Back in design school, we were taught that a full production run of a product manufactured via CNC machining would be, well… “not realistic” to say the least.  “Cost is too high for anything outside of a prototype” is what they’d tell us.

Well my friends, Apple has gone and done it.  They are now using a 13-stage process to create the shell for their latest iteration of the venerable MacBook and MacBook Pro (not to mention the Air).  The process takes an extruded sheet of aluminum, cuts it into bricks, and sends them through milling, grinding, lasers, and water jets in what may be a “greener” process… Well, if “greener” is defined as using less plastic.  I can only imagine how wasteful the process may be, with those aluminum flakes flying every which way.  Are they collected and recycled?  Apple hasn’t made any formal mention of that part.

[EDIT: Steve Jobs noted in his presentation about the laptops that the aluminum is collected and recycled.  Thanks, Nick!]

However, the laptop is genuinely a beautiful piece of craftsmanship.  The fit and finish are exact, which is reflected in the price of the computer.  Perhaps there might be something to this CNC process after all.

Apple MacBook Aluminum Process