PART-A

CHAPTER-1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Design and Manufacturing

Design and manufacturing involves the development of specifications of a product that will be functionally sound, have an eye appeal, and will give satisfactory performance for an adequate life. The design-process function includes developing the methods of manufacture of the product produced at a competitive price and of desired quality. This work will include planning the sequence of operations and inspections to be performed. Thus the work of the design and manufacturing engineer is primarily to design in accordance to specification and with most suitable manufacturing process. It is the intent of this textbook to bring out the necessity of close collaboration between these two: designmanufacturing process areas so that more products of better quality and reliability may be produced at minimum cost.

1.2

Locating Ideas for New Products

Ideas that lead to the development of new products may come from several sources. Usually ideas come from company executives, company sales force, customer suggestions and needs, government agencies, and research laboratories. It should be apparent that not every idea necessarily leads to a new product that is placed on the market. However, every new product represents the crystallization of someones idea. It has been estimated that on an average it takes about 500 possibilities at the idea stage for every new product that is placed in manufacturing. The majority of ideas are usually eliminated after a preliminary laboratory investigation or after feasibility study.

1.3

Definition of Engineering Design

Simply design means art of producing sketch or plan for a product. Engineering means applications of science to build design and use of machines and processes for production. Dym defines engineering design as the systematic, intelligent generation and evaluation of specifications for artifacts whose form and function achieve stated objectives and satisfy specified constraints. According to Dieter, Design establishes and define solutions to pertinent structures for problems not solved before, or new solutions to problems which have been previously solved in a different way. Design : Design is an intellectual activity that leads to organisation to human abilities and physical resources to create things to satisfy mans needs.

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Design requirement : A successful design must consider the following important factors to maintain long lasting satisfactory sales appeal. (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) Sound functional design, Good appearance, Better quality, both in material and workmanship, Easy maintenance, Competitive price.

The design of a device or system can be done in one of the two ways : (1) Evolutionary change : A product is allowed to evolve over a period of time with only slight improvement (Where no competition is met and capability of designer are limited). (2) Innovation : This is achieved by rapid scientific growth and technological discoveries as well as competition among companies. Innovation leads to new design ideas to satisfy growing needs of society. The creative skills and analytical ability of the design engineer plays an important role in design activity. The figure below depicts the qualities of a proficient designer.

Controls Proficient designer Both

Evolution

Innovation

The goal of the design process is to develop artifacts that satisfy a need. Although the majority of design can be considered as redesigns and modifications need to be new and unique. Design process : The design process is a sequence of events that help to define the stages of design and unfold the design in systematic manner. Fig. 1.1 shows various steps in design process.

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Need

Goals

Market analysis

Functions

Specifications

Conceptualization

Concept selection and evaluating alternatives

Analysis

Experimentation and prototyping

Marketing and sales

Figure 1.1 Design process

1. Identifying Customer need : The need should be identified by (1) Clients request, (2) Modification of an existing design, (3) Generation of new product 2. Defining Goals : In this process, the designer defines what must be done to resolve the need. Designer must recognize that customer needs are not the same as product specifications. Need should be expressed in functional terms. During the customers interview, listen carefully to what the customer want to say. The designers function is to clarify the clients design requirements.

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We use objective trees to expand the needs and determine the various levels of goals. Problem definition : Need Statement It is necessary to formulate a clear, exact statement of the problem in engineering words and symbols. Before an engineer can define the problem properly, he or she must recognize all the problems that exist. Most of the failures in machines do not occur because we make mistakes in analysing the problem, but because we fail to recognize that there is a problem. An important step in design is clarifying the design objectives by drawing a objective tree. 3. Market Analysis and Information Gathering This phase of the design process will help us to appreciate our development and allows us to review what others have done in solving the same problem. It will also help us to identify the size of the need and whom we are competing with. Further, it will show what is available in the market. Two different techniques are employed in market analysis: (1) Direct Search : This involves obtaining information directly from the consumer, manufacturers sales people and so forth. The information is collected by interviews and serveys. (2) Indirect Search : Information is collected from public sources, such as patents, journal reports, government analysis and newspapers. Note: The market search should be done in a systematic and objective manner and consider all information that is relevant to the product. How to conduct a market analysis ? Thousands of resources are available but never presented in the form we need them. Before beginning any research project, it is important to plan the process. It is important that engineering skills be applied when planning and dealing with this deluge (high demand). These skills include (a) (b) (c) (d) Critical thinking Strategy Analysis Time management (It always takes longer time than we think)

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In the product development process, market research is conducted initially to assess market potential, market segments and product opportunities; and to provide production cost estimates and information on product cost, sales potential, industry trends, and customer needs and expectations. The search has the following steps : 1. 2. 3. 1. Problem definition Develop a strategy Information check list Problem Definition

