Get Tips from Our Experts
Tip #1
Design for Manufacturability or DFM
Is the general engineering art of designing products in such a way that they are easy to manufacture. The basic idea exists in almost all engineering disciplines, but of course the details differ widely depending on the manufacturing technology. This design practice not only focuses on the design aspect of a part but also on the producibility. In simple language it means relative ease to manufacture a product, part or assembly. DFM describes the process of designing or engineering a product in order to facilitate the manufacturing process in order to reduce its manufacturing costs. DFM will allow potential problems to be fixed in the design phase which is the least expensive place to address them. The design of the component can have an enormous effect on the cost of manufacturing. Other factors may affect the manufacturability such as the type of raw material, the form of the raw material, dimensional tolerances, and secondary processing such as finishing.
The design stage is very important in product design. Most of the product lifecycle costs are committed at design stage. The product design is not just based on good design but it should be possible to produce by manufacturing as well. Often an otherwise good design is difficult or impossible to produce. Typically a design engineer will create a model or design and send it to manufacturing for review and invite feedback. This process is called a design review.
If DFM is applied there could be substantial benefits. Costs and time-to-market are often cut in half with significant improvements in quality, reliability, serviceability, product line breadth, delivery, customer acceptance and, in general, competitive posture.
- The tighter the tolerance the more expensive the part is to produce.
- Avoid +/-0.005” tolerance on bolt clearance holes
- Avoid Metal form tolerances of +/-0.005”
- Avoid designing left and right parts.
- Design parts with Symmetry.
- If part symmetry is not possible, make parts very asymmetrical.
- Design parts for fixturing.
- Minimize tooling complexity by concurrently designing tooling.
- Specify optimal tolerances for a robust design.
- Use of readily available materials in part design will reduce the cost to produce parts.
Here at Raymath we have the experience and expertise in Fabrication, Machining and Stamping to be your partner in Product Development and Production.
Please give us an opportunity to help in your design effort just call Raymath at 937.335.1860 and ask for a Sales Engineer or email Sales@Raymath.com.
