Key process variable driven manufacturing process selection

Tuckwood, May and Conway, Alastair and Whitfield, Ian (2014) Key process variable driven manufacturing process selection. In: 13th International Design Conference (Design 2014), 2014-05-19 - 2014-05-22, Croatia.

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Abstract

There is a lack of objective manufacturing process pre-selection techniques, and subsequently, a need for a quick, broad and comparative study using key variables to evaluate potential manufacturing processes, with the intent of down-selecting and prioritising these processes. In the majority of cases, engineers trust their experience in selecting the process for the manufacture of a specific component. However this may result in bias and preference of processes and materials being key drivers for their selection. As a result, optimal manufacturing processes; some of which may be new and emergent technologies, can be overlooked, simply because of the gap in knowledge in terms of process capability and applicability. Over the last 20 years in particular, research in this area has resulted in the development of a range of methods, which attempt to improve the procedure of manufacturing process selection. A flexible, adaptable decision-based methodology has been developed. In contrast to previous research, the methodology presented within this paper does not work under the assumption that each selection task should be approached in the same way. Instead, design requirements are translated in a logical manner, are case dependent, subsequently providing the criteria for selection. Appearing simplistic, the methodology is underpinned by hidden complexities that filter all possible manufacturing processes into a set of viable contenders applicable to the specific component, allowing selection of the most efficient process.

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