Thales Avionics SAS is a subsidiary of the Thales group that manufactures airborne equipment, probes, on-board instruments and computers fitted on a large number of aircraft. Upon receipt of the Nickel-plated parts made from UZ39Pb2 brass, the company located in Vendôme (Loir-et-Cher, France) which outsources work to many local subcontractors had doubts regarding the conformity of the surface treatment performed: a hard chromium plating with a consistent thickness of 10 μm. “We did not have the resources to check the proper thickness of the hard chromium plating, however despite our subcontractor’s assurances, we had serious concerns regarding one batch of parts, explained Olivier Thomas, Industrial Method Technician at Thales Avionics SAS. To dispel these doubts, we called on the experts at Cetim with whom we had the pleasure to work during many training courses and whose expertise and responsiveness we greatly appreciate.”
Rapid response to an emergency
“As the parts had to be quickly delivered to a customer, we went directly to Cetim with five washer samples and thirty already assembled parts, added Aymeric Lalloz, another Method Technician working on this matter. Cetim’s experts sprang into action to respond to our emergency and all measurements were performed in our presence in a single morning.” The thicknesses were measured by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry on matt and glossy parts and the subcontractor’s measurement method was analysed. The measurements exhibited that: “the thicknesses were non-consistent and below the values stipulated in the specifications, stated Olivier Thomas. We were therefore able to inform our subcontractor which immediately carried out a conforming treatment on a new batch of parts so as not to affect the production times of our equipment.”
