Manufacturing Process Selection
The major manufacturing processes that represent the main shape producing
processes are the casting, forming and material removal processes.
The individual processes modeled
in this tool are shown in the lists below.
In the early stages of design we are concerned with finding a list of possible process candidates to make a particular component.
The general selection strategy is shown below:-
- Obtain an estimate of the projected annual production quantity
- Choose a material type that satisfies the Product Design Specification (PDS)
- Select possible candidate processes
- Consider each process against the engineering and economic requirements
- Understand the process and its variations
- Consider the material compatibility
- Assess conformance of the component concept with the design rules
- Compare tolerance and surface finish requirements with the process capability data
- Consider the economic positioning of the process and obtain component cost estimates for alternatives
- Review selected manufacturing process(es) against business requirements
The core intention is that candidate processes are isolated before the component design is finalised.
This is important so that any specific constraints and or opportunities may be borne in mind as the design is completed. To this end the embeded selection
choices are driven first by the material selected and then the user is offered a
process choice based on that material. For instance, selecting the material type
"Irons" eliminates sheet metal forming, plastic injection molding and other processes
from the available process list. For a full list of shaping processes and their
capabilities please refer to pages 34 to 159 of the book "Process Selection from
Design To Manufacture - 2nd Edition" by Swift and Booker -
ISBN: 0-7506-5437-6
