What is the A&D Industry Material Challenge?
With simplified offset norms, changes in defence procurement procedures (DPP) and easing of FDI restrictions, there is a significant curiosity and interest among the global and native original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) towards the Indian aerospace and defence industry. However, to become a manufacturing hub, one of the major challenges is the availability of raw materials.?
Major Material Groups and Applications
#Aluminium: Fuselage body and bulkheads, wing skins, engine components and fittings?
#Steel:?Cabin components, landing gears, aircraft fittings, fasteners, actuators, jet engine shafts, structural tubing, ballistic tolerant components, motor and fixing components.
#Titanium: Aircraft structural items, panels, fastening systems, fan and compressor blades in aviation; tank armours in the army; rigging equipment, shipboard cooling systems, submarine ball valves and heat exchangers in the navy.
#Tungsten:??Armour plates, high-speed armour piercing ordnance; high thermal strength machine parts, rotor/propeller blades and antivibration weights, flight control surface components such as rudders, elevators and ailerons
#Composites:??Engine and exhaust components, thermal protection shields, structures for ultra-high-speed flying objects and lightweight turbine components that require less cooling air, such as vanes, nozzles, seals and valves.
#Ceramics:??Wing skins, forward fuselage, flaperons, rudder, rear pressure bulkhead, keel beam, front fairing, upper fuselage shells, crown and side panels and structural elements of modern helicopters
#Super Alloys: Fuel nozzles, washers, bearing races, spacer sleeves, flare castings, engine vanes, bearing supports and other structural parts.
#Copper and Cupronickel Alloys: Aircraft landing gear components, bushings and bearings
The Raw Material Process
The material requirement for aerospace and defence platforms can be classified into direct and indirect materials. Direct materials are utilised to manufacture the core platform and structural elements. The indirect materials are used to create systems and subsystems that get fitted into the core platform.?
The equipment designer, depending upon design parameters, provides technical datasheets of all raw materials. These datasheets often use standardised material specifications from various trade and professional organisations. India's Department of Standardisation (DoS) is responsible for equipment standardisation activities.
A raw material supplier for aerospace and defence applications follows a robust Quality Management System (QMS) confirming to sector's stringent requirements. To become an authorised supplier of raw materials, their QMS are audited and approved by the OEM. Essential certifications include AS 9100, ISO 9001, and ISO/IEC 17025. In India, depending on the end-use of the raw material, additional approvals from the DGAQA, DGCA, DGQA, DoS, etc., may be required.
Present Status
Currently, India imports about 70% of these raw materials from China, the Republic of Congo, Russia, Brazil, Australia and the US. This kind of heavy reliance on imports limits the growth of the country's A&D industrial ecosystem. This dependence is attributable to the failure to develop a strong vendor base and the low focus on in-house R&D. India also needs material development support to overcome the demand-supply gap.?
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Some other key factors attributing to imports are minimum order quantity which prevents R&D and bridging of this technological gap. Limited testing facilities and many agencies involved in approvals are other factors.?Indian defence forces use varied platforms from significantly various countries, thus resulting in multiplicity in the standards used for different platforms creating a problem for Indian material manufacturers. Lastly, Indian suppliers face difficulties getting certified as approved sources with OEM post-equipment development.
There have been few success stories in substituting imported materials with indigenously produced materials like DMR 249 grade of shipbuilding steel and developing composite components.?
Way Forward
#DAP 2020 lays particular emphasis on domestic sourcing of military materials and tackles some of the key challenges and needs to be evolved further
#Government and manufacturers must work in close association on a long-term towards developing domestic capabilities.?
#For adopting indigenous military materials, demand-side incentives, such as minimum order guarantees and exclusive and long-term agreements, should be assured.?
#Industry players, both public and private, should work at identifying the key materials in defence that can also be used for other civilian applications.?
#Multiplicity needs to be addressed, considering overall security requirements. It should be extended across all three services wherever possible.
#User-friendly approval policies yet maintaining stringent material standards. One window facility would be a good boost and expedite the process.
#Rationalisation of the standardisation process to an all-encompassing single standardisation process for technical and functional specifications in aerospace and defence manufacturing.?
#Certification standards akin to globally accepted practices of certifying materials and not instead of products. It gives flexibility to designers to choose from a range of certified materials and eliminates the need for recertification of platforms.
#Monitoring percentage utilisation of imported raw materials by manufacturer and incentivising based on reduced application over a specified time.
#This, in turn, incentivises OEMs to validate Indian material manufacturers as certified suppliers for their platforms. Indian manufacturers can then leverage such certification to expand their footprint globally.
#Encouragement to R&D for developing alternatives and sourcing materials from substitutes.?Also, the availability of more testing facilities should be considered.