When the Ford motor company released the Model T on October 1, 1908, the world was shaken by what was considered to be the globe’s first practical and affordable automobile. Just over a hundred years later, the average American household has an average of nearly three vehicles. In 2013 there were 7.78 million vehicles sold in the United States; that number rose to 7.91 million in 2014, ensuring that there will always be a place for automobiles in American life: here is how the industry maintains such a high standard.
Advancing the Automotive Industry
The vehicles of today are bigger, faster, and louder than those of the 20th century. With the implementation of air bags, seat belts, anti-lock break systems, and other innovations, automobiles have become increasingly complex in the same of safety and reliability. The American motor vehicle and parts manufacturing industry produced a gross output of nearly $50.3 billion in 2012; these numbers are only expected to increase as technology becomes more advanced.
Quality Testing
With so many pieces in balance, it is crucial that automotive manufacturers conduct regular quality testing for balance and reliability. Naturally, collision testing is an inevitable necessity, but there are also forms of nondestructive testing (NDT testing) that employs the use of 3D imaging software to inspect vehicles and other products. NDT testing is used in a variety of industries to help reduce the inspection costs for products and to conduct failure analysis without the need for extra costs. Much like an X-ray, these industrial 3D scanning services are able to bypass the exterior walls of vehicles to look at the inner mechanisms, allowing inspectors to determine the cause of failure at a cost that is 25-75% less than traditional inspections. Thanks to industrial NDT testing consumers can get behind the wheel of a vehicle with the confidence that can only come from long, comprehensive quality testing.
