All manufacturing processes have an impact on the surface layer state of a component, which in turn significantly determines the properties of parts in service. Although these effects should certainly be exploited, knowledge on the conditioning of the surfaces during the final cutting and abrasive process of metal components is still only extremely limited today. The key challenges in regard comprise the process-oriented acquisition of suitable measurement signals and their use in robust process control with regard to the surface layer conditions. By mastering these challenges, the present demands for sustainability in production on the one hand and the material requirements in terms of lightweight construction strength on the other hand can be successfully met. In this review article completely new surface conditioning approaches are presented, which originate from the Priority Program 2086 of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)
