Del West USA Inc. (Valencia, CA) manufactures high-performance components for automotive racing engines. Its customers require 100% inspection, which contributes significantly to the company's manufacturing costs. Del West recently reduced that cost dramatically and improved the repeatability of its measurements by adopting an optically-based inspection technique for surface finish.
In auto racing, performance and reliability are the keys to success. A Formula One engine may cost a half million dollars and only have to run for a few hundred miles, but during those miles it must offer peak performance every time. The cost of failure is too high to allow anything into the engine without absolute confidence that it conforms to design specifications. Because of this, the race teams demand 100% inspection and start-to-finish documentation of all phases of the manufacturing process. Suppliers must satisfy their demand and still make a profit.