AMC1 145.A.42(b)(iii) Components    

CAA ORS9 Decision No. 1

FABRICATION OF PARTS FOR INSTALLATION

(a) The agreement of the CAA on the fabrication of parts by the approved maintenance organisation should be formalised through the approval of a detailed procedure in the Maintenance Organisation Exposition (MOE). This AMC contains principles and conditions to be taken into account for the preparation of an acceptable procedure.

(b) Fabrication, inspection, assembly and test should be clearly within the technical and procedural capability of the organisation.

(c) All necessary data to fabricate the part should be approved either by the CAA or the type certificate (TC) holder, or Part 21 design organisation approval holder, or supplemental type certificate (STC) holder.

(d) Items that are fabricated by an organisation approved under Part-145 may only be used by that organisation in the course of overhaul, maintenance, modifications, or repair of aircraft or components, performing work at its own facilities. The permission to fabricate does not constitute approval for manufacture, or to supply externally, and the parts do not qualify for CAA Form 1 certification. This prohibition also applies to the bulk transfer of surplus inventory, in that locally fabricated parts are physically segregated and excluded from any delivery certification.

(e) Fabrication of parts, modification kits, etc., for onward supply and/or sale may not be conducted by an organisation that is approved under Part-145.

(f) The data specified in (c) may include repair procedures that involve the fabrication of parts. Where the data on such parts is sufficient to facilitate fabrication, the parts may be fabricated by an organisation that is approved under Part-145. Care should be taken to ensure that the data include details of part numbering, dimensions, materials, processes, and any special manufacturing techniques, special raw material specification and/or incoming inspection requirement, and that the approved organisation has the necessary capability to fabricate those parts. That capability should be defined by way of exposition content. Where special processes or inspection procedures are defined in the approved data which are not available at the organisation, the organisation cannot fabricate the part unless the TC/STC holder gives an approved alternative.

(g) Examples of fabrication within the scope of a Part-145 approval may include but are not limited to the following:

(1) fabrication of bushes, sleeves and shims;

(2) fabrication of secondary structural elements and skin panels;

(3) fabrication of control cables;

(4) fabrication of flexible and rigid pipes;

(5) fabrication of electrical cable looms and assemblies;

(6) formed or machined sheet metal panels for repairs.

All the above-mentioned fabricated parts should be in accordance with the data provided in the overhaul or repair manuals, modification schemes and service bulletins, drawings, or should be otherwise approved by the CAA.

Note: It is not acceptable to fabricate any item to pattern unless an engineering drawing of the item is produced which includes any necessary fabrication process and which is acceptable to the CAA.

(h) Where a TC holder or an approved production organisation is prepared to make available complete data which is not referred to in the aircraft manuals or service bulletins but provides manufacturing drawings for items specified in parts lists, the fabrication of these items is not considered to be within the scope of an approval unless agreed otherwise by the CAA in accordance with a procedure specified in the exposition.

(i) Inspection and identification

Any locally fabricated part should be subject to inspection before, separately, and preferably independently from any inspection of its installation. The inspection should establish full compliance with the relevant manufacturing data, and the part should be unambiguously identified as fit for use by stating conformity to the approved data. Adequate records should be maintained of all such fabrication processes including heat treatment and final inspections. All parts, except those that do not have enough space, should carry a part number which clearly relates it to the manufacturing/inspection data. In addition to the part’s number, the organisation’s identity should be marked on the part for traceability purposes.