Manufacturing
First Article Inspection Is Cheaper Than the Second Production Run
Every scrapped production lot traces back to a dimension nobody verified while verifying it was still cheap.
Verify the Print, Not Just the Part
A first article checks whether the drawing is buildable and internally consistent. Contradictory callouts and impossible tolerance stacks surface here or they surface in production.
Document the Setup, Not Only the Result
Fixture, tooling, offsets and the operator who ran it. A passing part with an undocumented setup is not repeatable, which makes it a coincidence.
- Every dimension on the print, ballooned and numbered
- Actual measured values, not pass or fail
- Equipment used for each measurement
- Signature and date
Requalify After Any Real Change
New machine, new fixture, new material lot, long production gap. Each one is a reason to run it again.
Rough math
A first article costs a few hours. A scrapped lot costs the material, the machine time, the expedite and the customer conversation.
