Among the many certifications that a metalworking job shop might have for quality, sourcing, and other specifications, one certification is nearly ubiquitous among military contracts, and many jobs involving weaponry or communications: ITAR.
ITAR stands for “International Traffic in Arms Regulations” and relates to the design, manufacturing process, and sale and distribution of any of these kinds of products.
The idea behind the regulation is to protect national security by protecting information – whether that is about the specific design of a part, or access to the part itself – if you’re not a U.S. citizen, you don’t have access to the technical information that supports our military and defense systems, ranging from the design of advanced weaponry to communication and encryption software, which are considered arms under the regulations. Obviously this is of special concern to anyone doing international business, as exporters must register with the state department to be eligible for a permit to export anything that falls under the scope of the ITAR. Whether in design, manufacturing, or sales, there is a particular list of everyone who is required to register, and it can be difficult subject to sort through if any piece of the supply chain isn’t registered and certified.
At Ardel, we’ve made it a priority to make it easy for our customers who work in these areas by registering with ITAR ourselves to make the process easier for our part of the chain. It’s one way we’ve found to serve our customers in a way that many other metalworking job shops don’t. We’ve found it serves both our customers and our business by opening us up to these markets and making it easier on our customers who are already in the space to get their products approved.