Boeing Technical Journal
Advancing Environmental Technology with
IAEG and our Competitors
*Branton, Jennifer
Abstract – The international Aerospace Environmental
Group (IAEG), established in 2011, is an international
organization that focuses on environmental issues and
regulations within our industry. Boeing is one of the founding
members of this organization along with eleven other industry
leaders. With the ever-increasing number of regulations coming
out of ECHA in the EU and other countries such as China,
Korea, South Africa, and Australia, there was a large need to
have a global organization representing our industry while
focusing on the myriad of laws and regulations impacting
health and the environment. This group seeks to drive continual
improvement in the processes used by the aerospace industry,
thereby delivering consistently high quality products and
regulatory compliance with reduced environmental impacts.
Working Group 2 (WG2) of IAEG focuses on replacement
technologies for hazardous materials. This paper reviews the
replacement technology efforts of WG2 and the new
development technologies that were kicked-off in 2017. It will
discuss the initial five technology projects that are underway
and the different approaches being taken by the various
projects as well as the advantages to Boeing and the challenges
we will face collaborating with our suppliers and competitors.
Index Terms – Environment, Regulation, IAEG, EHS, EChA,
REACh
I. INTRODUCTION
The Environmental Team within Chemical Technology,
Boeing Research & Technology focuses on material
replacement technology needs driven by impending
regulations. Chemical regulations can originate from any
number of countries that are implementing new policies.
However, many of the regulations that impact the Aerospace
Industry’s use of certain substances are initially brought
forth by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) or the US
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Copyright ©2016 Boeing. All rights reserved.
One of the European Union regulations administered by
ECHA is REACh (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization
and restriction of Chemicals). Companies that manufacture
or import certain substances into Europe are required to
register with ECHA, and collect and report information on
substances imported or used above one metric ton per year.
ECHA evaluates the information that is submitted by
companies and assesses the risk to human health and the
environment. A substance may be identified as a substance
of very high concern (SVHC) if it is carcinogenic,
mutagenic, toxic for reproduction, or persistent or
bioaccumulative and toxic. Materials that are labelled as
SVHC may become subject to authorization under the
REACh regulation for continued use in Europe. When a
substance is placed on the Authorization list it is assigned
two dates: a last application date to apply for authorization
and a sunset date, which is the date when the substance can
no longer be used within Europe without having been
granted approval to continue use through an authorization
application.
REACh regulations do not only affect Boeing. They also
have an impact on the operations of Boeing’s Tier 1
suppliers, approved processors listed on the Approved
Process Sources D1-4426, and maintenance repair operations
that airline customers employ to service Boeing aircraft.
Essentially Boeing’s entire supply chain may be affected. (1)
II. INTERNATIONAL AEROSPACE ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP
(IAEG)
The International Aerospace Environmental Group
(IAEG) is a trade association formed by major aerospace
companies. In response to the rising number of chemical
regulations passed by the European Union and other
governing bodies, Boeing and other industry leaders founded
the IAEG. This organization focuses on the multitude of
global laws and regulations impacting health and the
environment. The founding members of this organization
include Airbus SAS, Airbus Group SE, The Boeing
Company, Bombardier Inc., Dassault Aviation, Embraer
S.A., GE Aviation, Northrup Grumman Corporation, Rolls-
 BOEING TECHNICAL JOURNAL
Royce plc, Safran S.A., United Technologies Corporation
(UTC), and Zodiac Aerospace. (2)
IAEG currently has ~50 member companies representing
more than half of the aerospace industry with a combined
annual turnover over $400 billion. Together these companies
seek to drive continual improvement in the processes used
by the aerospace industry, thereby delivering consistently
high quality products and regulatory compliance with
reduced environmental impacts. (2)
There are several working groups which have a variety of
focuses, ranging from monitoring & surveillance to reporting
and replacement technologies. In particular, Working Group
2 (WG2) focuses on Replacement Technologies and has over
40 participants representing more than 26 member
companies. (2)
The historical activities of WG2 include prioritizing the
replacement technology needs and distributing performance
requirement documents (PRD) to suppliers to request
potential replacement materials for the replacement need at
the top of the prioritization list.
