Synopsis

NEVER BEEN BEFORE IN INDUSTRIAL HISTORY HAS BUSINESS CHANGE BEEN so driven by technology. Manufacturers today must deliver quality products to customers faster and less cost. To hit this mark, designers in every industry from automotive, aerospace and telecommunications to medical devices and consumer goods- rely on DESIGN FOR MANUFACTURABILITY tools for analyzing design concepts and creating innovative products with fewer parts. The DFM concepts are not something entirely new. Awareness of the importance of designing products for easy manufacture has existed in clever design and manufacturing engineers since product design and manufacturing activities originated. In the present scenario where product life cycle is getting shorter and ever growing competition DFM gaining its share more than never before. Its well-known fact that manufacturing has a very long history behind it. Every process, every design has years of experience/skill carrying with it. Now if the same has to be transferred to a young engineer it takes a lot of time and energy and cost if he has to proceed with his little experience. Basically DFM aims at collecting such expertise in design/manufacturing and creating a knowledge repository so that it can be availed by any body at anytime. Now many soft wares are also available which focuses on specific areas of design and manufacturing. The DFM principles and guidelines are many; and is industry specific. This presentation concentrates on the basic principles of DFM, the guidelines and the implementation methodology in general and for sheet metal components in particular. In an increasingly competitive world, Product design and customer service may be the ultimate way to distinguish companies capabilities. DFM will be the key to achieve and sustain competitive advantage through synergy of integrated product and process design.

Contents SYNOPSIS1 INTRODUCTION.2

DFM IMPLEMENTATION METHODOLOGY..3 DFM GUIDE LINES..4 DFM SHEET METAL GUIDE LINES..10

CASE STUDY REFERENCES..

DESIGN FOR MANUFACTURABILITY In the past, products have been designed that could not be produced. Products have been released for production that could only be made to work in the model shop when prototypes were build and adjusted by highly skilled technicians. Effective product development must go beyond the traditional steps of acquiring and implementing product and process design technology as the solution. It must address management practices to consider customers needs, designing those requirements into the product, and then ensuring that both the factory and the virtual factory (the company's suppliers) have the capability to effectively produce the product. A designer's primary objective is to design a functioning is to design a functioning product within given economic and schedule constraints. However, research has shown that decisions made during the design period determine 70% of the product's costs while decisions made during production only account for 20% of the product's costs. Further, decisions made in the first 5% of product design could determine the vast majority of the product's cost, quality and manufacturability characteristics. This indicates the great leverage that DFM can have on a company's success and profitability. Design for manufacture vital to competitiveness: Design for manufacture is a systematic approach that allows engineers to anticipate manufacturing costs early in the design process, even when only rough geometries are available on the product being developed. Given the large number of process technologies and materials available few design engineers have detailed knowledge of all the major shape forming processes. Consequently, engineers tend to design for manufacturing processes with which they are familiar. DFM methodology encourages individual engineers and concurrent development team to investigate additional processes and materials to develop designs that may be more economical to produce. With more information with viable processes and materials user can quantify manufacturing costs for competing design alternatives and decide which design is best. Developing a producible product is critical to achieving low costs and high quality. Hence design for manufacturability (DFM) must be addressed early in the product development cycle.
3

DFMImplementation Methodology
Initiation of a DFM program begins with management understanding and commitment. This may require DFM a management briefing . These objectives must be communicated to the rest of the organization. DFM training can provide an understanding of the concepts and essential elements of a DFM approach. A team-based organization needs to be established to support development. Definite roles and responsibilities to support DFM and provide team-building training as required needs to be established. DFM guidelines must be established based on types of products, parts and materials; types of processes, process capabilities, process cycle times and costs, and tooling costs. DFM software tools are useful to evaluate concept and design alternatives and support decision-making. DFM training can be provided to develop an understanding of DFM principles, practices, tools and methodology. Design for manufacturability guidance can be provided to the product development team as it works to develop its concept and design. Every team member must be trained in application of DFM; provide specific DFM feedback; and facilitate consideration of design, material and process alternatives. Supplier involvement in a DFM program is critical since typically 50-70% of product costs are materials. Organization has to work with the materials department to structure a supplier involvement program based on DFM, provide DFM training to suppliers, and work with key suppliers to establish a DFM program. Cost data needs to be developed since cost is a common denominator to measure producibility results across an overall product and across disparate processes. We need to select, implement, and develop product cost models; provide training; organize cost studies; and validate cost projections. Monitoring of DFM results is key to a successful program. We have to establish DFM metrics, develop design review guidelines, formalize an overall development process oriented to DFM, and insure appropriate management focus on a DFM program.

