Aerospace Approved Suppliers — What It Takes and Why It Matters
I spent a few years working with a machine shop that was chasing aerospace supplier approval, and let me tell you, the process nearly broke us. Not because we couldn’t make good parts — we could. But the paperwork, the audits, the sheer amount of documentation required? That was a different beast entirely. So when someone asks me what it means to be an “aerospace approved supplier,” I don’t give them the Wikipedia version. I give them the honest one.
The Certifications You Need (And Why They’re Such a Pain)
AS9100 is the big one. It’s basically ISO 9001 — the general quality management standard — but with a whole extra layer of aerospace, space, and defense requirements bolted on top. Getting AS9100 certified means you’ve proven your quality management system meets aerospace-grade expectations. It’s not a rubber stamp. The audits are thorough and the auditors know what they’re looking for.
Then there’s NADCAP — the National Aerospace and Defense Contractors Accreditation Program. This is a cooperative accreditation effort across the aerospace industry, and it’s specifically aimed at special processes. Think heat treating, welding, chemical processing, non-destructive testing. If your shop does any of those, NADCAP accreditation tells your customers that you’re doing them right. The audits are rigorous, and maintaining that accreditation isn’t a one-and-done thing. You’re getting re-evaluated on a regular cycle.
Quality Control Is Not Optional
Probably should have led with this: in aerospace, quality control isn’t just important — it’s everything. Every part, every component gets inspected and tested before it ships. There’s no “close enough” when the thing you’re making goes into an aircraft flying at 35,000 feet with 200 people on board.
Traceability is a big part of this. Every finished product has to be traceable back to its raw materials. If something goes wrong — and in aviation, even tiny defects matter — you need to be able to trace exactly where that material came from, who processed it, and what happened at every step. It sounds excessive until you realize why it exists. Then it makes perfect sense.
How Aerospace Companies Pick Their Suppliers
The selection process is… thorough, to put it mildly. Potential suppliers go through detailed evaluations of their capabilities, facilities, and processes. And I’m not talking about filling out a questionnaire. I mean on-site audits where inspectors walk your floor, watch your operators, check your equipment calibration records, and ask uncomfortable questions about your process controls.
They’re verifying that you can deliver consistent quality. Not just that you made one good batch — that you can do it every single time. That distinction trips up a lot of shops that are technically capable but don’t have the systems in place to prove repeatability.
Getting Approved Is Just the Beginning
Here’s what surprised me when I first got into this world: approval isn’t the finish line. It’s the starting line. Aerospace companies monitor their approved suppliers continuously. Regular audits, performance reviews, delivery tracking — it never stops. Any deviation from expected quality or delivery standards gets flagged and addressed immediately.
You have to consistently prove you can meet schedules and specs. Fall short, and you’ll hear about it fast. Fall short repeatedly, and you’ll lose that approval. I’ve seen it happen to shops that got complacent after getting their certificate on the wall.
Technology Makes a Real Difference
CNC machining and additive manufacturing have changed what’s possible for aerospace suppliers. The precision you can achieve with modern CNC equipment is remarkable — tolerances that would have been impractical twenty years ago are routine now. Additive manufacturing is opening up new design possibilities for complex geometries that traditional machining can’t touch, or at least can’t touch economically.
On the quality side, 3D scanning and automated inspection systems have improved accuracy and speed dramatically. They reduce human error in the inspection process, which is a big deal when you’re checking hundreds of dimensions on a single part. That’s what makes this technology endearing to quality managers — it gives them confidence in the data instead of relying on hope and spot checks.
Why Suppliers Want This Approval
Despite the difficulty, there are real business reasons to pursue aerospace approval. It opens doors to long-term contracts with major aerospace companies. Those relationships tend to be stable — nobody in aerospace wants to re-qualify a new supplier if they don’t have to. Once you’re in, you’re in, as long as you keep performing.
Approved suppliers get first consideration for new projects. Your proven track record makes you the safe choice, and in aerospace, nobody gets fired for picking the safe choice. The approval process also forces continuous improvement, which honestly makes your whole operation better, not just the aerospace work.
The Hard Parts Nobody Talks About
The approval process is expensive. Full stop. You’re investing in new equipment, new software, training, documentation systems — and that’s before you pay for the audits themselves. For smaller shops, this can be a serious financial strain, and there’s no guarantee you’ll pass on the first try.
Maintaining approval requires constant vigilance. You need to stay current with changing standards, be ready for surprise audits, and continuously improve your processes. It’s demanding work. And the risk of non-compliance is real — lose your approval and you can lose a significant chunk of your revenue overnight.
The Bigger Picture: Global Supply Chains
Aerospace approved suppliers are links in a global chain. The components they produce end up in aircraft that carry people and cargo around the world. A quality failure at any point in that chain can have serious consequences — not just business consequences, but safety consequences. That’s why the standards exist, and that’s why they’re so strict.
Sustainability Is Becoming Non-Negotiable
Environmental considerations are climbing the priority list for aerospace suppliers. Eco-friendly materials, waste reduction, energy efficiency — these aren’t nice-to-haves anymore. Regulatory requirements are tightening, and the big OEMs are pushing sustainability requirements down to their supply base. Suppliers who get ahead of this curve will have an advantage. Those who don’t will find themselves scrambling to catch up.
Where This Is All Heading
The future for aerospace suppliers will be shaped by better materials, smarter manufacturing tech, and digital transformation. Digital tools for design, production, and quality control are already changing how shops operate — and cybersecurity is becoming a real concern as everything gets connected.
I also expect to see more collaborative partnerships between suppliers, OEMs, and research institutions. The problems are getting more complex, and no single company has all the answers. The suppliers who thrive will be the ones who invest in their people, their technology, and their relationships. Same as it’s always been, really — just with higher stakes and tighter tolerances.
