Choosing calibration software
Gage Management Software: What It Does and How to Choose It
Gage management software, also called gage tracking software, keeps track of the gages a shop uses to measure parts: what each one is, where it is, when it is due for calibration and whether it passed. Many vendors sell the same kind of tool as calibration management software. We make one, so this guide says where we fit at the end and keeps the rest general.
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Gage management and calibration management are the same job
In a manufacturing shop, gages are the calipers, micrometers, pin and ring gages, height gages, torque wrenches and test equipment used to accept or reject parts. Each one needs periodic calibration, a record of the result and a clear status on the shop floor.
Software sold as gage management, gage tracking or calibration management does that same core work. The names come from different traditions. Machining and automotive quality teams tend to say gage, while labs and regulated industries tend to say instrument or equipment.
Gage and gauge are the same word. Gage is the usual spelling in US manufacturing and in the AIAG measurement system analysis manual. Gauge is standard in most other English-speaking countries.
What it does
- Keeps the gage list: ID, type, location, owner, calibration interval and tolerance.
- Works out each due date from the last calibration and the interval, and shows what is overdue or coming due.
- Records each calibration with its as-found and as-left readings, the result and the certificate.
- Shows the status of each gage on a label or QR code you can scan at the bench.
- Tracks who has a gage, when it was checked out of the crib and when it came back.
- Flags an out-of-tolerance gage so you can find the parts it measured.
- Keeps Gage R&R and other measurement system studies with the gage they belong to.
- Keeps an audit trail of who changed what and when.
What auditors ask about your gages
The quality standards most shops work to ask for the same evidence in slightly different words. A gage system is a way to have it ready.
| Standard | Clause | What auditors look for |
|---|---|---|
| ISO 9001 | 7.1.5.2 | Gages calibrated or verified at set intervals against traceable standards, identified so their status is clear, protected from adjustments that would invalidate them, and action taken when one is found out of tolerance. |
| AS9100 | 7.1.5.2 | Everything in ISO 9001, plus a register of measuring equipment with each item's type, unique ID, location, check frequency, check method and acceptance criteria, and a way to recall equipment for calibration. |
| IATF 16949 | 7.1.5.1.1 and 7.1.5.2.1 | Measurement system analysis for each type of gage named in the control plan, and calibration records that include out-of-specification readings and what was done about the parts measured. |
When a spreadsheet is still enough
A spreadsheet is a fair choice for a short gage list kept by one careful person. Many good programs start there, and a well-built log with due dates covers the basics.
It gets harder when the list grows past a few dozen gages, when a second shift or site joins, when gages move in and out of a crib, or when an auditor asks for history the spreadsheet does not keep.
What to check before you choose
- Where it runs: installed on Windows computers, or in a browser and on phones.
- How it is priced: per user, per computer or one flat price for the whole team.
- Whether technicians can log a calibration at the bench without a desk login.
- Whether as-found readings are kept as data, not just a pass or fail.
- Whether Gage R&R studies and crib check-outs live with the gage record.
- How your current gage list comes in, and how all of it comes out again.
How gage management software is priced
Long-standing desktop systems such as GAGEtrak and GAGEpack run on Windows and are sold through a quote. Several cloud systems publish monthly prices, and some, including GageList and Axiospec, have a free tier. The pricing model often matters more than the headline price, because per-user fees grow with every technician you add.
Where Axiospec fits
Axiospec tracks gages and every other instrument you calibrate. It keeps due dates and reminders, as-found and as-left readings, certificates, Gage R&R and other MSA studies, and a tool crib for check-outs. It runs in a browser and in native iOS and Android apps, with QR codes you can scan at the bench and unlimited users on every plan.
It is free for up to 50 instruments, and $59 a month covers 500. Send us your current gage list in any format and we load it for you at no cost, usually within a couple of business days.
Common questions
- What is gage management software?
- It is software that keeps a shop's gages in calibration and proves it. It holds the gage list, schedules calibrations, records results and certificates, and keeps a history for audits.
- Is it gage or gauge?
- Both spellings mean the same thing. Gage is common in US manufacturing and in the AIAG MSA manual, and gauge is the standard spelling elsewhere.
- Is gage management software the same as calibration management software?
- In practice, yes. Both track equipment that needs calibration. Products sold as gage management often put more weight on shop-floor features such as crib check-outs and Gage R&R studies.
- Is there free gage management software?
- Yes. Axiospec Free covers up to 50 active instruments with unlimited users and no time limit. GageList also has a smaller free tier. Most established desktop systems are paid.
- Can I move my gage list from another system?
- Yes. In Axiospec you can import a spreadsheet yourself, or send us what you have, in any format, and we load it for you at no cost, usually within a couple of business days.
Put it into practice
Got a gage list? Send it over and we load it for you, usually in a couple of business days. Free on every plan. Then log every calibration to a tamper-evident audit trail and produce records on demand.
Axiospec is a documentation and workflow tool. It helps you keep clean, traceable, audit-ready records. Certification depends on your own processes, scope and assessor.
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