Definition and guide to precision engineering

Precision engineering is a type of engineering which concerns the design of machines that exhibit stability and low tolerance. It is a subdiscipline of other engineering practices such as software engineering, electrical engineering, optical engineering, electronics engineering and mechanical engineering.

Overview

The modern manufacturing industry today would not be possible without precision engineering. Manual manufacturing cannot meet current demands because of the low tolerance to measurement differences and the need to remake the same detail in products consistently. Precision engineering enables both mass production and meet the demand for fine details in manufacturing.

In simple words, modern manufacturing is only made possible by precision engineering because of the precision needed to yield modern products. An example would be the precision required to manufacture a smartphone. The tiny parts inside the smartphone are manufactured with the help of modern machinery.

Advantages of precision engineering

Compared to traditional manufacturing, the use of precision engineering in modern manufacturing has a lot of advantages:

Long-life

The products created using precision tools have a longer-lasting life compared to manually manufactured products. This is because the products go through more minor wear and tear as they rarely interact with other products.

Reliability

In mass manufacturing, human error is a possibility. With precision tools, human error is eliminated mainly because the machinery requires minimal human interaction. The manufacturing process is also streamlined and made consistent compared to manual manufacturing.

Reduced cost

Precision tools allow products to be made consistently with meager chances of defects allowing production to be completed at mass. It also maintains a standard, meaning fewer inspections, reworks, and quality checks happen. All of these translates to higher profit margins.

Worker safety

In the manufacturing industry, worker safety is a big issue. As most work involves working around machines with a high risk of injury, worker safety is compromised. But with precision tools, very little human interaction is required. This has improved worker safety, allowing for smoother functioning of the manufacturing process.

Why precision engineering is important

In the modern world, humankind wouldn’t be anywhere where it is now without precision engineering. In the past century, the manufacturing industry has grown exponentially because of precision engineering. In the past, manual manufacturing could only keep up so much. But with the invention of precision technology, modern machinery can keep up with the growing demands of humankind.

Only precision engineering can handle the demand of mass production with finer details. This is because the machinery developed from precision engineering are very consistent with minimal chances of error. The parts created are always up to standard, even if they require high precision to produce.

Precision engineering is the backbone of modern fields such as healthcare, electronics, transportation and others. These fields require tools that can consistently maintain a standard and human error can be a big problem. It has revolutionized these fields and is responsible for the modern world we live in.