Believe it or not the origins of photo chemical machining date back over five hundred years to fifteenth century artisans utilizing natural acids from vinegar to etch their lords’ armor and ceremonial weaponry, a far cry from the ultra high tech uses it is applied to in the modern age. In fact this technique of manufacturing or tooling metal has had a wide variety of uses throughout history before culminating in the functions we commonly see today. From artists to restaurants, acid etching has proven to be an incredibly useful bit of technology that has withstood the test of time for longer than the United Stats has been a nation.

Generally speaking photo chemical machining is most ideally suited for jobs that require a high amount of precision in the manufacturing process. Many industrial manufacturing assignments are perfectly capable of being handled by traditional manufacturing equipment, such as the manufacture of general tooling or parts for heavy equipment. It becomes necessary to start using precision technology such as chemical etching when manufacturing parts that need to be absolutely perfect, such as for use in military technology or aerospace design. One common example is producing an rf shield to protect electronic equipment from electromagnetic and radio frequency interference, wherein the part is so small and needs to be so accurate that normal industrial tooling is incapable of handling the job in a reasonable amount of time and to the degree of accuracy required.

This greater precision is a result of the etching process itself. The chemicals that eat away the metal in acid etching do not leave tool marks or burrs like normal machining, and because no pressure is applied to the surface of the metal there is no warping or tension in the final product. Thus the finished products result in clean, sharp lines and angles with very little polishing needed to remove burrs and imperfections.