Working for NASA has some unique challenges that are assisted by developments in portable metrology, and the software program SpatialAnalyzer. “Everything we make is one of a kind, so we’ve got to get it right. These are billion dollar projects,” said Henry Sampler, an optical physicist for NASA Goddard in Maryland.

While there will surely be discussion of metals versus composites at the coordinate Metrology Systems Conference this year, metals may win out. Why? Because it’s the Silver Anniversary of the CMSC, well-known as the best-attended annual industry event for Coordinate Measurement Technology Professionals.

Northrop Grumman Newport News Shipbuilding is world-renowned, for the scope of its operations as the largest dry dock in the world, and for the ships it builds for the United States military. With more than 21,000 employees, having the right tools and processes are critical. And one component of process that’s changed in the past few decades is software applications.

GD&T, or Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing, has become an industry standard as well as a different way of describing tolerance. Rather than the traditional reference frame, GD&T emulates the constraints of putting something together, based on the kinds of spatial relationships of the parts. It includes symbols, rules and even vocabulary for communication among engineers.

Dr. Bob Salerno has been in the metrology industry for the past 20 years, and he’s a problem solver. In his role as a mechanical engineer and co-founder of New River Kinematics, he gets a lot of calls from clients in the aerospace and shipbuilding industries for problem solving.

First, there was the tape measure. Then, there was the theodolite used by surveyors. This is where the science of metrology began. Actually, you might go back as far as using hands to measure the height of a horse, but it begs the question—whose hands?

Who hasn’t heard of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner? It’s promoted as a quieter, more efficient aircraft, but it’s unique in other ways as well.