DESIGN FOR MANUFACTURABILITY GUIDELINES 1. Simplify the design and reduce the number of parts because for each part, there is an opportunity for a defective part and an assembly error. The probability of a perfect product goes down exponentially as the number of parts increases. As the number of parts goes up, the total cost of fabricating and assembling the product goes up. Automation becomes more difficult and more expensive when more parts are handled and processed. Costs related to purchasing, stocking, and servicing also go down as the number of parts are reduced. Inventory and work-in-process levels will go down with fewer parts. As the product structure and required operations are simplified, fewer fabrication and assembly steps are required, manufacturing processes can be integrated and lead times further reduced. The designer should go through the assembly part by part and evaluate whether the part can be eliminated, combined with another part, or the function can be performed in another way. To determine the theoretical minimum number of parts, ask the following: Does the part move relative to all other moving parts? Must the part absolutely be of a different material from the other parts? Must the part be different to allow possible disassembly? 2. Standardize and use common parts and materials to facilitate design activities, to minimize the amount of inventory in the system, and to standardize handling and assembly operations. Common parts will result in lower inventories, reduced costs and higher quality. Operator learning is simplified and there is a greater opportunity for automation as the result of higher production volumes and operation standardization. Limit exotic or unique components because suppliers are less likely to compete on quality or cost for these components. Designers to facilitate retrieval of similar designs and material catalogs can utilize group technology (GT) and Component Supplier Management (CSM) systems or approved parts lists can serve as references for common purchased and stocked parts. GT can also be used to guide in the development of manufacturing cells for common part or product families, thereby minimizing inventory and providing improved effectiveness through manufacturing focus.

3. Design for ease of fabrication. Select processes compatible with the materials and production volumes. Select materials compatible with production processes and that minimize processing time while meeting functional requirements. Avoid unnecessary part features because they involve extra processing effort and/or more complex tooling. Apply specific guidelines appropriate for the fabrication process such as the following guidelines for machinability:

For higher volume parts, consider castings or stampings to reduce machining Use near net shapes for molded and forged parts to minimize machining and processing effort. Design for ease of fixturing by providing large solid mounting surface & parallel clamping surfaces Avoid designs requiring sharp corners or points in cutting tools - they break easier Avoid thin walls, thin webs, deep pockets or deep holes to withstand clamping & machining without distortion Avoid tapers & contours as much as possible in favor of rectangular shapes Avoid undercuts which require special operations & tools Avoid hardened or difficult machined materials unless essential to requirements Put machined surfaces on same plane or with same diameter to minimize number of operations Design work piece s to use standard cutters, drill bit sizes or other tools Avoid small holes (drill bit breakage greater) & length to diameter ratio > 3 (chip clearance & straightness deviation)

Threaded Holes

Design for full thread depth. Usually 1.5 x major diameter provides adequate holding strength Drilled hole depth (to the sharp point of the tool) is recommended to be at least equal to the full thread plus major diameter, but never less than .050" Material thickness as measured from the bottom of the drilled hole to next surface should not be less than the major diameter of the thread or diameter of hole, and not less than .050".
6

