Bring manufacturing, design teams together early in the design process

Sometimes it helps to "walk a mile in the other guy's shoes." Or, in the case of product designers, how do they see the role of manufacturers?

According to Steve Callahan, president of Boston-based Radius Product Development (radiuspd.com), there are five ways to increase the chances of being first-to-market with a new product design and improving overall profitability, starting with understanding the role of the manufacturer.

Writing in the Spring 2007 edition of the Design Management Insitute (dmi.org) newsletter News & Views, Callahan noted "Your company must make a conscious effort to incorporate manufacturability into the early stages of the product design process. This means having a hands-on manufacturing professional work collaboratively on the design team during its early discussion of a design concept."

Other points he raised:
• Be sure the manufacturing professional you choose is hands-on, with the right attitude.
• Be sure your product development team has the best tools and technologies to anticipate how the manufacturing process will unfold.
• The entire product development team must act as one team and be accountable to itself.
• Designers, too, must be informed and kept part of the product development cycle to the very end.

Callahan concluded "if your design and manufacturing teams share the mindset of thinking holistically about design...you'll beat your competition to the marketplace."
The DMI hosts its 19th international brand design conference June 6-8 in Chicago (dmi.org/branddesign).

Mike Edwards, Editor, DPN Magazine medwards@clbmedia.ca
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USEFUL SITES

MCAD demos. The UGS PLM Software division of Siemens has announced that its Solid Edge Version 20 software has video demos hosted on YouTube (youtube.com).

Die casting. The North American Die Casting Association has announced its website is now hosting the information from the Design for Diecasting CD (diecasting.org/oem/designcd).

Rapid prototyping services. Designfusion has announced it is offering rapid prototyping services using the Z Corporation 3D printer (designfusion.ca). Customers can upload part files and receive a quote (contact Rose Francella, 888-567-3933). Click video link to see 3D printer demo.

Fasteners. The redesigned Nylok Corp. website (nylok.com) offers a new "Problem Solver" section to enable selection of appropriate self-locking technology.
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       DPNCANADA.COM EXCLUSIVES

Pneumatic valve modules. The Pneumatic Division of Parker Hannifin has announced the Dual 4-Way Valve for the Moduflex valves system series. The valve combines two 4-way independently operated valves into one Size 1 valve body.

Crash test accelerometer. Endevco Corp. has introduced the model 7285 piezoresistive accelerometer for vehicle crash, crush zone and impact testing.

Handwheels. Jergens, Inc. has announced handwheels that include either solid or spoke-style units in a variety of diameters, from 1-in.-diameter finger wheels to 23-in.-diameter handwheels.

High force solenoid. Magnet-Schultz of America has introduced the 44X32 solenoid. Units can accommodate up to 5 lb in the continuous duty mode, up to 10 lb in the intermittent duty mode and up to 30 lb in the pulse duty mode – all at a stroke of 1 in. max.

         

UPCOMING EVENTS

May 31-June 2, 2007. Quebec City. Power Transmission Distributors Association presents the PTDA 2007 Canadian Conference (ptda.org).

June 7, 13, 14, 15, 19 & 21, 2007. Vancouver, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary, Halifax & Ottawa. Experience the Possibilities Tour will showcase the 2008 release of Autodesk software products such as Inventor and AutoCAD (autodesk.com/live).

June 3-6, 2007. Tampa, FL. PTC/user World Event for users of PTC software products such as Pro/ENGINEER, Mathcad and Windchill (ptcuser.org).

June 19-21, 2007. Edmonton. Western Manufacturing Technology Show presented by the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (sme.org/events).

August 7-9, 2007. Austin, TX. Virtual instrumentation conference and exhibition NIWeek 2007 presented by National Instruments (ni.com/niweek).

September 24-27, 2007. Rosemont, IL. National Manufacturing Week conference and exposition includes the Design Engineering and Assembly Technology Expo shows (manufacturingweek.com).
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SPONSOR MESSAGE: PTC Corporation



Pro/ENGINEER 30-day trial download.

Take Pro/ENGINEER for a no cost test drive. Download the free 30-Day Trial and see how Pro/ENGINEER can help you work faster and smarter than ever. The 30-Day Trial Edition is easy to use and packed with tutorials so you get the most out of your test drive. 
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PTC is pleased to announce new Pro/ENGINEER packages to satisfy our customer's demands for easy-to-use, powerful, pre-configured packages at competitive price points.

A Single Platform for Companies of All Sizes

PTC renamed the Pro/ENGINEER packages to create a scalable system that enables customers to easily and quickly identify the package that best meets their needs. The new naming system shows the logical hierarchy of functionality designed to meet the varied demands of discrete manufacturers.

Here's a brief overview of the new packages, and existing packages with new names:

Pro/ENGINEER Foundation XE (Extended Edition)
(Formerly Pro/ENGINEER Foundation Advantage)

3D CAD Design (Advanced Modeling, Drawing, Assembly, Sheetmetal, etc.)

Pro/ENGINEER Advanced SE (Standard Edition)
(Formerly Pro/ENGINEER Foundation Advantage + Data Management)

3D CAD Design, plus Product Data Management (PDM)

Pro/ENGINEER Advanced XE - New

3D CAD Design, PDM, plus choice of Extended Design Add-ons (Free-Form Surfacing, Top-Down Design, Piping/Cabling, Mechanism Design, Optimization)

Pro/ENGINEER Enterprise SE
(Formerly Pro/ENGINEER Flex 3C)

3D CAD, PDM, choice of Extended Design Add-on, plus Collaboration/Project Management

Pro/ENGINEER Enterprise XE - New

3D CAD, PDM, Extended Design CAD add-ons, collaboration/project management, plus Simulation and Analysis, Engineering Calculations, Enterprise Visualization, Documentation Editor, and Web-based Training

"We believe PTC has done a good job at positioning itself as the best vendor to offer firms an upgrade path from small to large enterprises…the good news is that PTC's design tools give small firms the same competitive weapons as their larger counterparts."
- Needham & Company

We trust that this new system will make it much easier for you and your team to grow with the PTC family of product development tools. To learn more about the new packaging or to speak with a sales representative about upgrade options, visit: www.ptc.com/go/proengineerpackages

Now Available:

May 2007 DPN Digital Edition

• Dawn of "plug-in" vehicles by Bill Vance
• Taking hydraulics out of presses
• Mold insert machine safety light curtains
• Network sensors automate weighing
• More 3D PDF content for DPN online
 
Click on the golfer to see the
complete PDF (15 MB download)
of the May 2007 Design Product News
 

And coming in June...

• Hardtop convertibles in Automotive Scene
• Rapid prototyping boosts fuel cell design
• MCAD software productivity stories
• Enclosure technologies
• Hannover Fair 2007 roundup