How to create FAI reports and balloon drawings in 10 minutes — with a free online tool
Every manufacturing quality engineer knows this pain: a customer sends a new part drawing with 80+ dimensions. You need to create a ballooned drawing and a First Article Inspection report before the first production run ships. The traditional process? Print the drawing, manually number each dimension with a marker, type everything into an Excel template, cross-reference tolerances, and format the AS9102 forms. Four to six hours of tedious work — for a single part.
CadNexa Balloon Tool reduces this to under 10 minutes. And it's free.
Manual method
CadNexa method
What is a balloon drawing?
A ballooned drawing (also called a bubbled drawing or characteristic-numbered drawing) is an engineering drawing where every dimension, tolerance, and specification is marked with a unique numbered circle — a "balloon." Each balloon number maps to a row in the inspection report. This creates traceability: balloon #15 on the drawing corresponds to row #15 in the FAI report, which shows the nominal value, tolerance, actual measurement, and pass/fail status.
Ballooning is the critical first step of any first article inspection process. Without a properly ballooned drawing, you can't create a reliable inspection report because there's no way to trace which measurement corresponds to which dimension.
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Why manual ballooning is costing you money
Let's do the math for a typical Indian manufacturing company:
| Factor | Manual method | CadNexa method |
|---|---|---|
| Time per drawing (80 dimensions) | 4-6 hours | 10-15 minutes |
| QA engineer hourly cost (India) | ₹500-800/hr | ₹500-800/hr |
| Cost per FAI report | ₹2,000-4,800 | ₹80-200 |
| Monthly FAI reports (active plant) | 15-30 reports | 15-30 reports |
| Monthly cost of FAI process | ₹30,000-1,44,000 | ₹1,200-6,000 |
| Annual savings | — | ₹3,45,000 — ₹16,56,000 |
How CadNexa Balloon Tool works — step by step
Step 1: Open any PDF engineering drawing
Go to cadnexa.com, sign in with Google, and click Balloon Tool. Click "Open PDF" and select your drawing. CadNexa supports any PDF — from A0 shop floor prints to A4 detail drawings, single page or multi-page. It renders the drawing at high resolution for precise balloon placement.
Step 2: Place balloons on dimensions
Three modes are available:
- Click mode: Simply click near a dimension. A numbered balloon appears. Type the dimension value in the side panel. Fast and simple.
- Leader mode: Click to place the balloon, then click the dimension. An arrow leader line connects them — professional and clear.
- Box+Balloon mode: Draw a box around a dimension. CadNexa reads the text automatically (using OCR), parses the value, tolerance, and type (diameter, radius, thread, GD&T), and places the balloon with all data pre-filled.
CadNexa also offers Smart Detect Dimensions — an AI-powered feature that automatically scans the entire drawing and identifies all dimensions, tolerances, and GD&T symbols. One click to find everything, then review and approve.
Step 3: Customize balloon appearance
Choose from 13 balloon colors (including dark navy, royal blue, red, green, purple, and more) with a visual preview dropdown. Adjust balloon size, leader line width, and leader type (arrow, line, ortho, or none). This matters because different companies have different visual standards for their ballooned drawings.
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Step 4: Generate the FAI report
Click "Generate FAI Report" and choose your standard. CadNexa supports:
| Standard | Industry | Used by |
|---|---|---|
| AS9102 Rev C | Aerospace & defense | Aerospace primes and all tier-1/2/3 suppliers |
| PPAP | Automotive | All automotive OEMs and their supply chain |
| ISO | General manufacturing | International quality standard |
| ASME | Pressure vessels, piping | Engineering standards for North America |
| DIN | German standard | European automotive and engineering |
| JIS | Japanese standard | Japanese automotive and precision manufacturing |
| GB | Chinese standard | Chinese manufacturing and export |
| IS | Indian standard | Indian government and defense procurement |
The report is pre-populated with all balloon data — dimension number, nominal value, tolerance, type, datum reference, and measurement method. You fill in the actual measured values, mark pass/fail, and the report is ready for submission.
Step 5: Download and submit
Download the ballooned drawing as PDF. Export the FAI report as an interactive HTML (editable), PDF, or CSV (for Excel). Attach both to your FAIR package and submit to your customer. The entire process from opening the drawing to submitting the report can be completed during a single tea break.