When material thickness allows, thru holes are preferred

Internal Radii

Always specify largest radius possible. Small diameter tools add significant cost to manufacturing process. When design requires metalized plating such as nickel, silver or other, specify a CR "Controlled Radius" as applicable (CNC manufacturing). CAD model or design for non-standard radii. CNC machining will create a "hard corner" in that the machine will race to a radius corner and abruptly change onto the next direction. The CNC change of direction often creates "tool chatter" resulting in rough sharp edges at the radius corner. Non-standard or CR (Controlled Radius) will result in the CNC cutter to slow down and blend a smooth radius at the corner feature. The smooth radius feature will facilitate good metalized plating and avoid flaking common to small sharp edges. When depth exceeds 5 X the diameter of the pocket radii, consult manufacturing on alternative fabrication methods. Depths of up to 10 X are possible when machining aluminum but, not all manufacturing facilities have capability For deep sharp corner cutouts that require broaching or EDM, specify radii max at all cutout corners i.e. (4X R .008 MAX) 4. Design within process capabilities and avoid unneeded surface finish requirements. Know the production process capabilities of equipment and establish controlled processes. Avoid unnecessarily tight tolerances that are beyond the natural capability of the manufacturing processes. Otherwise, this will require that parts be inspected or screened for acceptability. Determine when new production process capabilities are needed early to allow sufficient time to determine optimal process parameters and establish a controlled process. Also, avoid tight tolerances on multiple, connected parts. Tolerances on connected parts will "stack-up" making maintenance of overall product tolerance difficult. Design in the center of a component's parameter range to improve reliability and limit the range of variance around the parameter objective. Surface finish requirements likewise may be established based on
7

standard practices and may be applied to interior surfaces resulting in additional costs where these requirements may not be needed.

Dimensional Tolerancing For surface composite curves such as, internal pockets, or other profiles that for CNC manufacturing a continuous cutting path will be established and manufactured. Design for and specify unilateral tolerances (+/- .010). Reason: Often the machine tools used to manufacture the components utilize a feature called "Cutter Compensation". This allows size control variation of the features being machined without having to control the NC program (file) to an exact match with the cutter diameter. For a continuous path, if "X" dimension has +0, -.005 and "Y" dimension has +. 005, -0 tolerance specified, the cutter compensation cannot be used to control size, because adding or subtracting from cutter path input automatically invokes an error to the dimension of the other toleranced continuous path surface. Simply, a offset is input into the machine relative to the cutting tool to manufacture for mid tolerance of surface "X" at -.0025 however, this path is not compatible with the "y" surface in that the nominal offset is .0025 out of tolerance. Design of tolerances should be within manufacturing capabilities. Concurrently designing for manufacturing will greatly improve product quality and reduce fabrication costs. Consult with manufacturing early in the design process. After completion of preliminary drawings, meet with manufacturing and review design intent, requirements and determine manufacturing process requirements. Manufacturing should review tolerances and determine process capabilities to meet dimensional limits. Manufacturing should identify tolerance challenges that require design and requirements review. In general, design should avoid unnecessarily tight tolerances that are beyond the natural capability of the manufacturing processes. Determine when new production process capabilities are needed early to allow sufficient time to determine optimal process parameters and establish a controlled process. Tolerance stack-ups should be
8

considered on mating parts. Overall assembly tolerances should be calculated, and interface as well as clearance requirements understood. Surface finish requirements can be established based on actual manufacturing processes employed however, surface finish requirements should be understood and design intent accurately defined. 5. Mistake-proof product design and assembly (poka-yoke) so that the assembly process is unambiguous. Components should be designed so that they can only be assembled in one way; they cannot be reversed. Notches, asymmetrical holes and stops can be used to mistake-proof the assembly process. Design verifiability into the product and its components. For mechanical products, verifiability can be achieved with simple go/no-go tools in the form of notches or natural stopping points. Products should be designed to avoid or simplify adjustments. Electronic products can be designed to contain self-test and/or diagnostic capabilities. Of course, the additional cost of building in diagnostics must be weighed against the advantages. 6. Design for parts orientation and handling to minimize non-value-added manual effort and ambiguity in orienting and merging parts. Basic principles to facilitate parts handling and orienting are:

Parts must be designed to consistently orient themselves when fed into a process. Product design must avoid parts which can become tangled, wedged or disoriented. Avoid holes and tabs and designed "closed" parts. This type of design will allow the use of automation in parts handling and assembly such as vibratory bowls, tubes, magazines, etc. Part design should incorporate symmetry around both axes of insertion wherever possible. Where parts cannot be symmetrical, the asymmetry should be emphasized to assure correct insertion or easily identifiable feature should be provided. With hidden features that require a particular orientation, provide an external feature or guide surface to correctly orient the part. Guide surfaces should be provided to facilitate insertion.
9

