Engineers throughout the aerospace and defense industry are under constant and increasing pressure to improve the performance of materials, reduce corrosion and wear, and reduce the cost of acquisition and lifecycle sustainment. Simultaneously, occupational and environmental safety and health regulations are driving the replacement of the common surface treatments to combat wear and corrosion. U.S. and European private companies and defense sectors are each striving to mitigate risk through compliance with EPA, OSHA, or REACH regulations. Worldwide, there remains increasing pressures to eliminate cadmium (Cd) and hexavalent chromium (sup>+6) from aerospace and industrial supply chains. Selling and maintaining U.S. weapon systems in Europe means that REACH also affects DoD and U.S. original equipment manufacturers (OEM); to this day however, Cd and Cr+6 can still be used in the U.S. with appropriate precautions.

SERDP and ESTCP support ASETSDefense Workshops to provide an opportunity for Design and Sustainment Engineers, Industrial Hygienists, Program Managers, and Government Officials to share recent developments and information on testing and implementation of sustainable chemical and process alternatives.  These Workshops include presentations and technical posters, with an emphasis on stakeholder dialog, including side meetings for detailed examination of particularly significant issues and alternatives that are moving rapidly into production.

The 7th Workshop on Sustainable Surface Engineering for Aerospace and Defense will be held at the Grand Hyatt of Denver Colorado, August 21-23, 2018. Visit www.ASETSDefense.org for links to meeting registration and hotel information. The hotel room block is extended to include dates before and after the meeting. Guest rooms within the block are secured at the Category 3/TDY rate for standard rooms, and must be secured prior to July 23, 2018 to ensure the negotiated rate. Hotel reservations made after the cut-off will be taken based on availability under the Group Name (ASETSDefense Workshop 2018) Grand Hyatt, Denver CO.

The replacement of Cd and Cr+6 in manufacturing and depot maintenance will be featured. However, talks will cover all aspects of developing, testing, and implementing alternative coatings and surface treatments, with emphasis on the practical issues of performance testing, service evaluation, and approval and implementation of alternatives. As in previous ASETSDefense Workshops, this meeting will include presentations from U.S. DoD researchers, Component Executives, OEMs, and international partners.

The following sessions are planned (the full Agenda can be found at www.asetsdefense.org):

  • Session 1: Defense Needs and Approaches, Environmental Issues
  • Session 2: Progress in Replacement at Depots and OEMs
  • Session 3: Accelerated Corrosion Testing and Tracking
  • Session 4: Corrosion and Wear Coatings
  • Session 5: Corrosion and SCC Modeling and Prediction
  • Session 6: Localized, Structural, Additive Manufacturing, and Machining
  • Session 7: Chrome-free Paint Systems and Depainting
  • Session 8: Other Topics
    • Electrochemical Machining and Waste Stream
    • Chlorinated Paraffins for Machine Fluids
    • C-COAST Corrosion Test Facility
    • Test Method Development for Coatings and Materials
    • Hybrid Anodize/Electroplating for Light Metal Components
    • Surface Active Substances and Trivalent Chromium Passivation
  • Session 9: Corrosion Control Coatings
  • Special Side Meetings

ASETSDefense 2018 has been approved by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology & Logistics (OASD-AT&L) to provide a venue for the exchange of information between DoD repair facilities, program managers, weapons system manufacturers and OEMs, research laboratories, and chemical and coating formulators concerning options, performance, and implementation of alternatives. An official approval letter from OASD-AT&L will be made available to DoD personnel upon request.