PMA what is it?

• Acronyms

PMA = Parts Manufacturer Approval
FAA = Federal Aviation Administration
OEM = Original Equipment Manufacturer

• PMA: An approval from the FAA

PMA is the certificate given by the FAA to manufacture and sell replacement parts. This FAA Approval allows a qualified manufacturer, who is not the original type certificate holder, to design and manufacture aircraft parts. To achieve certification, PMA manufacturers must demonstrate to the FAA that a part is the same in all respects to a design in a type-certificated product or, through test and computation, that the part is the same as, or better than the one it seeks to replace.

• PMA parts are cheaper and often better designed than an OEM

Thanks to PMA parts the market was open increasing competition. As the monopoly of OEM manufacturers is weakened, prices are falling. Indeed, PMA parts are cheaper than OEM parts, with equal or better performances.

• PMA and OEM: Similar Approval Procedures

An OEM is subject to the same regulations and procedures to have its equipment validated by the FAA. Therefore, validation tests, controls and procedures are exactly the same for OEMs as for PMA.

PMA: What is guarantee?

• PMA approval is a two-steps process

PMA is a combined design and production approval for modification and replacement parts. These two approvals guarantee that every part coming out of production meets FAA regulations.

• Design approval

First, the PMA applicant must prove to the FAA that it has a safe design. The design approval phase of PMA certifies that a replacement or modification article complies with the airworthiness standards. The applicant shows this compliance through tests until the part is said identical to the article design on a type-certificated part.

• Production approval

The second step in the application process is to seek FAA approval of production. It is granted when the FAA is sure that the system will not permit parts to leave the system until they have been verified to meet the requirements of the approved design.

PMA vs OEM: who’s the best?

• PMA parts make prices fall

Even if PMA parts represent a tiny share of the world’s spare parts market, their presence is known to have a strong coercive effect on the higher prices charged for OEM equivalents. Indeed, PMA parts cost around 30 to 50 % less.

• PMA: An undeserved bad reputation

Many professionals still believe that PMA parts are just not as good as OEM parts. As a result, they are refusing to use PMA parts if OEM parts are available. But the fact is that both must go through the same rigorous approval and quality control processes.

• How to choose a PMA manufacturer?

With so many PMA manufacturers, it could be difficult to find the best price-quality ratio on the market. KRISTAL.aero helps to do it. Don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any question.

• What do PMA manufacturers have to say?

"Lots of the OEMs like to say that PMA parts are not equivalent to the OEM design. That’s an accurate statement, they’re not. In almost all cases they’re superior to the OEM’s." John Wicht, Project Manager at Rapco Inc supports his claim by explaining that PMA manufacturers have the benefit of analyzing the performance of the OEM parts, then focusing on improving that part. The manufacture of PMA parts has also involved both revised technological processes and the use of new materials. John Witch continues by saying that “the regulations state that a PMA part must be equal to or better than the OEM equivalent, but the FAA Aircraft Certifications Office will not accept an “equal to”. If you can’t definitively demonstrate that your part will exceed the performance of the OEM part, you will not have the approval.”

Source: Aviation today and Aviation pros

RAPCO’s case: “Better products at a better price”

RAPCO’s case: “All our customers have experienced the difference between RAPCO and the big OEM’s. We are faster, flexible, easier to deal with, and less expensive. They’re the opposite. The only similarity is that both products are installed with FAA-PMA installation authority. The OEM’s only get their PMA because those parts were installed during the manufacturing of the aircraft. Rapco earned their PMA by proving performance with hundreds of stops on a dynamometer and a strict FAA mandated flight schedule. Our parts exceed OEM performance standard and airworthiness requirements. The next time you need replacement parts, go with the best, not the biggest.”.
Source: Rapco Inc.

FAA comparative test on batteries: PMA vs OEM

MARPA: "The FAA recently revealed the results of FAA testing on OEM and PMA battery cells. The FAA found that mixed OEM and PMA battery cells are just as safe and effective as original configuration batteries that are wholly composed of OEM cells.

This study was made because of the statement of an OEM, saying that the mixing of battery cells is not an acceptable practice because of possible differences in capacities due to different designs, storage, and use. The FAA study found that this allegation was not accurate. The FAA’s findings are especially pertinent in the face of marketing statements made by some OEM battery manufacturers, who claim that the replacement of individual OEM cells with PMA approved cells leads to reduced battery performance or potential safety issues from cell mixing.

The testing by the FAA Tech Center compared two configurations of Saft 4078-7 batteries. One configuration consisted of all OEM cells. The other configuration was half OEM cells and half PMA approved replacement cells."

• This table shows a summary of the testing:

	Initial Rated Capacity	Rated Capacity at 122F	Repeated Rated Capacity	Induced Destructive overcharge
OEM	44.7 Ah	45.0 Ah	45.3 Ah	No flame or explosion
PMA	45.7 Ah	46.3 Ah	48.2 Ah	No flame or explosion

 

Steve Summer, FAA, Intermixing of Cells in Nickel-Cadmium Batteries

Source : Blog MARPA (Modification And Replacement Part Association)