The WG2 prioritization process was conducted by each
WG2 member company submitting five prioritized
replacement technology needs. Each company’s votes were
scored, and the needs with the highest priority were assigned
more points than those with lower priority. The votes and
scores of each replacement technology were tallied and
ranked.
Three PRD’s have been prepared since the team was
established. The first two PRDs garnered little to no response
from the many suppliers that were targeted. The third PRD
was distributed to suppliers in early 2016. Responses were
received from 8 of the 9 suppliers contacted. However, none
of the proposed replacement materials submitted by
suppliers met all of the requirements listed in the PRD.
In late 2015, the IAEG Executive Committee approved a
change in the IAEG Charter to allow collaborative work
between member companies under a collaborative
agreement. This was followed by a revision to the WG2
charter to define how these collaborative activities could
proceed. The years of 2016 and 2017 were dedicated to
developing the process flow for new replacement technology
efforts and establishing the initial projects’ statements of
work and collaboration agreements.
III. REPLACEMENT TECHNOLOGY PROJECTS
Five replacement technology projects were initiated in
2017. The statements of work and collaboration agreements
were prepared for these projects and required approval and
signature from all participating companies. Four of the
projects are technical exchanges where subject matter
experts from the participating companies share and exchange
data regarding what technology worked and what did not
work for that project’s material replacement efforts. The
remaining project is a research and development effort to not
only share past research experiences and results, but to also
develop new replacement materials.
The projects were defined by an approved statement of
work and are being conducted under collaboration
agreements. The IAEG legal counsel and Executive
Committee reviews the collaboration agreements and
statements of work prior to the projects being routed to the
participating companies for signatures.
A. Hard Chrome Plating
The first of the technology exchanges focuses on hard
chrome plating used by the Aerospace Industry. The
collaboration includes participants from Boeing and 6 other
industry leaders.
Chromic acid is used in the hard chrome plating process to
produce a thick hard chrome plating to be applied to steel or
other metal alloys. Hard chrome plating is applied directly to
a base metal by electrodeposition of a solution containing
chromic acid or potassium dichromate. The electrodeposition
process makes it possible to apply hard chrome plating to
parts with complex geometries. It is a cost-effective coating
which is resistant to corrosion and to wear from sliding,
fretting, and environmental conditions. (3)
Although several alternatives have been developed for
hard chrome plating, none are direct drop-in replacements.
Thus, process modifications and design changes will be
required.
The goal of this first technology exchange is to identify
environmentally compliant alternatives to hard chrome
plating. The statement of work includes exchanging
information available in the public domain as well as from
participants’ research experiences to identify alternatives for
hard chrome plating on standard parts and original
equipment manufacturer (OEM) designs.
B. Chromate Conversion Coatings
The second replacement project is focusing on conversion
coatings that provide corrosion protection and electrical
conductivity to aluminum substrates in the Aerospace
Industry. The proposed solutions will be hexavalent
chromium-free. This technology exchange includes Boeing
and ten additional companies.
The goal of this technology exchange is to review the
proposed environmentally compliant alternatives to
chromate conversion coatings and summarize performance
data provided by the participants and major suppliers. The
team will then propose next steps. As with the hard chrome
plating replacement effort, this technology exchange is
planned for a brief period and is proposed to be complete
after 5 months.
C. Bond Primer
Bond primers are used for a variety of applications and
often contain strontium chromate which has a sunset date of
January 2019. In addition to corrosion resistance, bond
primers enhance wetting capability for film adhesive contact
and improve adhesion between the substrate and adhesive.
