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Issue link: https://pf.epubxp.com/i/213540
AEROSPACE PLATING "They don't need to upgrade to gold, brass or bronze fittings," Whitley says. "It's usually only the business aircraft that get that type of treatment." Think the private jet sector seems like a small niche market compared with that of larger commercial jets? Think again. 39,000 Private Jets A report by the American Statistical Association last year says there are more than 39,000 private aircraft around the world, a number far outweighing jets owned by large commercial airlines, such as Delta with 1,273 planes, United with 1,242 and American with 869. NetJets, owned by investment guru Warren Buffett, says the private aircraft industry in the U.S. employs more than 1.2 million people and adds $150 billion to the U.S. economy each year. Honeywell, which makes engines and other parts for the private aircraft industry, estimates that as many as 10,000 new private jets will be ordered over the next 10 years, meaning the industry looks stable for the foreseeable future. HighTech has been riding that wave, having been specified in 2012 to provide plating work for three major aircraft manufacturers: Gulfstream Aerospace, Dassault Falconjet and Embraer. HighTech has a 50-step finishing process that includes 17 quality assurance checks in its gold, white gold, black, copper, nickel, brass, silver, bronze, platinum and chrome lines. 18 DECEMBER 2013 — pfonline.com Quality Checks Part of the company's ongoing business strategy is a strenuous quality control system. HighTech's 50-step process includes 17 quality assurance checks. Whitley says the process includes closely monitoring chemical procurement, plating bath chemistry, equipment calibration and temperature control devices, in addition to numerous visual inspections as each part is hand-worked through its route in the HighTech facility. Those quality checks are needed because of the company's aforementioned large offering of finishes: more than 130 in gold, white gold, black, copper, nickel, brass, silver, bronze, platinum and chrome. "The most popular are the lighter colors, compared to a few years ago when gold was the standard," Whitley says. "People are getting a lot more creative in what they want." Since 2007, HighTech has used products from Uyemura for its decorative gold, satin nickel, and platinum chemistries, as well as a brass formula that remains tarnish-free for many years thanks to a high concentration of gold. Whitley says the advantage of the Uyemura platinum is that it looks like the rich white metallic everyone associates with platinum. He says the platinum chemistry from a former supplier had a slightly gray, washed-out tone. Try as they might, the HighTech technicians could never determine why it was that way, and went through several rounds of testing with the previous supplier trying various shades and chemistries. When they never could achieve the desired aesthetic, in came Uyemura, which was able to produce the desired result right after the process was installed.