Today’s manufactured components are more multifaceted than ever, requiring more parts, additional updates to those parts and ever tighter tolerances. 

The quality norms of the past are being shattered by another evolution of CMM technologies arriving on the scene. The reason? Manufacturing is changing at its core. 

Recently, an automotive parts manufacturer was searching for a system to measure over 4,000 individually machined components a day. 

Quality control managers have the delicate task of verifying and guaranteeing that manufacturied parts meet customers' requirements, specifications and tolerances.

Measurement is vital to any manufacturing business, providing essential information to control processes and verify products. But older co-ordinate measuring machines (CMMs) can become bottlenecks if they fail to keep pace with changing measurement needs.

Statistical process control (SPC) charts are used in quality-focused facilities to monitor process output on a continual basis and alert process operators, managers and the support staff in real-time when the process is shifting towards an undesirable condition.

With the resurgence of manufacturing in the United States has come a high demand for flexible quality inspection systems in the production environment. 

Surfaces are designed into products to reduce friction, “store” lubricants, provide a high luster finish or be the proper texture to hold paint (but not show the actual surface of the paint). 

The need for nondestructive evaluation on large quantity production components is becoming more achievable with CT technology due to the advances in machine hardware and processing techniques over the past few years.

To choose the right 3D surface measurement tool, an engineer must carefully consider the size of the object, the speed of the scan and analysis, and a customer’s tolerance requirements.