Comment on FR Doc # 2011-29861

Our company provides consulting services to the plating and finishing industry as well as to DoD. Most plating and finishing companies who serve the defense industry also serve non-defense customers. Platers who provide finishing services for defense products must maintain separate finishing lines for chromated defense products as well as for non-chromated commercial products. This often imposes a significant cost while also wasting limited factory space. In addition, personnel must be trained in both processes, Quality Control procedures may be different, and regulatory and reporting requirements must also cover both processes. Wherever it is possible to bring defense product finishes into line with commercial finishes without sacrificing performance, maintaining a single process should improve production efficiency and quality.