Research and development is a vital part of manufacturing performance automotive products, but how individual companies complete this process is as different as their offerings to the industry. For chassis and suspension leader Chris Alston’s Chassisworks, R&D takes on a unique digitized state thanks to their FARO ScanArm. And as we found out from a recent marketing write-up from the mass solution company, Chassisworks is creating products with better fits faster than ever before thanks to this device.

The ScanArm make 3D scans like this possible, giving manufacturers accurate depictions and measurements of components they're working on.

The FARO ScanArm is an innovative tool that allows manufacturers to make 3D scans of their products as well as the development area they are trying to create parts for, like the undercarriage of a car. The ScanArm also allows companies to get accurate 3D measurements, inspect components and even complete CAD-to-part analysis. In laymen’s terms, the FaroArm can mean the difference between something that kind of fits and something that fits like a glove.

For Chassisworks, proper fit is key in developing products, from chassis to powertrain components, and their ScanArm Platinum with Laser Line Probe gives them the most precise development tools on the market to create components with the best fit possible. Part of the reason for this is due to the advantages of 3D measuring. Even when measuring the most basic components, human error is possible and can cause inaccuracies for product development. By using the ScanArm, Chassisworks eliminates the human error aspect, guaranteeing the most precise measurements possible.

And if it works wonders on basic components, you can only imagine how this helps with components that are a bit more difficult to measure. Plus, the portability of the ScanArm allows Chassisworks to use it just about anywhere.

In the past, trial and error fabrication was the only way to make sure components fit on a certain vehicle or around OEM components. Now, with the ScanArm, Chassisworks can design components, make digital 3D models of them and check them for proper fit before physically creating them. And since the ScanArm accurately represents each scan area, there’s no going back and retaking measurements of an area to create a different component. Chassisworks can just reference the original scan and go from there, saving valuable time and resources.

The level of detail Chassisworks’ ScanArm Laser Line Probe provides the company is especially helpful in the beginning stages of development.

Tiny changes between components for different model years and between OEM and aftermarket components that could be missed normally are easily detected using the ScanArm, adding even more to Chassisworks’ ability to create proper fitting components.

If a performance product, whether it be a roll cage, suspension component or full tube chassis, doesn’t have the proper fit, component failure and damage is a very real worry. But thanks to the ScanArm, Chassisworks is able to take as many inaccuracies out of their components as possible. That means better products and better performance for your vehicle.