Valence Wichita (Formerly Chrome Plus International) recently received a number of new processing approvals to support the F-16 and F-22 military aircraft programs. These additions bring the total Process Code approvals at the Kansas operating location to forty-nine unique capability approvals.

Obtaining these new approvals supports the Valence strategy to increase regional capability, provide redundant capacity and supply chain risk mitigation across our North America locations. This further expands Valence's ability to support all Lockheed Martin sub-tier supplier partners in the Central United States from the VST Central Region locations in Wichita, KS and Grove, OK (Formerly Pride Plating).

When asked about the significance of these approvals, General Manager Marcus Wagoner commented, “Valence Wichita has worked hard to obtain these additional approvals and now has approvals for all Lockheed Martin programs. The team is excited to expand our support of the defense industry and to allow our customers to have a one-stop shop to complete all their processing needs with best in class quality and lead times.”

Valence Surface Technologies is the largest independent provider of metal finishing to the commercial aviation, defense, space and medical market verticals, with OEM approved painting, plating and coating capabilities throughout the United States. Valence is headquartered in Los Angeles, California, and is sponsored by equity investors ATL Partners and BCI; the British Columbia Investment Management Company.

Addendum - New Approvals Obtained

Lockheed Martin F-16 approvals:

-(242B) FPS-1004 Fuel tank coating

-(160) NDTS-1500 / NDTS-1501 Hardness testing

-(161) NDTS-1500 / NDTS-1502 Conductivity testing

-(110B) NDTS-1101 Penetrant inspection

-(110C1) NDTS-1101 Prepenetrant Etch of Aluminum

-(110C2) NDTS-1101 Prepenetrant Etch of Titanium

Lockheed Martin F-22 approvals:

-(164) 5PTPCG09 Appendix A Hardness testing

-(165) 5PTPCG09 Appendix B Conductivity testing

-(166) 5PTPTL19 Hardness/Conductivity of Aluminum

-(112) 5PTPCL02 Penetrant inspection

-(146) 5PTPCG06 Penetrant inspection

-(146B1) 5PTPGG01 Prepenetrant etch of aluminum

-(146B5) 5PTPGL01 Prepenetrant etch of titanium

-(146B6) 5PTPGL03 Prepenetrant etch of aluminum

Boeing approval:

-MIL-DTL-5541 Type II Class 3 chem film