Knowing what we are looking for is very important before we start gathering information. This can be accomplished by answering questions similar to the following : (a) What are the major objectives (review your objective tree) of the customer need ? (b) Are you developing a new product or solving a problem in an existing product ? [Remember, we are not providing solution, we are redefining a problem] (c) In one sentence and in our own words (abstraction of the need statement), define the problem at hand. (d) Who is our customer, and why would they want/need to buy the product (e.g., time saver, utility, unique value) ? (e) How are we going to go about getting our product to customers (e.g., development cost, time, manufacturing, production investment etc.) ? 2. Develop a Strategy It is important to set a plan for the search process. Looking through every reference book in a library. It is helpful first to identify what pieces of information may be needed, and then to select where to begin the search. Searching can be accomplished by (a) Identifying Keywords : It is important to have some relevant terms with which to begin the search. (b) Writing a plan : The information gathered directly from some customers, can be very useful if properly contextualized; thus, it is important to know the framework within which you are working. 3. Information Checklist The following list can be used in two ways : as a planning tool for information collection or as a checklist for locating relevant information. (a) Products (1) Products name (2) Patents

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(b)

(c)

(d)

(e)

(3) Pricing (4) Product features (5) Development time (6) Parts breakdown Companies (1) Major players (2) Company financials for major players Industry (1) Trends (2) Labour costs (3) Market size (4) Industry facts (no. of pieces) Market information (1) Market reports (2) Market share of major companies in industry (3) Target markets of major competitors (4) Demographics : Age Geographic location Gender Political/Cultural/Social factors Consumer trends **Relevant information systems are (b), (c) and (d). Rest of the terms of design process are discussed in the preceeding chapters.

1.4

Creative Thinking

Design is a creative process. Albert Einstein asserted that imagination is more important than knowledge, for knowledge is finite whereas imagination is infinite. Creative thinking is not, of course, confined to a particular field or to a few individuals, but is possessed in varying degrees by people in many occupations, the artist sketches, the newspaper writer promotes an idea, the teacher encourages student development, the scientist develops a theory, the manufacturing design engineer develops proved manufacturing processes or applies improved materials to the creation of a better product. Creativeness implies newness, but it is often concerned with the improvement of old products as it is with the creation of new ones. In engineering, the newly created thing must be useful, it should be of benefit to people, yet should not be so much of an innovation that other may not purchase it. Successful engineering design depends on modes of thinking distinctly different from those we use in everyday life. Existence of these differences makes design an intellectually demanding activity. For a good and successful design we have to apply creativity because a creative thinker is distinguished by his ability to synthesize the new combination of ideas and

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concepts into meaningful and useful forms. Engineering creativity is more akin to inventiveness than research.

1.4.1 Design through Creative Routes

Alger and Hayes have given the following phases of creative design : (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) Establishment of familiarity with the problem. Soaking the mind with the problem. Try various combinations. Permitting Incubation of the problem in the conscious and subconscious mind. Illumination is the stage when a solution is obtained. Recording the solution and further refinement of solution.

The qualities and factors for creative designers : The qualities and factors for creative designers can be summarised as under : (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) High degree of perception. Avoid rigid thinking. Employ techniques of brain storming and synectics. Attempt inversion methods, i.e., think reverse of the existing way. Apply analogy, i.e., take advantage from established solutions for similar problems. (6) Employ an orderly way of investigation to strike at new combinations.

1.5

Qualification of the Design and Manufacturing Engineer

The engineer associated with design and manufacturing process activities must be a versatile, creative and well informed person. He not only must be well grounded in the essential physical sciences that underlie engineering but he also must have a comprehensive knowledge of a considerable variety of materials and of industrial processes. He must be familiar with the organization and functioning of industrial concerns and the human factor involved in a manufacturing enterprise. He must realize that progress is made through working with others, and that honesty, acceptance of responsibility, and the meeting of commitments cheerfully form a basis for good relationships with his fellow workers. He must know that high manufacturing rates are achieved when manufacturing operations can be carried on in safety and relative comfort by satisfied shop personnel. He must also be conscious that good appearance is a factor in selling a product and either design his product with appearance in mind or get help in the problem of achieving good appearance without sacrificing utility. Most important of all is that, he must be cost conscious, as almost all actions are based eventually on cost. Desirable qualities of a creative designer are : (a) Open and perceptive (b) Free from fixity of mind (c) Enthusiastic with a positive frame of mind

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(d) Imaginative and apply fantasy (e) Able to synthesize various combinations to arrive at the design.

1.6

Opportunities for the Design and Manufacturing Design Engineer

Product designers in any firm and organization are front line troops who lead and execute the battle for firm. Manufacturing-design work in both the areas of product and process design and will provide a rewarding lifetime job. The engineer knows that his work will make possible better products for more people at less cost. He will have rewarding personal contacts with the shop, sales and service forces, and with his fellow engineers, research workers, designers, shop supervisors and managers. The work of design and manufacturing process has come to offer some of the best opportunities afforded in industry. It may involve just a routine operation wherein apparatus is designed or modified to suit customer requirements, or it may be a comprehensive program including- in addition to design- sales analysis, research, invention, experimentation and field tests which result in the development of a product. Manufacturing design is responsible for the cooperative efforts of the functional design department and the manufacturing engineering department. It serves as a means whereby barriers of misunderstanding and lack of knowledge as to processes, materials and the functions of the product are overcome.

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