What NADCAP Chemical Processing Accreditation Actually Means — And Why Most Buyers Don't Know How to Verify It

Your aerospace supplier says they're NADCAP certified.

Most buyers can't tell you what that audit actually checks.

That's a problem. On flight-critical parts, the difference between an accredited chemical processor and one that just claims compliance shows up later — in corrosion, in fatigue, in a rejected lot at the prime's receiving dock. By the time it's visible, the part is already in the field, in inventory, or in someone's NCR queue.

This article goes deeper than the badge. If you qualify suppliers, write purchase specs, or sign off on first-article inspections, this is what you should be asking about.

NADCAP Chemical Processing Is Not One Audit. It's a Stack.

The Performance Review Institute (PRI) runs NADCAP on behalf of the prime contractors — Boeing, Lockheed, Raytheon, Northrop, Airbus, GE Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney, Honeywell, and others. AC7108 is the baseline audit criteria for chemical processing. It is required by most aerospace customers to be integrated with AS9100D Clause 8 (operations), and it is treated as a special process — meaning the output cannot be fully verified by downstream inspection alone, so the process itself must be controlled.

But AC7108 by itself is not what gets a supplier accredited for a specific process. The baseline checklist is paired with sub-checklists for each process scope. A few of the active ones:

• AC7108/4 — Solution analysis and testing in support of chemical processing
• AC7108/8 — Anodizing (not for metal bond)
• AC7108/9 — Electroplating and electroforming
• AC7108/10 — Electroless plating
• AC7108/11 — Conversion coating
• AC7108/12 — Standalone cleaning, descaling, passivation, and electropolishing
• AC7108/13 — Brush anodizing and plating
• AC7108/14 — Stripping of coatings (as a subcontract process)
• AC7108/15 — Pre-penetrant etch

A supplier accredited for AC7108/11 (conversion coating) is not automatically accredited for AC7108/8 (anodizing). A supplier accredited for chromic acid anodize is not necessarily accredited for sulfuric acid anodize, or for boric/sulfuric (Type I non-hexavalent chrome) — those are separate line items within the same checklist.

This matters because procurement teams often see "NADCAP CP" on a certificate and assume blanket coverage. It almost never is.

Ask for the supplier's Qualified Manufacturers List (QML). The QML is the single source of truth — it lists exactly which sub-checklists and which sub-processes the supplier is currently accredited for, the revision they were audited against, and the expiration date. If a sub-process is not on the QML, it is not NADCAP-accredited at that supplier, full stop.

What Auditors Actually Check (Past the Five-Line Version)

The original post listed five things. Here is what those five things look like when an auditor is on the floor.

1. Process Control — Beyond "We Log It"

The auditor will pull a recent traveler at random and ask the operator to walk through the entire chemical processing sequence on a specific part number. They will then verify, against the frozen process sheet:

• Bath composition (every controlled constituent, not just the headline acid)
• Bath temperature at start, during, and end of immersion
• Immersion time, with start and stop documented
• Current density (for anodize and electroplate)
• Rack-up and rack-down times
• Rinse sequence, including overflow rates and water purity
• Operator name, badge, and qualification level

NADCAP defines a frozen process as the shop traveler or work instruction that has been pre-approved by the prime contractor and cannot be changed without re-approval, repair, or MRB authority. Auditors look for evidence that the frozen process and the floor reality are the same document. Variances — even small ones — get cited.

Bath chemistry tolerance is one of the most common audit findings. Solution analysis frequency, method, and acceptance limits must match the prime contractor's specification. A processor analyzing a chromate conversion bath once per shift when the spec calls for once per work order is non-conforming, regardless of how good the results look.

2. Equipment Calibration — Traceability Is the Whole Game

Every measurement instrument tied to the process must be calibrated to NIST-traceable standards, with documented intervals and an auditable record of every calibration event.

The high-frequency targets:

• Thermocouples — including the working thermocouple in every heated tank, with documented offset checks
• Rectifiers — current and voltage output verified against an independent reference meter
• pH meters — calibrated with at least two buffer standards each day of use
• Conductivity meters — for water purity (note: AC7108 accepts water at ≤5 µS/cm conductivity, ASTM D1193 Type IV, when a spec calls for "distilled water" without a quantitative purity value)
• Thickness gauges — eddy current, X-ray fluorescence, magnetic, or beta-backscatter
• Hardness testers — for coating evaluation
• Timing devices — including process clocks at the tank

When a calibration cert is missing or expired, the auditor doesn't just cite that instrument — they cite every part that ran through any process that used it. The downstream impact of one bad pH meter can be hundreds of parts.

