Military power supplies must operate on demand in harsh environments where downtime cannot be tolerated, and reliability is non-negotiable. One of the best and most proven methodologies for manufacturers to increase product reliability and reduce cost is removing unnecessary complexity and variation in the manufacturing process.
Vertical integration achieves this goal by flattening the supply chain and reducing complexity. Manufacturers committed to vertical integration will search for opportunities to bring processes in-house whenever strategically feasible for the business. This includes metal fabrication and machining.
Processes required to manufacture enclosures, heatsinks, and other metal parts of a power supply are critical to the functionality and reliability of the finished unit. These metal components play several essential roles, including:
Numerous benefits stem from having a metal shop integrated into a defense electronics manufacturing environment. Even though machining and fabrication processes share almost no technical similarities to electronics manufacturing, the benefits of performing these processes together on-premise can be substantial. It is worth noting that some of the greatest advantages are realized in an organization that also performs design and development activities on-site. Build-to-print shops that specialize in specific commodities may not fully discover some of these benefits.
There is a tremendous amount of flexibility and agility that comes from having machining and fabrication processes in-house. The reliance on outside vendors is reduced, and product flow can be fully controlled to meet customer delivery expectations.
Keeping machining and fabrication in the same facility as the rest of the manufacturing process also reduces transit time. Design changes can be enacted quickly, and configuration management can be more easily maintained when using one shared system. Likewise, product quality can be more easily controlled, and downstream impacts of quality issues can be contained more quickly. The complexity of traceability can also be reduced when utilizing one quality management system across all processes used to produce the final product. There is also a reduced security risk by keeping technical data required to manufacture metal parts contained to one organization.
If an organization incorporates design and development with the manufacturing process, the benefits of vertical integration are even more pronounced. The design team is afforded the ability to work directly with the machinists and process engineers responsible for the metal shop processes. This allows open dialog and feedback to be readily communicated. Designs will naturally tend toward greater manufacturability. The design team is motivated to enhance ease of manufacturability wherever possible since their organization directly benefits from the cost savings that follow. Furthermore, an in-house metal shop can foster a competitive edge by allowing the design team to rapidly prototype new designs very quickly. This flexibility enables organizations, like ACT, to respond quickly to changing program requirements, urgent field needs, and accelerated production schedules.
ACT’s metal shop performs a wide variety of processes that support our power supply manufacturing and design teams.
Military designs often have unique challenges that must be overcome to ensure the durability of the final product. At ACT, we support a wide product mix for new production. We also support repairs and upgrades on fielded products, regardless of age. As a result, our metal shop is equipped to support a wide variety of processes and materials.
Military electronics must be prepared to function on-demand in harsh conditions. As a result, the product requirements and processes must be precise and repeatable. Manufacturers such as ACT ensure durability through rugged enclosure design, precision fabrication, environmental testing, corrosion-resistant materials, and strict process control.
CNC machinists and programmers are required to repeatably produce parts that have challenging features such as small radii, deep pockets, thin walls, and undercuts. They also must be prepared to run these parts at low quantities to support small orders and units returned from the field for upgrades. The low quantities place a high emphasis on accurate setups and strong configuration management processes.
Defense customers see tremendous value and benefits working with vertically integrated manufacturers such as ACT. Risk management is critical in the defense industry. Both supply chain and product risks must be understood and mitigated. Vertical integration greatly simplifies the risk profile and eliminates many variables.
By keeping our processes under one roof, ACT has a reduced dependency on outside suppliers. We’re able to manage our inventory more closely and eliminate waste. As a result of our in-house processes, our inventory contains a higher proportion of raw materials than completed parts. This reduces inventory risk because excess raw material can be used across a wide variety of parts and applications, whereas completed parts are typically limited to specific end-use items. This also allows us greater flexibility and the ability to quickly respond to urgent orders and customer needs by leveraging on-hand raw material and our in-house capabilities.
At ACT, we focus on leveraging the advantages of our vertical integration to achieve better outcomes for our customers. We can execute prototypes and design iterations faster than our competition. Programs can quickly progress from quote to award to design milestones. Our team reduces risk and cost by controlling critical processes in-house, independent of external vendors. Our design, quality, and process control teams can directly monitor critical manufacturing processes and implement process improvements directly into the value stream. The result is an agile team that can reliably produce parts that meet or exceed customer expectations.
These manufacturing advantages directly translate into benefits for defense programs. Vertical integration has been a part of ACT’s DNA since our founding in 1981. The team of engineers who began ACT was passionate about all aspects of the design and manufacturing processes required to create superior power solutions for our customers. When presented with the choice to perform processes in-house or outsource, ACT has consistently chosen to keep value-added critical processes in-house.
For ACT, our metal shop is more than just a fabrication and machining department; it is a strategic capability that enables the production of reliable, mission-critical military power supplies. By maintaining design, fabrication, machining, assembly, SMT, testing, and magnetic winding all under one roof, we can deliver the quality, responsiveness, and performance required for defense applications.
If your program requires rugged military power supplies, ACT is at the ready and backed by integrated design and manufacturing expertise. Contact our team to discuss your application and learn how our vertically integrated capabilities can reduce risk, accelerate development, and improve program performance.
