In areas such as high-precision metalworking, accuracy is nonnegotiable. This includes the automotive industry and its suppliers, which are in crisis in Germany for several reasons. The industry is under enormous pressure to deliver products of impeccable quality while reducing operating costs (for example, by increasing process speeds).

The automotive industry’s quality assurance standards are strict, the component geometries are complex, and the demands for precision and process reliability are enormous. Fluctuations in detection, insufficient traceability to individual serial numbers or batches, and changing environmental conditions can lead to costly errors, production downtime, and customer complaints.

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