INSIGHTS

Quality insights for manufacturing teams

Practical guides on FAI, GD&T, CMMC, metrology, and the workflows that keep aerospace and defense suppliers shipping on time.

Press Release

GroundControl Achieves FedRAMP Moderate Equivalency

GroundControl Achieves FedRAMP Moderate Equivalency for Its Platform, Strengthening Secure Cloud Quality Software for Defense Manufacturers

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FAI

How to Actually Fill Out an AS9102: Forms 1, 2, and 3

How to complete AS9102 Forms 1, 2, and 3 for Rev C FAIRs

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FAI

What Is an FAI? FAI vs. FAIR Explained

FAI and FAIR aren’t the same thing. Here’s the difference between First Article Inspection (the process) and the FAIR (the AS9102 report).

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FAI Best Practices

Title Block Red Flags: What to Look For Before You Start Ballooning

A pre-ballooning title block checklist for AS9102 FAIRs, drawing revisions, referenced documents, approvals, and aerospace quality teams.

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Inspection Strategy

MBD Rollout Checklist for Suppliers: A Practical Implementation Guide

A step-by-step checklist for aerospace and defense suppliers adopting model-based definition workflows, with guidance on PMI readiness, CMM traceability, FAIR reporting, and phased deployment.

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Inspection Strategy

Model-Based Definition (MBD) Inspection vs 2D Ballooning: What Quality Teams Need to Know

A practical guide to how MBD inspection differs from traditional 2D drawing workflows, where CMM traceability improves FAIR quality, and what to look for in 3D PMI-driven inspection software.

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Supplier Quality

Supply Chain Inspection and Visibility for Aerospace Suppliers

How aerospace manufacturers and suppliers can improve supply chain visibility, monitor inspection compliance globally, and flag out-of-tolerance results faster.

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CMMC

CMMC 2.0 Starter Guide

A practical CMMC 2.0 overview for aerospace and defense suppliers, including levels, timeline, and readiness steps.

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FAI

Top 4 ITAR-compliant AS9102 First Article Inspection (FAI) Software (2026)

A practical guide to ITAR-friendly AS9102 tools, how to evaluate them, and which options are best for different aerospace teams.

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OCR

A Guide to OCR on PDF Drawings

Why extracting dimensional data for AS9102s is hard, and what aerospace quality teams should expect from OCR.

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AS9100D

AS9100D Starter Guide for Quality Managers

What AS9100D is, why it matters, and how to plan an implementation or transition from ISO 9001.

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Metrology

Choosing a CMM in 2026

A practical guide to selecting between bridge and portable CMMs, and matching capability to inspection needs.

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FAI

How Manufacturers Can Eliminate FAI Errors, With or Without a CMM

A practical workflow for error-free AS9102 reports using CMMs or manual tools.

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FAI

Migrating FAI Data to a New Software

How to move AS9102 FAIR data without losing history, traceability, or momentum.

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FAI

Top Five Reasons for an FAI Rejection

The most common causes of AS9102 FAIR rejection and how to prevent them.

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CMMC

U.S. MFG pursuing CMMC should choose FedRAMP-Certified Cloud over On-Premises

CMMC is mandatory for defense suppliers. Here is why FedRAMP cloud reduces compliance burden.

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GD&T

Understanding GD&T: A Practical Guide for Aerospace Quality Teams

A clear, inspection-focused guide to GD&T concepts, feature control frames, and common aerospace characteristics.

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