Forest City Gear Achieves ITAR Registration
Illinois manufacturer of high-precision gearwork meets the standards set by the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), which sets strict guidelines for companies that manufacture applicable products, including those on the United States Munitions List (USML).
Posted: September 23, 2010
Forest City Gear (Roscoe, IL) supplies some of the world?s leading companies with high-precision gearwork. These include products for various defense sector contractors, which would be subject to the strict guidelines of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR).
This standard is designed to ?establish and maintain a procedure for identifying and complying with export authorization requirements for the sale and shipment of defense articles, the performance of defense services and the transfer of technical data? by the companies involved, pursuant to the Arms Export Control Act. Applicable products include those on the United States Munitions List (USML).
Specifically, ITAR requires that Forest City Gear maintain a strict record of all manufacturing procedures and defense articles produced, as well as visitor records and the tracking of all potentially sensitive documents such as engineering data and shipping logs. Under the guidelines, only U.S. citizens may visit the facility, where no cameras or laptops are permitted, and only citizens may work for the company, during the design, engineering, manufacture, production and handling of products and all relevant data related to defense projects. Exchange of data, especially via the Internet, is highly restricted, plus no non-citizen may access data in any way, without authorization from the State Department or a specially issued exemption. A non-citizen may also visit the plant, but only with a previously completed letter of authorization, stating they understand and comply with all relevant ITAR standards. And any non-citizen must be accompanied by a company official at all times.
Overseeing the registration process and executing all documents for Forest City Gear was company CEO Fred Young. Quality manager Joe Luy will oversee the internal process and procedure. The company supplies gears and gearwork for all types of military ordnance, as well as numerous military aircraft, vehicles, instrumentation and other defense devices. The company has also supplied gears on Jeep?s for decades, long before they became consumer items. ITAR is managed by the Department of Homeland Security, the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls and other government agencies. Only vendors listed on the approved ITAR vendor list are sent quote requests on ITAR-restricted materials and products.
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