Stainless steel is becoming the default material for many uses, consequentially making product reliability even more important. The market is demanding the highest quality, defect-free components that meet customer specifications.
Industrial heat exchanger users, aerospace, medical, and some military applications require the highest quality materials and require also that high inspection levels be applied to the long intermediate product (wire, tube, and bars). Automotive materials can also, surprisingly, require the highest quality because some components can lead to huge expenses if a small number of defective parts that are safety critical or integral to engine lifetime or fuel systems fail.