Polymershapes Featured in Manufacturing Dive Analysis on Rising Aerospace-Grade Standards in Plastic

Polymershapes, a leading name in plastic fabrication, has been featured in a recent piece by Manufacturing Dive centered on the impact of aerospace-grade quality expectations in the industry.

The California-based fabricator is aligning with greater precision requirements in plastic manufacturing, such as tighter documentation and heightened traceability to match the level of accuracy of the technologies they support.

For more than 70 years, Polymershapes has partnered with clients to provide end-to-end support in creating performance-led parts and products with reliable turnaround times backed by an established supplier network.

The piece mentions that manufacturers spanning a range of industries are now adopting the same standards usually reserved for aviation and defense initiatives. As a result, suppliers are being challenged to answer louder calls for stricter process control and reliable material verification, or risk losing market share.

It frames transparent traceability not as a benefit, but as a feature of the aerospace-level standards now implemented to keep pace with the technological advancements in the sectors being served. Another core theme from the piece positions adaptability as foundational to the success of fabricators across the country, which is driving the need for implementing more robust quality systems in order to effectively meet shifting specification demands.

While not directly tied to Polymershapes, the consequences for not adhering to these higher expectations are illustrated in the case study of Ford’s 2022 recall where one defective polymer component led to 247,000 vehicles being taken off the road.

As a part of this growing operational imperative, purchasing managers from outside the plastics space are being brought in from sectors with a history of ISO standards and formalized quality frameworks.

This means simple claims from suppliers surrounding quality assurance are no longer being trusted, with far more emphasis being placed on measurable data provision and repeatable accuracy.

As fabricators still reliant upon informal, obsolete processes grapple with modernizing systems, their suitability for partnerships is under immense scrutiny. While those moving along with the tide of rising precision standards will find significantly more success.

Read the Manufacturing Dive Feature here: Aerospace-grade standards are coming to plastic. Are you ready?