We're a precision engineering CNC shop building out our inspection room for the first time. We do quite precise parts for aerospace, with tolerances between 10 - 20 microns. We do both 5-axis milled parts and turned parts.

I know eventually we will have to get both a shadow graph and a CMM to really measure everything, but for now we're looking to start with one machine that can be capable of measuring the most. The most important things for us are a) accuracy and repeatability, b) speed and ease of use c) price.

We were looking at getting the Hexagon ENSPEC 616 CMM coming in at around £100k which looked like a good all rounder starter CMM. But we also had a Keyance demonstration of their IM-X 1000 which looked very impressive, especially because of its ease of use. Much faster than having to programme the Hexagon CMM, and can be setup in a few minutes. It has a touch probe and a laser added on as well which adds to its capability. Price wise it's also only around £60k.

The question we have is if we were to start with just one of them, which should we start with?