Reverse Engineering is the process of taking something without a blueprint, computer-aided design (CAD) file, or any other documentation, and being able to recreate it. Sometimes a customer will request a replicated part without any known design record on which to base the part; even having a sample part in hand won’t tell the whole story about how it was originally designed, created, and tested.
Mercer Gasket & Shim offers versatile reverse engineering solutions to virtually recreate any part with fast turnaround time. Our highly experienced team employs 2D reverse engineering technology that can be extrapolated into 3D models, design drawings, and QA documentation to create your new part without the aid of any previous design records.
From decades of experience, Mercer Gasket & Shim has identified three major hurdles and solutions to the reverse engineering process:
- Material identification and selection – Our customer service representatives are trained to review and measure your sample parts, as well as evaluate your application, in order to recommend the best and most cost-effective materials for the new part.
- Part measurement and documentation – Complex part measurement is time-consuming and error-prone. We employ Virtek LaserQC, an automated laser inspection system that is faster and more accurate than any human measurement or design documentation. LaserQC technology performs a day’s work in a matter of minutes.
- Accurate part fabrication – Once LaserQC has gathered digital specifications on your part, the information can be used to generate code for computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) operations to create the new part. Our technically trained staff will select the appropriate machine tools, such as laser or waterjet cutting, and generate the part.
Not only will Mercer Gasket & Shim evaluate your sample parts to reverse engineer new ones, we will also deliver to you the documentation recorded by Virtek LaserQC so that you’ll have the design records on file moving forward. We also offer additional services such as tool inspections, quality control, electronic archiving, design prototyping, and new tool fabrication.
At Mercer Gasket & Shim, we leverage reverse engineering expertise every day to find solutions and help our customers get the parts they need. To learn more about our reverse engineering solutions, we encourage you to download our eBook The Challenge with Reverse Engineering or contact us today.