As many of you know I have a fondness for electronics born of my avionics and electronic warfare background and experience, so the subject matter herein always commands my attention, as it should for you too since so many of you either sell assemblies with electronic/electrical components in them or sell the individual electronic/electrical components themselves. In this article we’ll review: Definition of counterfeit. Who is ERAI? The data. The new Quality Standards being flowed down to supplie...

Me at home: ‘Honey, where’s the ketchup, did you finish it?’ Wife: ‘It’s in the fridge’ Me: ‘I looked, it’s not there’ The sound of pounding footsteps on a mission are heard marching to the fridge, whereupon an impressive and commanding opening swing of the door is given, the wife’s hand swivels like a whip, tip towards the now mysteriously reappeared bottle of ketchup and voila, there it is. I bow and kiss her backhand then meekishly apply the condiment. Occasionally solutions to our problems a...

Scenario: You are a distributor, and you have an MMR (Multi Mode Receiver) in your Quarantine Cage because the MRO- Maintenance Repair & Overhaul shop returned the part to you as BER- Beyond Economical Repair due to an unrepairable power supply. There is a customer who is looking for a cover whose part number is the cover for the MMR in the Q Cage. You simply remove the 10 screws to disassemble the cover from the MMR assembly, and voila, you have an AR- As Removed condition part and you’re a her...

It has been 22 years since the ATA Spec 106 was updated, and it is now at revision 2023.1. The proper and full name of this document is ATA Specification 106, Sources & Approved Parts Qualification Guidelines (herein ‘the spec’). In this article the following will be presented: Common misconceptions Interesting facts about the spec What has changed with the Form? Use of the form to comply with the ASA-100 Continuing issues with the form and specification The ASA Statement Form COMMON MISCONCEPT...

Last year the ASA recorded 41 Repeat Findings during audits. What behaviors (or lack thereof) contribute to the likelihood of new or repeat findings? I was recently in a hotel listening to the local news broadcast. An area leader was celebrating the now wide-spread availability of Narcan in the community, Narcan being the medication used to help save those who are experiencing an opioid overdose. Narcan has been very successful in bringing down the rate of deaths due to opioid overdoses. In the ...