The following Quality Clauses apply to every purchase order from Specialty Plating, Inc.  If there are any questions about the content of these clauses, please contact the General Manager at (303) 733-4470 or email the buyer.

Our Quality Clauses set forth the business conduct standards to which Specialty Plating, Inc. expects its suppliers to adhere. In keeping with our values, Specialty Plating, Inc. prefers to do business with companies that share our belief in the importance of economic, social, and environmental sustainability.

Our Quality Clauses apply to all suppliers with whom Specialty Plating, Inc., its subsidiaries, and affiliates worldwide have a contractual relationship, including contractors and suppliers of goods and services.

As part of the implementation of our Quality Clauses, these principles will be incorporated into all new or renewed commercial agreements between suppliers and Specialty Plating, Inc., its subsidiaries, and affiliates worldwide.

Suppliers must be able to demonstrate compliance with Quality Clauses at the request and satisfaction of Specialty Plating, Inc. When Specialty Plating, Inc. becomes aware that a supplier is not in compliance with our Quality Clauses, the actions, or inaction, of the supplier will be reviewed, and appropriate corrective measures will be implemented.

External Provider Requirements

To become and remain an external provider to Specialty Plating, Inc. please read, acknowledge, and accept the following Specialty Plating, Inc. external provider requirements, applicable until further notice:

External providers must use external provider sources that are approved by Specialty Plating, Inc.  customers, where specified.  External providers must abide by Specialty Plating, Inc. ’s customers’ supplier approval requirements, which are identified in Specialty Plating, Inc.  Purchase Orders, or in other written statements of requirement, when applicable.

External providers must implement a Quality Management System if Specialty Plating, Inc.  deems necessary.  Suppliers will comply with all applicable laws, rules, and regulations and requirements in managing their business and in providing goods and services to Specialty Plating, Inc. Suppliers are expected to maintain compliance with all applicable environmental laws and regulations in their operations, to develop and implement plans to correct any non-compliant practices or conditions, and provide a safe work environment in compliance with local, state, federal, and international laws and to implement policies and regulations in order to minimize accidents or injuries. Suppliers will be expected to certify and demonstrate compliance hereto with the Quality Clauses at Specialty Plating, Inc.’s request.

External providers are required to notify Specialty Plating, Inc. of nonconforming processes, products, or services when discovered at external providers’ locations and in cases where product or service release to Specialty Plating, Inc.  has occurred, if applicable. Specialty Plating, Inc. Management and/or Specialty Plating, Inc. customer representative must review and disposition such nonconforming product or service according to established Specialty Plating, Inc.’s or its customer’s specifications and procedures. All nonconformance reports must accompany the product back to Specialty Plating, Inc. and parts need to be clearly labeled non-conforming.

External providers must prevent the use of counterfeit materials or parts.  Or creating counterfeit parts by deviating from print or any other method.  The Supplier shall maintain a method of commodity and item level traceability that ensures tracking of the supply chain back to the manufacturer of all material(s) being delivered.  The Suppliers traceability shall clearly identify the name and location of all the supply chain intermediaries from the manufacturer to the direct source of the material for the Supplier. The Supplier shall ensure that only new and authentic materials are used in the material deliveries.

External providers will not co-mingle different date codes or production lots, nor combine resubmitted parts with new production lots.  Parts may be submitted in one shipment provided the different date codes and lots are identified and segregated.

External providers who supply nonconforming products without the proper documentation to Specialty Plating, Inc. may have a Supplier Correction Action Request submitted and assigned to Suppliers company. Suppliers are expected to communicate how they intend to correct the immediate discrepancy as well as what they intend to do to correct the root cause of the nonconformance and prevent recurrences should a correction action be issued.  Failure to respond in a timely manner may cause delay in payment and adversely affect the supplier’s Quality Performance Rating. 

External providers of raw materials must prevent the use of raw materials containing conflict minerals per the Dodd-Frank Act, Section 1502.

External providers are required to notify Specialty Plating, Inc. of changes to processes, products, or services, including changes of their external providers, or location of manufacture and obtain Specialty Plating, Inc. ’s approval.  Additionally, changes to product design, or materials which affect form, fit, function, performance, quality, reliability, or safety shall not be implemented without written approval by Specialty Plating, Inc.

