Design for Manufacturing & Assembly

Design for Assembly is about optimizing the product by reducing overall cost through reducing parts, skill, tools and investment required to assemble a component or module. Design for Manufacturing is about optimizing a part by reducing overall cost through reducing materials, machines, skill, tools and investment required to produce a part.

It is a process that needs to be planned for and applied at the right milestones of a product development or continuous improvement process. Treating it like a one time event never builds the culture or knowledge to sustain it. It can be a very powerful tool in the product development process and can make the difference between profitably bringing a product to market and not allowing it to make it to market.

These attributes influence the potential for improvement and cost reduction in assemblies:

1. Part Count

2. Location & Orienting of Parts

3. Hardware Types and Usage

4. Tooling Requirements

5. Handling Requirements

6. Fastening Requirements

7. Mistake Proofing by Design

These attributes influence the potential for improvement and cost reduction in a part:

1. Functional Requirements

2. Part Features

3. Material

4. Manufacturing Methods

ASSEMBLY

Parts Layout                                                                                                                                    

PART