CASE STUDY:VEHICLE COMPONENT DESIGN AND MANUFACTURE
New coach design – large number of composite panels most of which are double skinned and foam cored
Customer’s needs
The demands of the market place have meant that the life of a product between facelifts in the automotive and vehicle markets has reduced dramatically.
hat is Volume manufacture
Recent media emphasis on the potential impact of vehicle emissions on the environment and the need to reduce everyone’s carbon footprint is continuing to drive down the weight of veihicles.
This has forced industry to consider non traditional methods of manufactuer as well as investigate the use of new materials.
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The use of composites has steadily grown over the last two decades as processing technology has advanced and material costs have reduced.
With over 30 years of experinece in designing with, and the processing of, advanced composites as well as more traditional materials, Ideas2Reality’s team can assist clients both in the selection of materials, the design phases of transport projects and any processing and manufacture issues.
Typical projects have included advising on setting up of the initial production facility for the manufacture of a new range of coaches. This included working with the designers and pattern makers to determine which processes and materials would be best suited for the manuafcture of particular components.
It also included assisting with the design and manufacture of the tooling together with the manufacture of the first batch of launch vehicles. Ideas2Reality also designed and arranged for the manuafcture of a number of special purpose machines to assist with the growth in production anticipated by the client.
At the other end of the spectrum is the manuafcture of low volume sports cars and customised trim panels such as spoilers. Clients involved in such projects are often working on a limited budget yet are seeking to achieve a very high performance quality product.
The production volumes do not justify expensive automated manufacturing processes. Ideas2Reality’s knowledge and experinece with a wide range of processes means it is often possible to assist the cleint to tailor the technology to suit their specific needs and budget.
How the customer’s needs are met
Often in these types of project it is necessary to work from the production phase of the project backwards. By understanding the price and performance issues that face the client in relation to the production volumes it is possible to identify the materials that will best suit the client’s requirements.
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The selection process must also take into account the methods by which the various materials can also be processed.
These can range from highly capital intensive, relatively high volume processes to very low cost, low volume methods of manufacture.
Each process has advantages and disadvantages which need to be clearly understood.
This enables the client to select the most suitable materials and process technology for their particular project.