Advanced Materials and Processes

CTC engineers and scientists work to find better ways to develop and use advanced materials such as metal matrix composites, non-metals, and alloys.  CTC has production-sized equipment to develop, verify, and demonstrate processes, including casting, forging, rolling, wire drawing, semi-solid metalworking, powder metal processing, heat treating, quenching, machining, friction stir welding, and fusion welding.  CTC offers the following specific capabilities and services with regard to advanced materials and processes.

• Process Design and Development
• Integrated Process and Product Design

• Process Demonstration Factories

• Environmentally Friendly Process Technologies

• Materials Testing and Characterization

• Physical Testing and Analysis

• Technology Demonstration, Implementation, and Operation

• Failure Analysis

• Destructive/Non-Destructive Testing and Analysis

• Alloy Development

• Metal Matrix Composites

• Nanotechnologies

• Rapid Prototyping

• Rapid Tooling

• Ceramics and Polymer Composites

• Sandwich Structures

• Coatings Development and Evaluation

Manufacturing Improvement

From computer-aided logistics support to surface finishing technologies to robotics, CTC offers world-class manufacturing improvement capabilities. 

Since CTC's start-up in 1988, we have developed a number of industry-leading innovations to support America's civil-military industrial base.  The following specific manufacturing improvement capabilities and services are available to clients.

• System Modeling and Simulation
• Process Design and Development

• Manufacturing Demonstration Factories

• Clean Manufacturing Processes

• Prototype Design, Fabrication, and Testing

• Quality Management and Standards

• LEAN, Six Sigma, and 5S Principles

• Manufacturing Audits and Optimization

• Environment, Health, and Safety

• Rapid Prototyping of Components and Assemblies

• Material Processing Demonstration Factories

• Shapemaking

• Surface Finishing

• Robotics

• Controls

• Sensors

Systems Design and Analysis

CTC incorporates a design philosophy that all system and component designs consider the entire life cycle of a product.  CTC has the ability to optimize product and process design, perform rapid prototyping, and develop high-end virtual reality workstations and room-sized Computer-Aided Virtual Environments (CAVEs).  The following specific capabilities and services are available to CTC clients.

• Product and Process Design and Optimization

• Advanced Numerical/Analytical Modeling and Simulation

• Computer-Aided Design and Computer-Aided Manufacturing (CAD/CAM)

• Rapid Prototyping of Components and Assemblies

• Subscale or Full Scale Prototype Systems Including Dem/Val Testing

• Virtual Reality

• Product Performance Simulations

• Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) Demo and Implementation

• Discrete Event Simulation

• Design for Manufacturing and Assembly

Corrosion Prevention and Control

Corrosion Prevention and Control reduces clients' corrosion costs and equipment downtime.  CTC collects and analyzes statistically valid data to characterize corrosion problems, then tests, evaluates, demonstrates, and validates the most appropriate and cost-effective commercially available corrosion prevention and control solutions.  We provide corrosion sensor development, corrosion detection and monitoring, and Web-based corrosion training.  CTC offers the following specific capabilities with regard to corrosion prevention and control.

• Accelerated Corrosion Testing
• Flowing Seawater Corrosion Testing
• Corrosion Nondestructive Testing
• Life-cycle Corrosion Costing
• Corrosion, Degradation, and Reliability of MEMS (Microelectromechanical Systems)

• Corrosion Data Acquisition/Analysis

• Commercial Corrosion-Preventive Product Evaluation

• Corrosion Inhibitor Assessment

• Interactive Corrosion Training

• Design for Corrosion Prevention

• Corrosion Modeling

• Electrode Polarization Testing

• Coatings Characterization

• Corrosion Sensor Design

• Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy Testing

• Corrosion Inhibitor Application

• Materials Characterization

Automation, Controls, and Data Acquisition

CTC has extensive capabilities with system automation, controls, and data acquisition.  These capabilities are implemented throughout all types of projects within the organization.  They range from simple to very complex integration of multiple systems.  Examples vary from PC-based data acquisition and control systems to processes requiring sensors, embedded control systems, and robotics.  CTC offers the following specific capabilities with regard to automation, controls, and data acquisition.

• Robotics Applications, Tooling, and Programming

• PC, PLC and Embedded Control Systems Development

• Data Acquisition System Design and Implementation

• Sensor Selection, Integration, and Evaluation

• Process Automation and Manufacturing Workcell Design and Implementation

• Electromechanical System Testing and Evaluation

• Prototype Design, Development, and Testing

• Manufacturing Process Optimization

• Hybrid Vehicle Design, Prototyping, and Testing

• Battery Management System Development

• Balance of Plant Design, Build, and Document

• Process Tooling Design and Prototyping

• Control System Troubleshooting and Maintenance

• Printed Circuit Board Prototyping

Modeling and Simulation

In short, modeling and simulation capabilities help the U.S. military and private industry find better ways to accomplish a wide range of key tasks.  Using comprehensive computer models, CTC provides the most sophisticated analysis available and develops world-class recommendations.  CTC offers the following specific capabilities and services with regard to modeling and simulation.

• Virtual Reality Systems Demonstration, Implementation, and Operation

• Computer-Aided Design, Engineering, and Manufacturing

• Process Design and Development

• Product and Process Optimization

• Product Performance Simulation

• System Modeling and Simulation

• Discrete Event Simulation

• Modeling and Simulation Facilities

• Numerical Modeling

• Mathematical Modeling

• Material Process Behavior Modeling

• Discrete and Stochastic Models

• Integration of Commercial, Public Domain, and Custom Software

• Machine Interfaces