Indexing in reference to motion is moving (or being moved) into a new position or location quickly and easily but also precisely. After a machine part has been indexed, its location is known to within a few hundredths of a millimeter (thousandths of an inch), or often even to within a few thousandths of a millimeter (ten-thousandths of an inch), despite the fact that no elaborate measuring or layout was needed to establish that location. Indexing is a necessary kind of motion in many areas of
mechanical engineering and
machining. A part that
indexes, or can be
indexed, is said to be
indexable.