SHEARLINE, the Cambridgeshire-based precision manufacturing company, has been awarded the prestigious AS9100 international quality standard. Although originally developed to standardise aerospace quality expectations on a global level, the accreditation

SHEARLINE, the Cambridgeshire-based precision manufacturing company, has been awarded the prestigious AS9100 international quality standard. Although originally developed to standardise aerospace quality expectations on a global level, the accreditation is now widely recognised by a range of other highly regulated industries - including defence, medical equipment, scientific instruments and the oil and gas sectors - so this achievement will open the door to significant new work for the company.

Don Reid, Quality Assurance Manager, commented: "It is not widely known that East Anglia has a strong aerospace and defence cluster. Many of Shearline's skills in precision engineering, prototyping and rapid manufacture are also applicable to aerospace and defence and we were doing some work in this sector.

"However, while we were working on a project with the Institute for Manufacturing (IfM) at Cambridge University it became apparent that, in order to win more work in this sector, it would be highly desirable to achieve the requirements of the AS9100 Quality Standard. It provides evidence that a company is working to stringent, consistent standards, and includes traceability requirements throughout the supply chain."

AS9100 was developed in 1985 by a team that included major OEMS, NASA, and the US Department of Defence. The idea was to agree an enhanced version of ISO 9001 to replace the U.S. Military Quality Assurance/Quality Control Standards and to provide a single standard for the aerospace supply chain. The AS9100 standard aims to reduce the need for company-specific audits."

Shearline provides total manufacturing solutions to clients across a range of sectors, as Don explains: "The audit trail is also valued within our traditional markets such as medical and scientific instruments, so everyone will benefit.