External providers are required to provide right of access by Specialty Plating, Inc.’s management, Specialty Plating, Inc. ’s customers, and regulatory authorities to the applicable areas of facilities, and to all applicable documented information, at any level of the supply chain. 

External providers are required to maintain all applicable records for a minimum retention period of 15 years.  Once the retention period has passed, hard copy records must be commercially shredded and electronic records must be deleted from active systems and electronic back-up storage.

Where Specialty Plating, Inc., or its customer, intends to perform verification at the external providers’ premises, Specialty Plating, Inc. shall state the intended verification arrangements and method of product release in the purchasing information. The Supplier shall reserve the right of entry for Specialty Plating, Inc., or our customers, representative, and regulatory agency personnel, for access to any and all facilities where work is being performed against this purchase order.  To allow inspections, surveys, or system surveillance as part of verification of conformance to the requirements.  Supplier’s denial of access may result in disqualification of future procurement with Specialty Plating, Inc. 

External providers are required to flow down to their external providers applicable requirements including Specialty Plating, Inc.’s customer requirements.  This includes but not limited to all DPAS rating, DFARS requirements, NIST 800-171 as required, and the requirement of all material to be Domestically produced.

DFARS252.225-7009 RESTRICTION ON ACQUISITION OF CERTAIN ARTICLES CONTAINING

SPECIALTY METALS APPLIES

(Reference http://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/dfars/html/current/252225.htm)

DFARS 252.204-7012 SAFEGUARDING COVERED DEFENSE INFORMATION AND CYBER

INCIDENT REPORTING APPLIES

(Referencehttp://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/dfars/html/current/252204.htm)

DFARS 252.246-7007 CONTRACTOR COUNTERFEIT ELECTRONIC PART DETECTION AND

AVOIDANCE SYSTEM APPLIES (http://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/dfars/html/current/252246.htm)

DFARS 252.246-7008 SOURCES OF ELECTRONIC PARTS

(Reference http://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/dfars/html/current/252246.htm)

External providers that are sourcing raw metal for Specialty Plating, Inc., must provide Domestic DFARs compliant material, all 6061-T651 shall be AMS-4027, 7075-T7352 shall be AMS-QQ-A-367, and 7075-T7351 shall be AMS-QQ-A-250/12.  All raw metal purchases shall provide Certification of Compliance with actual results of physical and chemical test reports every time a shipment is made to Specialty Plating, Inc.  Material must be identified by heat lot number.  Test reports must be traceable to the material supplied. Suppliers shall provide evidence of compliance to Specialty Plating, Inc., including flow down to all sub-tier suppliers, with each shipment.

External providers are to provide test specimens for design approval, inspection/verification, investigation, or auditing when indicated in the purchasing information.  Starting in 2022, annually one chemical from our most used bath will be sent out for verification purposes to the lab that we receive it from.

External providers are to ensure that persons are aware of their contribution to product or service conformity, capable, skilled, qualified, competent to perform such services and the importance of ethical behavior. We expect our suppliers to provide an equitable and safe work environment and to adhere to, among others, the following principles:

• Suppliers shall not employ anyone under the legal working age, nor condone physical or other unlawful abuse or harassment in any of their businesses;

• Suppliers shall ensure that there is no forced labor, slavery, or human trafficking within their operations and their supply chain;

• Suppliers shall judge their employees upon their abilities and not discriminate on the basis of any condition or characteristic which is protected by applicable law or regulation;

• Suppliers shall respect each employee’s right to associate with any legally sanctioned organization; and

• Work hours, wages, and benefits shall be in compliance with all applicable laws.

External providers are responsible to take Corrective Actions when Specialty Plating, Inc. or Specialty Plating, Inc.’s customers flow down corrective action requirements in cases where it is determined that external providers are responsible for the nonconformity.  Actions may be documented using Specialty Plating, Inc.’s Corrective Action forms, Specialty Plating, Inc.’s customer’s forms, or the supplier’s forms, as appropriate.  External providers are required to respond to Corrective Action requests in a timely manner.  Corrective Actions must demonstrate root cause analysis, action implementation, and verification of action effectiveness.  Should actions prove ineffective, alternate actions may be requested or external providers may be disqualified from further use.