Parts should be designed with surfaces so that they can be easily grasped, placed and fixtured. Ideally this means flat, parallel surfaces that would allow a part to picked-up by a person or a gripper with a pick and place robot and then easily fixtured. Minimize thin, flat parts that are more difficult to pick up. Avoid very small parts that are difficult to pick-up or require a tool such as a tweezers to pick-up. This will increase handling and orientation time. Avoid parts with sharp edges, burrs or points. These parts can injure workers or customers, they require more careful handling, they can damage product finishes, and they may be more susceptible to damage themselves if the sharp edge is an intended feature. Avoid parts that can be easily damaged or broken. Avoid parts that are sticky or slippery (thin oily plates, oily parts, adhesive backed parts, small plastic parts with smooth surfaces, etc.). Avoid heavy parts that will increase worker fatigue, increase risk of worker injury, and slow the assembly process. Design the work station area to minimize the distance to access and move a part. When purchasing components, consider acquiring materials already oriented in magazines, bands, tape, or strips.

7. Minimize flexible parts and interconnections. Avoid flexible and flimsy parts such as belts, gaskets, tubing, cables and wire harnesses. Their flexibility makes material handling and assembly more difficult and these parts are more susceptible to damage. Use plug-in boards and back planes to minimize wire harnesses. Where harnesses are used, consider fool proofing electrical connectors by using unique connectors to avoid connectors being misconnected. Interconnections such as wire harnesses, hydraulic lines, piping, etc. are expensive to fabricate, assemble and service. Partition the product to minimize interconnections between modules and co-locate related modules to minimize routing of interconnections. 8. Design for ease of assembly by utilizing simple patterns of movement and minimizing the axes of assembly. Complex orientation and assembly movements in various directions should be avoided. Part features should be provided such as chamfers and tapers. The product's design should enable assembly to begin with a base
10

component with a large relative mass and a low center of gravity upon which other parts are added. Assembly should proceed vertically with other parts added on top and positioned with the aid of gravity. This will minimize the need to re-orient the assembly and reduce the need for temporary fastening and more complex fixturing. A product that is easy to assemble manually will be easily assembled with automation. Assembly that is automated will be more uniform, more reliable, and of a higher quality. Simplify design and assembly so that the assembly process is unambiguous. Components should be designed so that they can only be assembled in one way; they cannot be reversed. Roll pins, dowel pins or offset mounting holes can be employed. 9. Design for efficient joining and fastening . Threaded fasteners (screws, bolts, nuts and washers) are time-consuming to assemble and difficult to automate. Where they must be used, standardize to minimize variety and use fasteners such as self threading screws and captured washers. Consider the use of snap-together-fit. Evaluate other bonding techniques with adhesives. Match fastening techniques to materials, product functional requirements, and disassembly/servicing requirements. Threaded fasteners (screws, bolts, nuts and washers) can be timeconsuming to assemble. Consider design alternatives that will reduce fastener count. Use uniform screw sizes where practical. 10. Design modular products to facilitate assembly with building block components and sub-assemblies. This modular or building block design should minimize the number of part or assembly variants early in the manufacturing process while allowing for greater product variation late in the process during final assembly. This approach minimizes the total number of items to be manufactured, thereby reducing inventory and improving quality. Modules can be manufactured and tested before final assembly. The short final assembly lead time can result in a wide variety of products being made to a customer's order in a short period of time without having to stock a significant level of inventory. Production of standard modules can be leveled and repetitive schedules established. 11. Design for automated production. Automated production involves less flexibility than manual production. The product must be designed in a way that can be more handled with automation. There are two automation approaches: flexible robotic assembly and high
11

speed automated assembly. Considerations with flexible robotic assembly are: design parts to utilize standard gripper and avoid gripper / tool change, use self-locating parts, use simple parts presentation devices, and avoid the need to secure or clamp parts. Considerations with high speed automated assembly are: use a minimum of parts or standard parts for minimum of feeding bowls, etc., use closed parts (no projections, holes or slots) to avoid tangling, consider the potential for multi-axis assembly to speed the assembly cycle time, and use pre-oriented parts.

