology equipment have also entered the defence market by adapting existing and designing new products to meet tough service life. COTS products are now able to survive the harshest of environments and this will continue.
Some are questioning the original idea of ‘COTS Fits All’ in the light of early obsolescence and ‘through life costs’ that are now available, which was a result of the original decision to buy COTS equipment. For equipment that has a long service life the problem of retaining spares may see a return to some bespoke product design as advocated in the US.
Learning the lessons
The trials and testing business is constantly challenged by the same problems year on year, affecting how independent test houses respond commercially and deliver their services.
These include:
- Duplication of requirements, resulting in too much testing
- Unrealistic tests or test levels that either significantly under or over test a product
- Requests for testing where levels, durations and limits are not specified or known by the client
- Clients continually moving the start date
- Samples that arrive for test differing significantly from expectation
- Samples arriving incomplete, unfinished or dead on arrival
- Engineers sent by clients with no idea of how to make their sample work if there is a problem
- Samples that continually fail tests, requiring many modifications
From a test house perspective, client problems are not good for business. Sudden gaps in production schedules and peaks in demand as lost time is made up, results in prices that reflect this variation in productivity.
It is not good for customers either. Qualification testing occurs at the end of the production cycle, where both money and time is short. When a test house is unable to react to delays, works fixed hours or has insufficient scope and capacity, the additional subcontracting and time involved can lead to further delays which are always expensive.
Rising to the challenge
The demands from defence and aerospace clients to provide faster quotations, better prices, shorter lead times, flexible working and shorter report times have made TÜV Product Service Ltd rethink its business model. In 2005 we built a 5000m² ‘test factory’ in Hampshire, United Kingdom. With help from Bath University we have been able to incorporate best practice from the manufacturing sector into the design and operation of the new facility. The design and layout of the factory focused on increasing through-put and reducing set-up times. It was possible to reorganise ourselves to work in a completely paperless office. Our business processes have changed to facilitate greater operational flexibility with a ‘shift working on demand’ service and culturally, the company has become more market focused. To sustain these changes the company has invested heavily in a continuous improvement program. Some early benefits that our clients have seen is the improvement in report lead times. In what has always been a problem for testing businesses, our report lead times now average fewer than ten days from completion of testing. In some test areas, we have managed to reduce this to as little as 48 hours, which will be the benchmark for all our reporting in future.
Invest in the supply chain
To make compliance testing costs even more competitive in the defence and aerospace industries, there needs to be a fundamental change in the relationship between the customer and service provider. Leaders in the automotive industry have made supply chain management key to their success and achieve year-on-year cost reductions, resulting in lower prices for their consumers.
A recent initiative by the Society of British Aerospace Companies (SBAC) called ‘Supply Chains for the 21st Century’ offered some valuable insight into the changes required. It highlights that the supply chain does not contain just suppliers of material and hardware. Service providers were a valuable part of this chain too.
It is vital for everyone involved in the supply chain, especially those on the critical delivery path, to be drawn into the development and production process and to meet regularly. Primes need to take the lead in this process.
Competitive pricing can only be achieved if both parties understand the cost drivers and jointly agree on methods to reduce them. The commodity buying proposition of opting for the ‘cheapest of three quotes’ cannot be applied to supply chain management if you are expecting year on year cost reductions.
TÜV Product Service Ltd - Your Supply Chain Partner
Compliance issues occur throughout the acquisition process of a product. TÜV Product Service Ltd recognises the benefits of working with customers’ supply chains.
TÜV Product Service Ltd has had considerable success working with customers on every step of the acquisition process offering:
Bid:
- Requirements management identifying the most cost effective compliance solution
- Specialist support during the bidding process, as part of your bid team
- Highlighting cost drivers and risks in the compliance process
- Fixed prices for compliance work, to eliminate cost surprises at the end of the programme
- Agreement on key deliverables
Product development
- Design advice affecting compliance
- Test plans and development of test methods
- Shared production schedules to provide early visibility of capacity and potential delays
- Assessment of existing COTS/MOTS equipment compliance against contract requirements by ‘Gap Analysis’
Testing:
- One stop compliance solution, with extensive EMC, Environmental and Telecommunication test facilities all under one roof.
- A trusted international test and certification business with modern, well equipped test facilities in Europe, USA and the Far East.
- Regular updates of the project progress with dedicated project managers who understand client needs.
- Draft reports in less than 10 working days from test completion.
Knowledge Transfer:
- Bespoke training on compliance, offering training courses in EMC, Environmental Simulation, RADHAZ, and CE marking
The benefits of being on time, ready for test and passing first time are significant and enable price reductions and improve service delivery. TÜV Product Service Ltd is committed to making supply chains work.
