Digital manufacturing terminology in the product and the construction industries

This paper initially discusses models in manufacturing, then processes in the product industry and finally processes in the construction industry. Although numerical control in machining was introduced in the 1950s, CAE/CAM in the 1970s, and rapid prototyping in the mid 1980s, their use in the construction industry is quite recent. Our research verified that words like mock-up, prototype and product have well established meanings, both in general terms and particularly in manufacturing. Also that, manufacturing processes cannot be simply classified as additive or subtractive. And that the type of physical model produced isn't determined by the type of manufacturing technology. This text uses English as a basis for putting forward correct terminology and classification structures for processes and models, mainly because texts from its language communities, especially the construction industry, present fewer errors. Translations to other languages are given when necessary.