Nadcap (formerly NADCAP, the National Aerospace and Defense Contractors Accreditation Program) is a global cooperative accreditation program for aerospace engineering, defense and related industries.
The Nadcap program is administered by the Performance Review Institute (PRI). Nadcap was established in 1990 by SAE International. Nadcap's membership consists of "Prime Contractors" who coordinate with aerospace accredited Suppliers to develop industry-wide audit criteria for special processes and products. Through PRI, Nadcap provides independent certification of manufacturing processes for the industry. PRI has its headquarters in Warrendale, Pennsylvania with branch offices for Nadcap located in London, Beijing, and Nagoya.
The Nadcap program provides accreditation for special processes in the aerospace and defense industry.
These include:
Aerospace Quality Systems (AQS)Chemical Processing (CP)Coatings (CT)Composites (COMP)Conventional Machining as a Special Process (CMSP)Elastomer Seals (SEAL)Electronics (ETG)Fluids Distribution (FLU)Heat Treating (HT)Materials Testing Laboratories (MTL)Measurement & Inspection (M&I)Metallic Materials Manufacturing (MMM)Nonconventional Machining and Surface Enhancement (NMSE)Nondestructive Testing (NDT)Non Metallic Materials Manufacturing (NMMM)Non Metallic Materials Testing (NMMT)Sealants (SLT)Welding (WLD)The Nadcap program and industry
PRI schedules an audit and assigns an industry approved auditor who will conduct the audit using an industry agreed checklist. At the end of the audit, any non-conformity issues will be raised through a non-conformance report. PRI will administer and close out the non-conformance reports with the Supplier. Upon completion PRI will present the audit pack to a 'special process Task Group’ made up of members from industry who will review it and vote on its acceptability for approval.
The Nadcap Subscribers include:
309th Maintenance Wing-Hill AFBAerojet RocketdyneLeonardo HelicoptersAirbus Group - AirbusAirbus Group - Airbus Defence and SpaceAirbus Group - Airbus HelicoptersAirbus Group - Premium AEROTEC GmbHAirbus Group - SteliaLeonardo AircraftBAE Systems Military Air Solutions (MAS)BAE SystemsBall Aerospace & Technology CorporationThe Boeing CompanyBombardier Inc.COMACDefense Contract Management Agency (DCMA)Eaton, Aerospace GroupEmbraer S.A.GE AviationGE Aviation - GE Avio S.r.l.General DynamicsGeneral Dynamics - GulfstreamGKN AerospaceGKN Aerospace Sweden ABHeroux-Devtek Landing Gear Division Inc.Honeywell AerospaceIsrael Aerospace IndustriesLatécoèreLiebherr-Aerospace SASLockheed Martin CorporationLockheed Martin - Sikorsky AircraftMitsubishi Aircraft CorporationMitsubishi Heavy Industries LTDMTU Aero Engines AGNorthrop Grumman CorporationParker Aerospace GroupRaytheon CompanyRockwell Collins Inc.Rolls-RoyceSAFRAN GroupSingapore Technologies AerospaceSonacaSpirit AeroSystemsTextron Inc. - BeechcraftTextron Inc. - Bell HelicopterTextron Inc. - Cessna Aircraft CompanyTextron Inc. - Textron SystemsThalesTriumph Group Inc.United Technologies Corporation - Goodrich (UTC Aerospace)United Technologies Corporation - Hamilton Sundstrand (UTC Aerospace)United Technologies Corporation - Pratt & WhitneyUnited Technologies Corporation - Pratt & Whitney CanadaZodiac AerospaceNadcap meetings are held several times a year in different locations worldwide. For example, the 2016 meetings were held in Madrid (Spain) in February; London (United Kingdom) in June; and Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania). During these meetings there are open Task Group meetings and other workshops (with participation of Primes, Suppliers, and PRI staff). These meetings are used to discuss the program development and changes to audit criteria among other topics. Agendas and minutes are posted on the PRI website.
During the Nadcap meetings, free training classes are provided on different topics such as:
PyrometryRoot Cause Corrective Action - RCASpecial processes, such as, NDT, chemical processing, etc.Internal auditingAS/EN/JISQ 9100Problem Solving ToolsNadcap Audit Preparation – Chemical ProcessingNadcap Audit Preparation – Heat TreatingNadcap Audit Preparation – Metallic Material Testing LaboratoriesNadcap Audit Preparation – Non-Destructive TestingNadcap Audit Preparation – Welding