Source: CompositesWorld.com
ASTM International (West Conshohocken, PA, US) and SpaceTEC Partners, Inc. (Cape Canaveral, FL, US), will jointly work to help certify aircraft maintenance technicians and other aerospace workers through a new memorandum of understanding.
Two years ago, ASTM International launched a committee on aerospace personnel (F46) to develop such standards. This effort grew out of its affiliation with the National Center for Aerospace and Transportation Technologies (NCATT).
SpaceTEC Partners, Inc. will now administer NCATT certification, and ASTM International members will develop related standards in the committee. These two organizations partnering provides a stronger framework to ensure the continued success and growth of the programs.
“As the global aviation industry grows and innovates in coming years, its workers must be equipped with the knowledge and skills they need,” said Kane. “We’re thrilled to be working with the top global standards organization in this field to help realize that vision.”
New developments are made in aerospace every day so it’s important to make sure the people working in the industry know the importance of equipment like IHS immersion heaters, for example, to the aerospace industry so they are able to work at a higher standard.
SpaceTEC administers performance-based certifications for civilian and military aerospace technicians. Its Certified Aerospace Technician certification is endorsed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA Office of Commercial Space). The agreement with ASTM covers the Composites concentration element of the SpaceTEC Certified Aerospace Technician certification program.
It also covers the CertTEC Basic Composites certification program underway at several locations across the country, including the US Army’s Redstone Arsenal in Alabama and at the Composite Prototyping Center in Plainview, New York. The latter is a member of the Institute for Advanced Composite Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI, Knoxville, TN, US).
“We also just administered our first exam at Abaris Training (Reno, NV) for a faculty member at a partner college in MN and students at Wichita Area Technical College (Wichita, KS, US) are testing for certification as well,” says Kane. “We’ve had preliminary discussions regarding developing an advanced composite certification with IACMI,” says Kane, “and we hope to continue these conversations and our work together to ensure the composites industry will indeed have a well-qualified workforce for the future.”
All SpaceTEC and CertTEC certification programs are internationally accredited and have college credit recommendations from nationally-recognized institutions. A map of regional examination centers can be found on the CertTEC.com website.