Full Design & Manufacturing Glossary

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Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS): technological features in vehicles designed to enhance safety and facilitate driving tasks, utilizing sensors, cameras, and algorithms to assist with functions such as collision avoidance, lane keeping, adaptive cruise control, and parking assistance.

Advanced Encryption Standard (AES): a symmetric key encryption algorithm established by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology, utilizing block ciphers with key sizes of 128, 192, or 256 bits, designed for securing electronic data through substitution and permutation processes.

Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP): a structured process aimed at ensuring product quality through planning, development, and validation, involving cross-functional teams to identify and mitigate risks, establish requirements, and enhance communication throughout the product lifecycle.

American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI): a trade association representing steel producers in the United States, focusing on promoting steel usage, developing standards, and advocating for policies beneficial to the industry. It also provides technical resources and research to enhance steel production and application.

American National Standards Institute (ANSI): a private non-profit organization that oversees the development of voluntary consensus standards for products, services, processes, and systems in the United States, promoting quality, safety, and interoperability across various industries.

American Society for Metals (ASM): a professional organization focused on materials science and engineering, promoting knowledge and innovation in metallurgy and materials through publications, conferences, and educational programs. It serves as a resource for professionals in the field to advance their expertise and networking.

American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM): an international standards organization that develops and publishes voluntary consensus technical standards for materials, products, systems, and services, aimed at improving quality and safety across various industries.

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME): a professional organization that sets standards for mechanical engineering, promotes education and research, and facilitates knowledge exchange among engineers through conferences, publications, and technical committees. It also develops codes and standards for safety and performance in engineering practices.

American Welding Society (AWS): a nonprofit organization that develops standards, certifications, and educational resources for the welding industry, promoting safety, quality, and technical advancement in welding practices and technologies.

Analysis of Variance (ANOVA): a statistical method used to determine if there are significant differences between the means of three or more independent groups by analyzing variance within and between groups. It assesses the impact of one or more factors on a dependent variable.

Application Programming Interface (API): a set of rules and protocols that allows different software applications to communicate and interact with each other, enabling the integration of functionalities and data exchange between systems.

Architecture Engineering and Construction (AEC): a multidisciplinary field that integrates architecture, engineering, and construction management to design, plan, and execute building projects, emphasizing collaboration, efficiency, and sustainability throughout the project lifecycle.

Artificial Neural Networks (ANN): computational models inspired by biological neural networks, consisting of interconnected nodes (neurons) that process data. They learn patterns through training on datasets, adjusting connection weights to minimize error in tasks such as classification, regression, and pattern recognition.

Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM): a high-speed networking technology that uses fixed-size cells for data transmission, enabling efficient and flexible communication across various media types. It supports multiple service types, including voice, video, and data, facilitating Quality of Service (QoS) management.

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Benefit-Risk Ratio (BRR): a quantitative assessment comparing the positive effects of a treatment or intervention to its negative effects, used to evaluate the overall value and safety of a medical product or procedure in decision-making processes.

Bill of Lading (BOL): a document issued by a carrier acknowledging receipt of cargo for shipment, serving as a contract for transportation and a receipt for the goods. It details the type, quantity, and destination of the cargo.

Bill Of Material (BOM): a structured list detailing the components, subassemblies, and raw materials required to manufacture a product, including quantities and specifications, used for production planning and inventory management.

Bioburden: the presence of viable microorganisms on a surface or in a substance, typically measured to assess contamination levels in pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and other sterile products. It is crucial for determining sterilization efficacy and product safety.

Building Information Modeling (BIM): a digital representation of physical and functional characteristics of a facility, enabling visualization, simulation, and analysis throughout its lifecycle. It integrates multidisciplinary data to enhance collaboration, efficiency, and decision-making in design, construction, and operation processes.

Building Management System (BMS): a centralized control system that monitors and manages a building's mechanical and electrical equipment, including heating, ventilation, air conditioning, lighting, security, and fire safety systems, to enhance operational efficiency, comfort, and energy management.

Business Process Reengineering (BPR): a management strategy focused on analyzing and redesigning workflows and processes within an organization to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance service quality, often involving the use of technology to facilitate significant changes in operations.

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Calculation of Process Capability (Cpk): a statistical measure that evaluates a process's ability to produce output within specified limits, calculated by assessing the distance between the process mean and the nearest specification limit, normalized by the process standard deviation.

Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI): a process improvement framework that provides organizations with essential elements for effective process improvement, focusing on performance, quality, and efficiency across various domains, including software development and service delivery. It consists of five maturity levels to guide organizational growth.

Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM): a financial model that establishes a relationship between expected return and systematic risk of an asset, quantified by beta, used to determine a theoretically appropriate required rate of return for an investment.

Certificate of Analysis (CoA): a document issued by a manufacturer or testing laboratory that confirms a product's specifications, quality, and compliance with regulatory standards, detailing test results and methods used for analysis.

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