12

DESIGN FOR MANUFACTURABILITY - Sheet Metal Guidelines Design for minimum scrap: Stock layout is one of the most important phases of die engineering, and one of the first steps to be taken. Using a double row arrangement / use of a thinner stock (strength can be realized through judicious use of beads and ribs) results in efficient use of stock. Utilizing grain structure: In designing parts to have formed sections, such as lugs or ears, plan if at all possible to form such sections at right angles to the direction of grain in the material, otherwise they may crack in forming. Generally it is preferred practice to design formed sections parallel to each other, or at angle to each other not exceeding 45degrees. Design for strong and simple tooling: A little thought and discretion on the part of the product designer frequently can greatly facilitate optimum tool design and operation. Example: A product design that does not permit interior access for a forming tool is impractical. Designs that require tools, which are either too fragile or else weak, should be avoided. Bends: Bends should be toleranced plus or minus one-half degree at a location adjacent to the bends. For the ease of manufacturing, multiple bends on the same plane should occur in the same direction. Avoid large sheet metal parts with small bent flanges.

13

 In low carbon steel sheet metal, the minimum radius of a bend should be one-half of the material thickness or 0.80mm, whichever is larger. Counterbores The minimum distance between two counterbores is eight times the material thickness. The minimum distance from a counterbore to an edge is four times the material thickness. The minimum distance from a counterbore to a bend four times the material thickness plus the bend radius. Countersinks The maximum depth is 3.5 times the material thickness at an angle of the hardware. A minimum of 50% contact between the hardware and countersink is required. The minimum distance between two countersinks is eight times the material thickness. The minimum distance from one countersink and an edge is four times the material thickness. The minimum distance from a countersink and a bend is four times the material thickness plus the bend radius. Curls The minimum radius is two times the material thickness with an opening to a minimum of one material thickness. The minimum distance between a curl and the edge of a hole is the radius of the curl plus the material thickness. The minimum distance a curl should be from an internal bend is six times the material thickness plus the radius of the curl. The minimum distance a curl should be from an external bend is nine times the material thickness plus the radius of the curl.

Dimples The maximum diameter should be six times the material thickness, and a maximum depth of one-half the inside diameter.
14

 The minimum distance that a dimple should be from a hole is three times the material thickness plus the radius of the dimple. The minimum distance that a dimple should be from the edge is four times the material thickness plus the inside radius of the dimple. The minimum distance that a dimple should be from a bend is two times the material thickness plus the inside radius of the dimple plus the radius of the bend. The minimum distance between one dimple and another is four times the material thickness plus the inside radius of each dimple. Embossments The maximum depth is proportional to the internal radius or material thickness. The maximum depth for a flat embossment is equal to the internal radius plus the external radius. The maximum depth for a V embossment is equal to three times the material thickness. Extruded Holes The minimum distance between two extruded holes is six times material thickness The minimum distance from an extruded hole to an edge is three times the material thickness. The minimum distance from an extruded hole to a bend is three times the material thickness plus the bend radius. Flanges The minimum height of a bent flange is directly related to the material thickness, bend radius, and length of bend. The minimum width of a bend relief is one material thickness or 1.50 mm, whichever is greater. Gussets The width and depth, recommended at an angle of 45 degrees, is directly proportional to the radius and material thickness. The minimum distance that a gusset should be from the edge of a hole in a parallel plane is eight times the material thickness plus the radius of the gusset.
15

Hems The minimum diameter of a teardrop hem is to the material thickness, with a return flange height equal to or greater than four times the material thickness, and a minimum opening of of the material thickness. The minimum diameter of an open hem is equal to the material thickness with a return flange height equal to or greater than four times the material thickness. The minimum return flange height of a closed hem is equal to or greater than four times the material thickness (the diameter is zero). NOTE: Closed hems tend to fracture at the bend and cause entrapment of solutions during the finishing process. The minimum distance from a hole to a hem is two times the material thickness plus the radius of the hem. The minimum distance a hem should be from an internal bend is five times the material thickness. The minimum distance a hem should be from an external bend is eight times the material thickness. Holes The minimum diameter of a hole should be equal to the materials thickness or 1.00 mm, whichever is greater. The minimum distance between holes is directly proportional to the size and shape of the hole feature and the material thickness. The minimum distance the edge of a hole should be from a form is three times the material thickness plus the form radius. The minimum distance the edge of a hole should be from a bend is two times the material thickness plus the bend radius. The minimum distance between a hole and the edge of the material is directly proportional to the size and shape of the hole and the material thickness. The minimum distance between the leading edge of a hole through a bend should be equal to the thickness of material plus the bend radius or two times the material thickness, whichever is greater. Lances The minimum width of an open lance is two times the material thickness or 3.00 mm (0.125 inch), whichever is greater, with a maximum length of five times the width. The minimum width of a closed lance is two times the material thickness or 1.60 mm (0.06 inch), whichever is greater, and a
16