Try CadNexa Balloon Tool — free forever
Open your first PDF drawing and create a ballooned inspection package in minutes.
Start Ballooning — Free →Handling scanned PDFs and difficult drawings
Not all PDF drawings are created equal. Machine-generated PDFs (exported from CAD software) have embedded text that CadNexa can read automatically with Box+Balloon mode. But scanned PDFs — drawings that were photographed or scanned from paper — don't have readable text.
CadNexa handles this gracefully. If the Box+Balloon mode fails to read text three times in a row, it shows a helpful popup suggesting you switch to Click mode, where you place balloons by clicking and enter dimension values manually in the side panel. This way, even the oldest, most faded shop floor prints can be ballooned and inspected.
What about large drawings with 100+ dimensions?
Real engineering drawings — especially assembly drawings or complex machined parts — can have over 100 dimensions, tolerances, GD&T callouts, and notes. CadNexa handles these comfortably:
- Multi-page support — navigate between pages, balloons are saved per-page
- Balloon numbering continues across pages — page 1 might have balloons 1-45, page 2 continues from 46
- If you delete a balloon (say #23 out of 80), the next balloon automatically uses number 23 to fill the gap — no renumbering needed
- Zoom in to precisely place balloons on tight dimension clusters
- Save your work to a project at any time — if you need to continue tomorrow, everything is preserved
Who uses CadNexa Balloon Tool?
Plant heads and quality managers who need to verify that inspection documentation is complete before shipping parts to customers.
Vendor development engineers who review supplier FAIR packages and need ballooned drawings for traceability.
Small machine shops that don't have dedicated quality departments — the owner or supervisor handles FAI alongside production management.
Why browser-based matters
Traditional ballooning and FAI tools require desktop installation, license fees (often ₹30,000-2,00,000/year), and IT support for updates. CadNexa runs entirely in your browser:
- No installation — go to cadnexa.com and start working
- No license fees — free tier available forever
- Works on any computer — Windows, Mac, Linux, Chromebook
- Your PDF drawings stay on your computer — nothing is uploaded to any server
- Works offline once loaded — no constant internet required
- Instant updates — every time you open CadNexa, you have the latest version
Getting started
CadNexa Balloon Tool is free to use. Sign in with Google at cadnexa.com, click Balloon Tool, open a PDF, and place your first balloon in under 30 seconds. A built-in walkthrough tutorial guides you through every feature on your first visit.
For detailed tutorials with step-by-step instructions for every feature, visit the CadNexa learning center.
Stop wasting hours on manual FAI reports
Join manufacturing professionals who create inspection documentation in minutes, not hours.
Create Your First FAI Report — Free →Common questions about FAI reports and ballooning
Is a ballooned drawing required for AS9102?
AS9102 Rev C doesn't explicitly require a ballooned drawing. It requires that every design characteristic is uniquely identified with inspection results traceable to each identifier. However, most aerospace primes and tier-1 customers expect a ballooned drawing as part of the FAIR package — it's industry standard practice. CadNexa makes it easy to provide one regardless.
What is the difference between AS9102 and PPAP?
AS9102 is the aerospace standard for first article inspection, organized into three forms: Part Number Accountability (Form 1), Product Accountability (Form 2), and Characteristic Accountability (Form 3). PPAP (Production Part Approval Process) is the automotive equivalent, used in the APQP framework. PPAP includes dimensional results, material test reports, process flow diagrams, and control plans. CadNexa generates reports in both formats from the same ballooned drawing data.
Can CadNexa read GD&T symbols from drawings?
Yes. The Smart Detect and Box+Balloon features parse GD&T feature control frames including position, perpendicularity, flatness, cylindricity, parallelism, angularity, profile, and more. Datum references are automatically extracted and linked to the inspection report.
How much does CadNexa Balloon Tool cost?
The free tier lets you place up to 5 balloons per page and generate reports. Paid plans start at ₹399/month for unlimited balloons, all FAI standards, and cloud project storage. No long-term commitment — cancel anytime.
Is my drawing data safe?
Absolutely. CadNexa processes your PDF drawing entirely in your browser. The file never leaves your computer. There is no upload to any cloud server. Your design IP and customer drawings remain 100% private.