These properties result in widespread use over many
different applications. This project’s scope will only include
applications where at least two of the participating
companies use bond primer. This replacement effort is a
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technical exchange and includes Boeing and 7 additional IV. ADVANTAGES & CHALLENGES OF COLLABORATIVE
companies. RESEARCH
This technology exchange will include information in the
As part of the REACh regulation it is necessary for all
public domain as well as member companies’ replacement
businesses in the aerospace industry that conduct business in
efforts. The deliverables of this project include identification
Europe to find replacements for the regulated hazardous
of applications and the functional requirements, exchange of
chemicals. Many of these materials pose a great challenge to
technical information regarding past replacement efforts, and
finding an alternative that performs well enough to pass the
identification of potential alternatives to current bond primer
performance requirements. Thus, these companies must all
systems.
apply for authorization to continue using the legacy materials
past their sunset dates. In order to receive authorization
D. Cadmium Plating on Industry Standard Parts
approval, the company must demonstrate that it has projects
Cadmium Plating on Industry Standard Parts is an R&D
in process to replace the material in question.
Replacement Technology effort. This replacement project
Working together on these technical challenges provides
focuses on cadmium plated fasteners and cadmium plated
several advantages to Boeing as well as its collaborators.
electrical connectors used by the Aerospace industry. There
Collaborative efforts among these companies can show that
are 8 WG2 member companies participating in this
there is an industry-wide effort to find alternatives to
replacement technology project, which includes Boeing.
hazardous materials and to be more environmentally
Cadmium functions as a sacrificial coating when it is
conscientious. Additionally, the cost savings can be
plated onto copper, aluminum, or steel substrates. A
significant for the participating companies; the collaboration
sacrificial coating corrodes before the substrate metal,
allows each of these companies to contribute a portion of the
thereby protecting it. Although some alternatives exist to
project financing rather than each individual company
cadmium plating, industry standard parts provide an
funding the entire effort independently.
additional challenge to replacement. (5)
Reaching agreement and alignment on the project
The design and manufacture of industry standard parts are
requirements by the numerous participating companies may
conducted per industry specifications. These parts may be
present a challenge. However, the project establishment
manufactured by many suppliers across different countries
process has worked well thus far and the synergy within the
and subsequently used by many different customers. Thus,
industry should reduce this risk.
no single company can change the industry design without
Boeing has been a participant with each of these projects
gaining agreement from the many other users and suppliers.
since they were initiated. Subject matter experts within
Investigating and implementing a replacement to cadmium
Boeing have been involved with each of the project teams.
plating of industry standard parts requires a united and
coordinated effort across the Aerospace Industry.
V. CONCLUSION
The output of this work will include a list of industry
standard parts that are within the scope of this project, a set Collaborative research among competitors can be difficult
of the technical, commercial and environmental and requires a careful balance of strategic sharing of
requirements of alternatives, and the resulting data produced proprietary information to advance the technology and
from the requirements testing of these alternatives. protection of proprietary information for competitive
advantage. Finding alternatives for some of the hazardous
chemicals poses a great technical challenge. This technical
E. Corrosion-inhibiting Epoxy Primers challenge justifies such a collaboration and sharing
Corrosion-inhibiting epoxy primers are used to protect proprietary information with our customers, suppliers, and
metals against oxidation. Oxidation occurs over time when competitors in order to advance the technology beyond what
metals are exposed to fluids, humidity, or dissimilar metals. any of the participating companies could do independently.
Like bond primers, epoxy primers also contain strontium We hope these initial collaborative projects will be the
chromate. This corrosion inhibitor had a sunset date of beginning of a great resource for the aerospace industry to
September, 2017, set by EChA and thus needs to be replaced overcome technical challenges and find solutions together
with an alternative (6). This challenge is being addressed for hazardous chemical replacements.
through a technology exchange project. The participating
companies include Boeing and 6 additional aerospace VI. REFERENCES
companies.
1. Regulations. (2016). European Chemicals Agency
This project team will exchange information on test
(ECHA). Retrieved 12/7/2016 from:
methods that have been used by the various team members
https://echa.europa.eu/regulations
for critical test requirements and establish a list of
fundamental key requirements for the aerospace industry. 2. International Aerospace Environmental Group
The project team will then create a list of available primer (2016). Retrieved 10/13/16 from
http://www.iaeg.com/
candidates that have the potential to meet the requirements.
3. Committee of Stainless Steel Producers. (1978).
The group will then consider expanding the scope to
Review of the Wear and Galling Characteristics
establish a test plan, and begin testing potential candidates.
of Stainless Steels. A Designers’ Handbook

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