Abstract
To remain competitive in the market, it is crucial to reduce the time and costs involved in product development. Design for manufacturing and assembly is an engineering methodology that can reduce costs without compromising reliability, performance and time to market objectives. This paper presents a case study for an in-market Table Top Chain (TTC) conveyor system used by a reputed company in Saudi Arabia. TTC conveyor systems are extensively used by major food companies around the world for transporting packaged bottles, glass and cans. There are three main types of these systems, i.e., straight running, side flexing and multiflex. This work focuses on the redesign of a side flexing TTC conveyor system. The existing design of the TTC conveyor system was analysed using the DFMA 9.3 software. The outcomes of the initial analysis were utilised to redesign the TTC conveyor system for cost and design efficiency improvements. The optimum design was selected using Pugh controlled convergence method and further tested for its structural performance using finite element analysis. The redesigned model showed substantial improvements with cost reductions of 29% and an increase in design efficiency from 1.7% to 5%. Finite element analysis has also been carried out with SolidWorks 2019 to validate the structural integrity of the new concept design.
Highlights
Cost-effectiveness, ease of manufacture as well as assembly/disassembly are some of the factors that govern modern products
Pugh Control Convergence method (PuCC) was used as an effffective tool in narrowing down the difffferent concepts generated for improving the old conveyor systemm
The results obtained after critically analysing the merits and demerits of different conveyor systems based on various criteria like weight consideration, manufacturing cost and ease of fabrication are further justified by the Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DFMA) analysis
Summary
Cost-effectiveness, ease of manufacture as well as assembly/disassembly are some of the factors that govern modern products. Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DFMA) is a well-established product design technique used to minimize the cost of production and development by designing products that utilise the simplest of components. Use of DFMA slows down the process briefly during the product conceptualization stage in terms of time because additional activities will take place to undertake DFMA. According to Boothroyd, Dewhurst, and Knight (2010), the extra time consumed while using DFMA techniques in the conceptualization stage is compensated by the savings in time when prototyping takes place [1]. DFMA is a practical design method that enables early consideration of the production aspect of manufacturing and assembly [2]. A product with a poor design will be low quality even if the quality control and quality assurance succeed in producing the Designs 2020, 4, 6; doi:10.3390/designs4010006 www.mdpi.com/journal/designs
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