Marking out or layout means the process of transferring a

design A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design'' ...

or pattern to a workpiece, as the first step in the manufacturing process. It is performed in many industries or hobbies although in the repetition industries the machine's initial setup is designed to remove the need to mark out every individual piece.

Manufacturing

Marking out consists of transferring the dimensions from the

plan A plan is typically any diagram or list of steps with details of timing and resources, used to achieve an objective to do something. It is commonly understood as a temporal set of intended actions through which one expects to achieve a goal. F ...

to the workpiece in preparation for the next step, machining or manufacture. Typical tools include: * Surface plate or ''marking out table'' — provides a

true True most commonly refers to truth, the state of being in congruence with fact or reality. True may also refer to: Places * True, West Virginia, an unincorporated community in the United States * True, Wisconsin, a town in the United States * Tr ...

surface from which to work * Angle plates — assist in holding the workpiece perpendicular to the table * Scriber — is the equivalent of a pen or pencil. It literally scratches the metal surface leaving behind a fine, bright line *

Height gauge A height gauge is a measuring device used for determining the height of objects, and for marking of items to be worked on. These measuring tools are used in metalworking or metrology to either set or measure vertical distances; the pointer is sh ...

or ''scribing block'' — allows lines to be scribed at a preset distance, from the tables surface * Surface gauge — an ungraduated comparison measuring tool that performs much the same function as the vernier height gauge. It is often used in conjunction with a

dial indicator In various contexts of science, technology, and manufacturing (such as machining, fabricating, and additive manufacturing), an indicator is any of various instruments used to accurately measure small distances and angles, and amplify them to ma ...

and a precision height gauge. *

Marking blue Marking out a metal bar Marking blue or layout stain (sometimes called ''Dykem'' after trademark erosion of a popular brand, or ''Prussian blue'' after the blue pigment) is a dye used in metalworking to aid in marking out rough parts for furth ...

— to provide a usable

writing Writing is a medium of human communication which involves the representation of a language through a system of physically Epigraphy, inscribed, Printing press, mechanically transferred, or Word processor, digitally represented Symbols (semiot ...

surface by covering any existing scratches and providing a contrasting background *

Profile gauge A profile gauge or contour gauge is a tool for recording the cross-sectional shape of a surface. Contour gauges consist of a set of steel or plastic pins that are set tightly against one another in a frame which keeps them in the same plane an ...

Protractor A protractor is a measuring instrument, typically made of transparent plastic or glass, for measuring angles. Some protractors are simple half-discs or full circles. More advanced protractors, such as the bevel protractor, have one or two sw ...

— to assist in the transfer of angular measurements * Combination square — an alternative tool for transferring angular measurements * Square — to transfer 90° angles to the workpiece * Punches — either prick or center punch to create permanent marks or dimples for drill bits to start in **

Automatic center punch An automatic center punch is a hand tool used to produce a dimple in a workpiece (for example, a piece of metal). It performs the same function as an ordinary center punch but without the need for a hammer. When pressed against the workpiece, it ...

— a spring-loaded punch that creates prick punch marks without the need for a ball peen hammer *

Ball peen hammer A ball-peen or ball pein hammer, also known as a machinist's hammer, is a type of peening hammer used in metalworking. It has two heads, one flat and the other, called the peen, rounded. It is distinguished from a cross-peen hammer, diagonal-peen ...

— used in conjunction with the punches to provide the striking blow needed *

Dividers A caliper (British spelling also calliper, or in plurale tantum sense a pair of calipers) is a device used to measure the dimensions of an object. Many types of calipers permit reading out a measurement on a ruled scale, a dial, or a digital dis ...

or measuring compass — used for marking out circles of any desired radius,

Welding

As welding does not always require the use of fine tolerances, marking out is usually performed by using centre punches, hammers, tape measures and

chalk Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Chalk ...

. The "chalk" is actually a small pre-cut block of talc ( soapstone). These talc blocks can be sharpened to a stronger point than the softer

blackboard A blackboard (also known as a chalkboard) is a reusable writing surface on which text or drawings are made with sticks of calcium sulphate or calcium carbonate, known, when used for this purpose, as chalk. Blackboards were originally made of ...

chalk. The color of the chalk provides good contrast against the dark color of the

hot rolled In metalworking, rolling is a metal forming process in which metal stock is passed through one or more pairs of rolls to reduce the thickness, to make the thickness uniform, and/or to impart a desired mechanical property. The concept is simil ...

steel that is generally used.

Woodworking

Illustration showing how to use a marking gauge

carpentry Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenters tr ...

and

joiner A joiner is an artisan and tradesperson who builds things by joining pieces of wood, particularly lighter and more ornamental work than that done by a carpenter, including furniture and the "fittings" of a house, ship, etc. Joiners may work in ...

y practice a pencil is used for marking while in

cabinetmaking A cabinet is a case or cupboard with shelves and/or drawers for storing or displaying items. Some cabinets are stand alone while others are built in to a wall or are attached to it like a medicine cabinet. Cabinets are typically made of wood (so ...

marking knife A marking knife or striking knife is a woodworking layout tool used for accurately marking workpieces. It is used to cut a visible line, which can then be used to guide a hand saw, chisel or plane when making woodworking joints and other operation ...

provides for greater accuracy. A storey pole is used to lay out repeated measurements such as the location of joints in

timber framing Timber framing (german: Holzfachwerk) and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden ...

, courses of siding such as wood shingles and clapboards, the heights of doorjambs and the courses of bricks in

masonry Masonry is the building of structures from individual units, which are often laid in and bound together by mortar; the term ''masonry'' can also refer to the units themselves. The common materials of masonry construction are bricks, building ...

.Frane, James T.. Craftsman's illustrated dictionary of construction terms. Carlsbad, CA: Craftsman Book Co., 1994. 339. Carpenters typically mark out framing members ''on-center'', the measurements are to the centers of each member.

References

{{Authority control Metalworking measuring instruments Woodworking