Materials & Manufacturing Processes
Defining and
selecting appropriate materials for mass production combined with
selection of the best manufacturing process is the responsibility of
Industrial Designers, Engineering / Production Designers and Marketing -
Branding Designers and Manufacturers. Typically referred to as
material and and manufacturing processes selection, this task involves an working knowledge
of the vast range of materials.
When a new product
design
requirement calls for low cost, the use of commodity
materials such as Polypropylene (PP) plastics is called for.
When
extreme performance
is needed there are a host of new
sspecialty
or engineered materials including evolving composites and high-end nano
materials with special capabilities and unique performance properties.
For example titanium alloys or carbon fiber structures or Kevlar fabrics
are common place in specialty product markets such as the military,
sports equipment, automotive racing and aerospace where the combination
of reduced weight and improved tensile strength are needed including
much higher prices, based on the limited availability and extreme
performance requirements. Selection of the best materials and
manufacturing process be it commodity or specialty materials is a matter
of knowing what works and what prices you pay for the quantities you
need.
The mass manufacturing of
commodity and specialty glass, ceramics, engineered plastics and metal
alloy
materials
with improved mechanical
and longevity properties has given Industrial Designers and Engineers
may new opportunities to create unique and innovative solutions.
The challenge is the limitations of materials allocation in low
quantities and rising costs of raw materials such a petroleum and other
raw materials used in mass manufacturing of the everyday products we use
and purchase. The Materials needed for mass manufacturing and the
selection of the best manufacturing process is typically evaluated based
on the raw materials costs tooling investment, and piece price based on
the production quantity. Produce 100,000 units or more and
materials allocation is easy. Want to produce 1000 units and the
price and availability goes way up. The issues is the minimum
quantities and large container sizes prohibit small product businesses
from getting large volume discounts. Large volume
"commodity" materials and production automation such as created by
Wal-Mart(R) system gives these manufacturers the ability to cut
materials and piece price costs on the product. This is why its so
hard for the small business to make a profit, based on the small
production manufacturing runs and the higher materials pricing you pay
for low volume purchasing.
Understanding the
importance of working with an Industrial Designer and the manufacturer
to develop a product that gives you the best fit for materials sourcing
and manufacturing process selection is essential part of the success
story.
See
Materials Selection (MatE)
See
Manufacturing - Process Selection (ManufE)
See
Feasibility Study
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