maximum height of five times the material thickness at a 45-degree angle. The minimum distance from a lance to a bend in a parallel plane is eight times the material thickness plus the radius of the bend. The minimum distance from a lance to a bend in a perpendicular plane is ten times the material thickness plus the radius of the bend. The minimum distance from a lance to a hole is three times the material thickness. Notches The minimum width is equal to the material thickness or 1.00 mm (0.04 inch), whichever is greater. The maximum length for a straight/radius end notch is equal to five times the width. The maximum length for a V notch is equal to two times the width. The minimum distance between a hole and the edge of a notch is directly proportional to the size/shape of the hole and the material thickness. The minimum distance from a notch to a bend in a parallel plane is eight times the material thickness plus the radius of the bend. The minimum distance from a notch to a bend in a perpendicular plane is three times the material thickness plus the radius of the bend. The minimum distance beyond the bend on the side edge is equal to the thickness of the material plus the bend radius, or two times the material thickness, whichever is greater. The minimum distance between two notches is two times the material thickness or 3.200 mm (0.125 inch), whichever is greater. Ribs The maximum inside radius is equal to three times the material thickness, with a maximum depth of the inside radius. The minimum distance from a centerline of a rib to the edge of a hole is three times the material thickness plus the radius of the rib. The minimum distance a rib should be from an edge in a perpendicular plane is four times the material thickness plus the radius of the rib. The minimum distance a rib should be from an edge in a parallel plane is eight times the material thickness plus the radius of the rib.
17

 The minimum distance a rib should be from a bend perpendicular to the rib is two times the material thickness, plus the radius of the rib, plus the radius of the bend. The minimum distance between two parallel ribs is ten times the material thickness plus the radii of the ribs. Semi-Pierced Hole The minimum distance from a semi-pierced hole and a form is three times the material thickness plus the form radius. The minimum distance from a semi-pierced hole and a bend is two times the material thickness plus the bend radius. The minimum distance between semi-pierced holes is eight times the material thickness. Slots The minimum width of a slot is equal to the material thickness or 1.00 mm (0.04 inch), whichever is greater. The minimum distance from the inside surface of a bend to the edge of a slot is directly proportional to the length of the slot, material thickness, and radius of the bend. When using slots and tabs the maximum width of the slot must be greater than the thickness of the tab and the tab length should equal the material thickness. Tabs The minimum width is equal to two times the material thickness or 3.200 mm, whichever is greater, while the maximum length is five times the width. The minimum distance between tabs is equal to the material thickness or 1.00 mm (0.04 inch), whichever is greater. Welding Spot welding should be restricted to joining coplanar surfaces. The minimum distance between welds is 10 times the material thickness. Using 20 times the material thickness is ideal. The minimum distance between a weld and the edge is two times the diameter of the spot weld. The minimum distance from a weld to a form is the spot diameter plus the bend radius. Plating Outside sharp corners receive twice as much plating as flat surfaces.
18

 Allow for pitch diameters for screw threads, which can increase four times the plating thickness. Tapped holes may need to be re-tapped after plating to ensure accuracy. Projections accumulate more plating than other areas. Recessed areas may be difficult to plate, resulting in little or no coverage. Lap-welded joints trap plating solutions. One solution is to raise welds on embossed areas by 0.015 in. (0.3 mm) to allow for flushing and blow drying between the surfaces. Masking of stampings and fabrications to anodize certain areas is not recommended. Design drain holes/vent holes for plating solutions and rinsing. Design tabs/holes for attachment to part racks.

SUMMARY Design for Manufacturability and Integrated Product Development may require additional effort early in the design process. However, the integration of product and process design through improved business practices, management philosophies and technology tools will result in a more producible product to better meet customer needs, a quicker and smoother transition to manufacturing, and a lower total program/life cycle cost. In an increasingly competitive world, product design and customer service may be the ultimate way to distinguish a company's capabilities. Because of the growing importance of product design, Design for Manufacturability and Integrated Product Development concepts will be critical. It will be the key to achieving and sustaining competitive advantage through the development of high quality, highly functional products effectively manufactured through the synergy of integrated product and process design.

19