Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai

Mumbai, Aug 18: TCR Engineering Services and its Vadodara-based subsidiary TCR Advanced Engineering have secured Nadcap accreditation for materials testing, a significant development that could help Indian small and medium-sized manufacturers strengthen their credentials and gain wider access to the global aerospace, defence and space supply chain.

Nadcap, administered by the US-based Performance Review Institute (PRI), is a globally recognised accreditation programme for critical processes and product-related services in the aerospace and defence industries. Leading aerospace companies use Nadcap accreditation as an important supplier-quality benchmark, with the programme designed to reduce multiple customer audits, strengthen process controls and improve access to major original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).

TCR Engineering received Nadcap AC7101 accreditation for Materials Testing in 2026 under PRI certificate 29415245997, valid until May 31, 2027. TCR Advanced Engineering, its Vadodara arm, holds a separate AC7101 accreditation under PRI certificate 29227245998, also valid until May 31, 2027.

The Vadodara facility has also been listed on the Nadcap Qualified Manufacturers List (QML) for Materials Testing Laboratories. According to TCR Advanced Engineering, the accreditation covers four audit-criteria areas under AC7101, including mechanical testing and metallography and microindentation hardness.

Why the accreditation matters

For India's growing aerospace manufacturing ecosystem, the significance of Nadcap extends beyond the laboratory itself. Aerospace components require extensive verification of material properties, heat-treatment results, metallurgical characteristics and mechanical performance before they can enter critical programmes.

Nadcap accreditation gives suppliers access to testing that is independently audited against aerospace-specific requirements. This can make it easier for smaller Indian manufacturers to demonstrate compliance to global customers without depending on overseas testing facilities.

TCR Advanced Engineering said the availability of an accredited Indian laboratory can reduce dependence on laboratories in countries such as the UK, Singapore and the US, potentially shortening qualification cycles and reducing international shipping, retesting and compliance costs.

The development is particularly relevant as Indian aerospace manufacturing expands through domestic programmes and deeper participation in international supply chains.

Support for MSMEs

Small and medium-sized aerospace component manufacturers often face a major challenge in entering global supply chains: proving that their materials, processes and finished components consistently meet the stringent standards demanded by OEMs and Tier-1 suppliers.

A Nadcap-accredited testing facility in India provides such manufacturers with a domestic route for obtaining internationally recognised test evidence.

Rather than sending samples overseas for every qualification or verification requirement, suppliers can access accredited testing within India. This can help reduce turnaround times, logistics complexity and costs while giving overseas customers greater confidence in the reliability of test data.

Nadcap itself describes the accreditation as a mark of compliance with rigorous aerospace requirements and says it can enhance customer confidence, strengthen internal quality systems and open opportunities with major OEMs.

What TCR can test

Under its materials-testing capability, TCR provides mechanical, chemical, metallurgical, corrosion, fatigue and fracture-toughness testing, among other services. Its Nadcap-accredited capability also supports heat-treatment verification for aerospace applications.

Heat-treatment verification is particularly important for aerospace components because thermal processing can alter hardness, microstructure, grain size, case depth, retained austenite and mechanical properties.

TCR said heat treaters can submit samples to its laboratories and receive Nadcap-accepted test reports covering these parameters. The company clarified that this service is verification testing and does not itself involve operating heat-treatment furnaces.

The TCR group now has Nadcap AC7101 Materials Testing capability at its NABL-accredited laboratories in Navi Mumbai and Vadodara.

Aerospace and defence ecosystem

The accreditation is expected to support India's aerospace, defence and space ecosystem, where materials testing is critical to component qualification and long-term reliability.

TCR says it has served organisations including ISRO, DRDO, HAL, MIDHANI and Bharat Forge. It has also undertaken testing associated with rocket-motor casing hardware for the Chandrayaan-3 programme.

The company has operated since 1973 and describes itself as an independent materials-testing, non-destructive testing and asset-integrity group. It currently has NABL ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation, with its principal laboratory's current scope covering 1,483 items.

TCR's NABL accreditation is valid from March 3, 2026, to March 2, 2030. As NABL participates in the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation Mutual Recognition Arrangement (ILAC MRA), TCR says its accredited reports can be accepted across more than 90 economies through reciprocal recognition arrangements.

A domestic testing base for global programmes

The Nadcap accreditation comes as India seeks to deepen its role in global aerospace manufacturing. For Indian MSMEs, the immediate benefit is not that Nadcap certification automatically qualifies them as aerospace suppliers, but that it strengthens one of the critical links in the qualification chain — independently verified materials and process data.

Aerospace OEMs and Tier-1 suppliers operate under stringent supplier-approval systems, and Nadcap is one of the industry-recognised mechanisms used for critical processes and services. A capable domestic testing ecosystem can therefore help Indian component manufacturers meet those requirements more efficiently.

TCR Advanced Engineering said its Vadodara location is also strategically positioned to support aerospace and defence activity in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, Coimbatore and the National Capital Region, as well as the aerospace ecosystem developing around the Tata-Airbus C-295 programme.

The development consequently gives Indian MSMEs another piece of the infrastructure needed to move from supplying domestic programmes to competing for business in the international aerospace supply chain.