3. Operator Qualification — Names on Records, Not Just Initials

Every NADCAP-accredited line must have a documented operator qualification program covering:

• Initial training records, by process and sub-process
• Demonstrated proficiency, witnessed and signed
• Periodic re-qualification on a defined schedule
• A current matrix showing who is qualified for what

The operator who ran the line on a given date must be identifiable on the process record. Initials are not enough on most prime specs — the audit will trace from the traveler to the operator's qualification file.

A common finding: an operator covering a shift, qualified on Line A but running Line B. The work may be technically correct. The record is non-conforming.

4. Quality System Conformance — The Self-Audit Is the Tell

NADCAP requires the supplier to perform an effective internal self-audit before the third-party audit. Auditors review the self-audit and look for two things:

1. Did the supplier audit every element in their scope?
2. Did they actually find anything?

A self-audit that found zero non-conformances on a complex operation is a red flag. It usually means the internal audit team did not look hard enough, or did not have the technical depth to find what was there. PRI calls this out. Delinquency or weakness in corrective actions can result in the audit failing or in a reduced accreditation term.

Repeat findings from a prior audit are taken seriously. Repeat non-conformances from a failed audit can block re-accreditation.

5. Process Validation — First-Article, Periodic, and Statistical

Validation is what separates a process that worked once from a process that is under control.

• First-article approval — every new part number processed for the first time requires documented first-article inspection. The "first piece" is defined as the first time a specific part number runs through the line.
• Periodic re-validation — at intervals defined by the prime contractor's spec or by the supplier's procedure, whichever is more stringent. Coating thickness, adhesion, salt spray, hydrogen embrittlement testing as applicable.
• SPC data — bath chemistry trends, thickness distributions, reject rates. The auditor will look for evidence the supplier is using the data, not just collecting it. A control chart with a clear out-of-control point and no corrective action attached is a finding.

For independent test labs supporting chemical processing, AC7108/4 covers solution analysis and the full menu of substantiating tests:

• B03 Metallographic preparation
• B04 Microhardness testing
• B05 Salt spray testing
• B06 Water immersion / humidity testing
• B09 Taber wear testing
• B10–B12 Adhesion testing (tape, scratch/chisel, bend)
• B13 Coating weight testing
• B14–B15 Conductivity and resistivity testing
• B16 Coating thickness measurement
• B20 Porosity testing

If a supplier subcontracts any of this testing, the subcontract lab must itself be NADCAP-accredited (AC7101 for materials testing, or AC7108/4 for chemical processing support), or be approved by the prime customer for laboratory analysis.

What to Ask Your Suppliers — and What the Right Answers Sound Like

If you are qualifying a chemical processor for flight-critical hardware, the following questions filter quickly:

1. "Which AC7108 sub-checklists do you currently hold, and when does each expire?" A confident supplier names them in 30 seconds: /8, /11, /12, etc. They send you their eAuditNet QML entry without being asked.

2. "What is the date and result of your most recent NADCAP audit?" You want a closed audit with all corrective actions completed. Open NCRs or a recent failed audit warrant a conversation.

3. "For our specific process — say, Type II sulfuric acid anodize per MIL-A-8625 — show me the line item on your QML." Process-specific. If they cannot point to the exact line, they may not be accredited for what you need.

4. "Who is your prime customer base, and which primes have approved you to their own specs?" NADCAP is the floor. Many primes have their own supplemental approvals on top.

5. "Can I see a redacted first-article record for a part similar to ours?" A supplier with mature documentation will share one. A supplier who hesitates is telling you something.

6. "What does your bath solution analysis frequency look like, and who does the testing — internal lab or NADCAP-accredited subcontractor?" Listen for specifics. Specifics mean the system is real.

Why This Matters for Defense Supply Chains

The aerospace and defense supply chain is consolidating. Primes are reducing their approved supplier lists, not expanding them. They are looking for processors who can carry an audit posture across multiple programs without rework, and who can support the documentation requirements of programs operating under DFARS, ITAR, and CMMC.

A processor with a single NADCAP CP certificate, a thin scope, and a recent corrective action backlog is going to get pushed out as primes tighten their qualified supplier base.

A processor with a broad AC7108 scope, AS9100D, ITAR registration, a clean recent audit, and the depth to support first-article packages without hand-holding is going to win more of the work that matters.

BOLDX Industries

NADCAP-accredited under AC7108. AS9100D certified. ITAR-registered. Precision machining, value-added assembly, and QPL-qualified circular hermetic connectors for MIL-DTL-5015, 38999, 83723, and 26482.

Batavia, OH. U.S. owned and operated.

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If you are qualifying a chemical processor for a flight-critical program and want a walkthrough of our scope, our most recent audit posture, and how we support first-article packages, I'm reachable directly.

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