Q&A with Dante Molle

Chief Information OfficeratAerospace Compliance Software

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What does Aerospace Compliance Software (ACS) do for the heat-treat industry?

The goal of ACS is to streamline the process of completing and managing your pyrometry certifications — temperature uniformity survey, system accuracy testing, calibrations, thermocouple tracking, etc. It can provide near instant certifications while error-checking the certifications. This provides instant feedback for the heat treaters so they are able to proceed using their equipment with confidence or be able to more quickly address problems that the pyrometry testing may have found.

Why is pyrometry software important to the heat-treat industry?

A majority of NADCAP audit findings arises from pyrometry. A software that can automatically generate reports to the specifications that are being used can ensure that all parts of the specification are being followed, keeping equipment in compliance. Pyrometry software also allows for faster certification generation. Rather than having to record data manually or sift through hours of temperature data to determine if a uniformity survey passes, feeding the data to a software can cut down on hours of work for employees.

Why is it important to offer a wide range of specifications?

Offering a wide range of specifications allows a heat treater to be able to customize the tests conducted using ACS to their individual needs, so, not only is someone testing to an aerospace specification like AMS-2750F, but they can also test to an automotive spec like CQI-9. Additionally, users are able to test to multiple specifications simultaneously, keeping them in compliance with multiple ones. Not only are users able to test to a variety of widely used specifications, but they are able to enter their own internal specifications or procedures that may not be covered already or to tighten the requirements of something already available. If any widely available specifications are needed that are not already in the software, the ACS development team is more than happy to add additional ones upon request.

As specifications are updated, how does your software respond?

The ACS development teams works diligently to update and add specifications to the software as revisions are published or new specifications become available. Once the new specifications are in the system, they are immediately available for testing. ACS will adapt all its calculations to the new specifications once they are selected for testing.

How can ACS integrate into a heat treater’s existing operations?

ACS can easily be set up in an existing facility to streamline their pyrometry processes. Once a heat treater’s equipment is entered into ACS, tests can be conducted immediately. The ACS dashboard is easy to navigate and gives a broad overview of testing that is needed on equipment. No special hardware is needed to use ACS — the software is built to run in most web browsers as well as a PWA program on a device, so you are not restricted to Windows/iOS/Android. The cloud-based nature of ACS allows for a technician to be out on the shop floor entering data in real-time, and, once the data is submitted, the quality department will have instant access to the certifications. Data is also able to be processed without an active internet connection using ACS’s built-in offline mode. When a certification is entered offline on a device, once an active internet connection is re-established, pending certifications will be uploaded to the cloud and available to everyone.

What kind of training is needed to implement the software?

Minimal training is necessary to use the software. ACS does make a reliance on a working knowledge of the equipment used in your facility, though. Accurately encompassing the information within your facility that pertains to pyrometry is critical — processing equipment and instrument details and their relation to each other, required supplemental details, testing equipment, etc. Once the required information is in the system, data entry is streamlined for ease of use. ACS offers a knowledge base for quick reference when a user needs guidance, a highly responsive help desk for any complex issues or unique questions, and online and in-person training are also available upon request to aid in setup and to instill confidence with the use of the system. 

MORE INFOwww.atp-cal.com/acs