Continuing support for aging ATE through remanufacturing engineering

The government has a long list of aging weapon systems which are projected to remain in service for many more years. Accordingly, the test equipment used to support those weapon systems must also be maintained for that time period. However, much of this test equipment is rapidly becoming unsupportable. Money is rarely available to fund a complete replacement of the test equipment. Solutions to individual maintenance problems are often neglected until support is in crisis, and then are further delayed by cumbersome budgeting and contracting processes. Robins air force base and Honeywell have attempted to address these types of problems for the long-term support of three distinct automatic test equipment (ATE) stations through the contractual establishment of remanufacturing engineering services. This paper examines the structure and goals of the Honeywell corporate contract and its implications for the continuing support of aging ATE.