(Z Corp.: Burlington, MA) -- As automobiles change, so do the demands on suppliers of parts—right down to the rubber hoses that carry air into the engine, coolant to the radiator, and fluids to brakes and windshields.

Compact engine compartments crammed with components means that engineering for hoses must be more precise than ever, which is why Mackay Consolidated Industries Pty Ltd. of Victoria, Australia, invested in a ZScanner handheld 3-D laser scanner from Z Corp.

Mackay, a Tier 1 auto supplier for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) such as Ford, General Motors, and Toyota, produces hoses in progressively more intricate shapes and sizes to deal with the shrinking margin for error under the hood. The ZScanner helps the company better perform quality assurance to document that its products precisely match design specifications.

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