External providers of calibration services or calibrated equipment are required to provide certificates of calibration bearing traceability to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) or other national or international standard, reporting “as found” information and “adjustment” information, as applicable, and measurement data. 

External providers of chemicals are required to provide certificates of analysis bearing traceability based on lot numbers, Safety Data Sheets with each delivery that are electronically submitted and have the appropriate hazardous warnings on the outside of the container.  Items with limited shelf life shall be marked on the item, package or container with the manufactured date, storage temperature, special handling requirements, and expiration date of the items. Items that are liquid shall be labeled in compliance with all applicable OSHA and EPA regulations, The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) and the Clean Air Act, Section 611. All identification markings shall be placed in accordance with applicable specification.

Specialty Plating, Inc. is an ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations) Registered company.  It is our duty to ensure that our customers’ ITAR-controlled items or technical data are protected.  Approved suppliers are required to formally agree to the following:

• External provider agrees to have controls in place that prevent individuals from ITAR proscribed countries (see below) from encountering Specialty Plating, Inc.  provided technical data and items.
• External provider agrees to return or shred all technical documents provided by Specialty Plating, Inc.
• External provider agrees to return all items and parts, damaged, unusable, or otherwise provided by Specialty Plating, Inc.
• Non-ITAR registered suppliers who receive technical data or items from Specialty Plating, Inc.  must confirm that they do not engage in the export of time or technical data to proscribed countries (see below).

ITAR List of Proscribed Countries:

Afghanistan
Burma
Central African Republic
Cuba
Cyprus
Democratic Republic of Congo
Eritrea
Ethiopia
Haiti
Iran
Iraq
Lebanon
Libya
Nicaragua
North Korea
People’s Republic of China
Russia
Somalia
South Sudan
Sudan
Syria
Venezuela
Zimbabwe

Pertaining to external providers of special processes (e.g., silk screen or paint.):

Specialty Plating, Inc.  requires external providers of special processes to provide evidence of process validation according to the requirements of ISO 9001:2015, 8.5.1 f or AS9100D 8.5.1.2. Evidence of validation could include a third-party registration to ISO 9001, AS9100, or similar standard that requires validation of special processes.  Alternatively, external providers of special processes may provide a letter or other evidence of process validation (e.g., from aerospace customers).  A written response attached to this letter may also be acceptable; please sign, date, and return, if desired.

Evidence of process validation must demonstrate conformity to the following requirements (excerpted from AS9100D 8.5.1.2):

The organization shall validate any processes for production and service provision where the resulting output cannot be verified by subsequent monitoring or measurement, and as a consequence, deficiencies become apparent only after the product is in use or the service has been delivered.

Validation shall demonstrate the ability of these processes to achieve planned results.

The organization shall establish arrangements for these processes including, as applicable:

1. definition of criteria for review and approval of the processes; 
2. determination of conditions to maintain the approval;
3. approval of facilities and equipment;
4. qualification of persons;
5. use of specific methods and procedures for implementation and monitoring the processes;
6. requirements for documented information (records) to be retained for 10 years.

Unless Specialty Plating, Inc.  calls out specific packaging, all orders are to be shipped in clean, dry, and protective wrappings that will afford adequate protection against corrosion, deterioration, and physical damage during shipments.  Containers (Boxes, Pallets, or Bags) shall be shipped with documentation; certifications, PO number, test data, and inspection data clearly marked.

Workmanship of material shipped against all Purchase Orders shall be free of dents, gouge, nicks, burrs, scratches, sharp edges, foreign object debris, and in cases of plating spotty, streaked, cloudy or any other evidence of poor workmanship standards that shall create a condition that renders said part unsatisfactory for its intended use.

The above terms and requirements pertain to each Specialty Plating, Inc.  Purchase Order and purchasing contract; acknowledgement and acceptance of the above terms and requirements will be evidenced by external providers’ acceptance of Specialty Plating, Inc.’s Purchase Orders or purchasing contracts.

Sincerely,

Valerie Hastings

President

Specialty Plating, Inc | Denver, CO

RLZ-003, F/1A

REV c 5/20/2024