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The Lure of Mil Specs and Satcom
Looking over the RF microwave horizon today, it seems inconceivable that the driving forces behind nearly everything microwave were once defense systems or satellite communications systems. In contrast, manufacturers of wireless systems are now by far the greatest consumers of microwave components. But from the first radar systems during World War II to about 1989, defense and satellite communications fueled development of new RF and microwave products. What DoD wanted, the microwave industry designed. How different the situation is today. When satcom and defense contractors reach out for microwave components, they often find that the original supplier has either been absorbed by some other company, left the defense business, or has refocused to serve the high-volume demands of wireless. Manufacturers who do agree to manufacture parts they once supplied — but long ago discontinued — often do so at a premium price. Not surprisingly, delivery times for these parts can be lengthy. The prevailing opinion over the last decade has been that the military and satcom markets are stagnant, unprofitable, and generally uninteresting compared to the dynamic, high-volume wireless environment. Instead of maintaining the core competencies required to support the military and satellite communications markets, many of the microwave component and subsystems manufacturers abandoned them to pursue opportunities in the wireless marketplace. While Merrimac actively serves the global wireless marketplace with microwave multilayer integrated circuits and Micro-Multifunction (MMFM®) Modules developed by its Multi-Mix® Microtechnology Group, the company’s RF Microwave Group is proving that the defense and aerospace markets sti determining what consumers of hi-rel and space components want and has crafted an organization focused on serving them more effectively. Not surprisingly, our research showed that the “wireless paradigm” had not yet reached satcom and hi-rel, and these products were still being delivered on time only 55 percent of the time. This makes it extremely difficult for prime contractors to consistently maintain schedules. The customers’ exacting requirements compound this problem by forcing integrators to have microwave manufacturers design parts from scratch. Combined with the comprehensive screening required for space and hi-rel applications, this produces enormous lead times and drives up costs. To help remedy this problem, Merrimac developed a program called Merrimac Space Qualified Products (MSQP), which reduces the complexity of the procurement process, reduces delivery time, and improves quality. MSQP standardizes procurement by assembling an array of products proven in hi-rel and space applications over the 30 years the company has been serving this market. The company drew on established, proven design practices, compiled and standardized the documentation and levels of screening achieved for these products, and created a set of rules that customers can follow when tailoring a specification for a certain component they want Merrimac to build. The result is that Merrimac is able to reduce cycle times and benefit from the economies of standardization and scale. By utilizing MSQP, Merrimac can draw on its library of documentation so each requirement is not started from scratch. Through continual utilization of the design, process improvements, and screening elements in MSQP, variables are reduced and product quality and reliability are improved. MSQP gives customers the choice of two methods: They can select a part from Merrimac’s standard MSQP offerings that meets their needs, or they can create a specification for a component based on the MSQP design process, qualification, and screening rules. In the first case, once Merrimac receives the request, it produces the component based on existing documentation. Since Merrimac has prequalified each family of its standard MSQP offering, the customer can save cost and reduce development time by accepting qualification or qualification-by-similarity data. If the customer chooses to build a spec around the MSQP design, process, and documentation rules, Merrimac designs the desired component utilizing existing designs whenever possible. In either case, considerable time and cost are removed from the process. The customer also has the assurance that the requested component will actually be available over the long term. To satisfy the need for the exceptionally high reliability required by space-qualified devices with 15-year operating lifetimes, Merrimac now routinely offers redundant wiring. That is, signal paths are served by two transmission lines instead of one. While the cost is greater, it is far less than adding an entire component for redundancy. The additional cost is obviously insignificant if it prevents a failure in a spacecraft that shortens its design life. The MSQP approach shrinks the procurement cycle by 50 to 60 percent for the growing number of customers who are using it. While the concept is simple, it requires an understanding of the hi-rel and space-qualification process, an array of proven product families, and equally important, a desire to dynamically serve satcom and hi-rel customers. While many microwave companies could still serve the defense and aerospace industries, seemingly fewer choose to do so. Merrimac believes these markets are as lucrative today as ever, and can best be served by applying the same attention to customer needs as is demanded today by the commercial sector. They also serve as a counterpoint to the volatility and frenetic pace of the wireless marketplace. Mason Carter is chairman and chief executive officer of Merrimac Industries, West Caldwell, NJ. He can be reached at ( | ||
