Aircraft have traditionally been made of aluminum with a small quantity of titanium alloy parts. Titanium alloys were traditionally used for parts such as aircraft landing gear. Today many additional parts are made of titanium alloys; hence, the emphasis on titanium part warpage and straightening problems. One of the primary uses of titanium parts is to support composite materials. Aluminum alloys in contact with composites fail from galvanic corrosion, but composites are compatible with titanium, hence no galvanic corrosion in these assemblies.

Large titanium alloy parts often warp beyond specified dimensions. A lot of time is expended writing up defects, deciding whether to scrap the part, finding some workaround solution going into the next step in the process, or attempting to straighten the part. These discrepancies are handled by written instructions on reject tags. Additional hours are required to replace or straighten the part, and schedules typically slide.