In Aerospace Manufacturing, “Close Enough” Isn’t Good Enough
In many industries, there’s room for adjustment.
Aerospace isn’t one of them.
When you’re manufacturing equipment that supports aerospace and defense programs, precision isn’t simply a quality goal. It’s an expectation at every stage—from design and engineering through fabrication, inspection and delivery.
As the CIT team says in the accompanying video:
You have to get it right. And you have to get it there on time.
That mindset has helped Contract Industrial Tooling grow from a small tool shop founded in 1987 into an American manufacturer supporting some of the most demanding aerospace and defense applications in the world.
Precision Starts Long Before Production
Aerospace manufacturing isn’t just about making a part or container to a drawing.
It starts with understanding what the customer is trying to accomplish.
What needs to be protected? How will the component be transported or stored? What tolerances matter? What are the handling requirements? What can go wrong—and how can the design prevent it?
That’s where CIT’s combination of design, engineering, prototyping and manufacturing becomes particularly valuable.
Rather than handing a project from one disconnected supplier to another, CIT has built significant capabilities in-house, including a fully staffed design and engineering department, tool shop, robotic welding, laser cutting and large-format 3D printing for component validation and prototypes.
The goal is simple: Solve problems before they become problems.
Experience Matters When the Stakes Are High
CIT has been manufacturing steel aerospace shipping and storage containers and shipping sleds for approximately two decades and has expanded its work to include aluminum and plastic aerospace containers. CIT has also performed work supporting the Defense Logistics Agency and other aerospace manufacturers including Rolls Royce.
That experience matters because aerospace projects rarely reward shortcuts.
Materials matter.
Welds matter.
Measurements matter.
Documentation matters.
Communication matters.
And schedules matter.
Every person involved in a program—from the office to the shop floor—plays a role in delivering the final result.
Aerospace Manufacturing Is a Team Sport
Technology is an important part of modern manufacturing, but machines alone don't create quality.
People do.
CIT's approach puts responsibility throughout the organization. Engineering has to understand the application. Project management has to anticipate issues. Manufacturing has to execute accurately. Quality processes have to verify the work. And everyone has to communicate.
That's especially important when working on government and defense-related programs where requirements can be demanding and information security has become increasingly important.
CIT has invested significantly in strengthening its cybersecurity infrastructure for this work. Purdue Manufacturing Extension Partnership reports that CIT achieved CMMC Level 1 compliance while working toward the requirements associated with NIST SP 800-171/CMMC Level 2. Purdue MEP also reported a 300% increase in CIT aerospace client sales associated with gaining new customers following its cybersecurity improvements. MEP
Privately Owned. Customer Focused.
CIT is privately owned, and that matters to how the company approaches its customers.
Decisions can be driven by the needs of the program rather than layers of corporate bureaucracy.
When something needs attention, the team can respond.
When a design can be improved, they can work on it.
When a customer has a challenge, the objective isn't simply to manufacture what's on a piece of paper. It's to understand the challenge and help solve it.
That philosophy has been part of CIT from the beginning:
Stay Customer Focused. Every Day.
Built for Work That Has to Be Right
CIT's aerospace capabilities today include steel, aluminum and plastic shipping and storage containers, supported by dedicated aerospace program management and engineering resources, robotic welding, laser cutting, prototyping and in-house tooling capabilities.
But the equipment only tells part of the story.
The real capability is the culture behind it.
Because when you're protecting valuable aerospace components—or supporting programs connected to the people who serve our country—“close enough” isn't good enough.
It has to be right.
It has to be on time.
And it has to happen again and again.
That's the CIT way.
Looking for an aerospace manufacturing partner?
CIT works with aerospace and defense organizations on specialized shipping, storage and component-container solutions—from initial concept and engineering through production.