The aerospace industry is defined by precision. From manufacturing tolerances on the smallest bolt to the aerodynamic properties of the entire aircraft itself, every detail to the thousandth of an inch matters.

Central to the theme of aerospace part manufacturing precision is traceability of each part. In order for aerospace OEMs such as Boeing, Lockheed, AirBus, SpaceX, and NASA to assemble parts for planes, rockets, and sattelites, they must have the ability to extract several pieces of information from each part such as: Part Number, Manufacturer Number, Serial Number, CAGE Code, Date of Manufacturing, and more.

The marking identification requirements for each aerospace part is called out on the print/drawing and will specify: marking location, marking depth, marking method, character height, and governing specification such as AS478-15, MIL-STD-130, or BAC 5307. The task of properly engraving, etching, marking, or identifying each part is only reserved for the most qualified, certified, and audited facilities such as Universal Marking, Inc.