Mold design is an important part in the development of large-scale products. Because product and mold design are interdependent, it is very useful for product design engineers and mold design engineers to understand the development process of plastic parts, mold design process and the role of mold manufacturing process. Typical product development process in different stages, including product definition, product design, experience and product development, production capacity improvement, and launch.
Although the product development process is complex, most of them have the following two key
attributes:
1. Establish systematic development plan to ensure the perfection of design and manufacturing.
2. Establish a checkpoint process to avoid risks by effectively assessing the budget allocation at key points of the project.
3. The product development process is divided into several stages through the approval of cost level. The next stage evaluates the previous stage.
1. Product definition
The process of product development begins with market analysis, understanding of competitors' product standards, definition of product specifications and evaluation of potential profits. If management agrees to develop new products, a suitable team will be formed for early conceptual design and business development. In the first stage, we need to estimate the approximate size, properties and cost of the product. At the same time, conceptual sketches, physical prototypes and prototypes may be discussed and their feasibility assessed.
In terms of profitability, market research will try its best to predict the potential sales at different price points in the early stage of product calendering. At the same time, it will establish the budget of manpower cost and project cost needed to develop products and push products to the market. Through continuous evaluation of the potential success of product development business, the management's evaluation of concept design, anchor sales expectation and budget is obtained. The proposed product development project may be rejected, shelved or modified accordingly.
2. Product design
If the project is approved and the budget is allocated, the product development process will continue, usually with further analysis and design after additional funding is provided. In the second stage, every component in the product will be designed in detail. The design of plastic parts includes the consideration of aesthetics, structure, heating, manufacturing and other aspects. The design of manufacturing method will be used to confirm the effective manufacturing of components. The design of assembly method can be used to reduce components, determine the tolerance of key dimensions and ensure the assembly economy of finished products.
The design result of the initial product design stage (through the second management recommendation) is a detailed and validated product design. "Detailed design" means that each component is assigned material, geometry, surface roughness, tolerance, supplier and cost. If you need to customize plastic parts, you need to quote these parts at this stage. Submit manufacturing cost and detailed design to management for approval. If the product design and cost are acceptable, the required budget will be allocated, and the product development will mainly focus on manufacturing.
3. Business and production development
Although mold design and mold manufacturing are the focus of the plastic industry, these contents are included in the "mold manufacturing" activity. At the same time, important business development and production plan will be established. Specifically, business development needs to fully define the supply chain and establish initial orders to support the launch of the product. To lay out the assembly line, transport the human resource demand, and establish the manufacturing technology facility scheme, the production plan needs to be established.
When the mould is finished, the production, testing and assembly of "α" (initial) products will be carried out. After that, the initial product is tested to verify its performance level, implementation standards and user satisfaction. If the initial product is unsatisfactory, the manufacturing process, related tools and detailed component design shall be adjusted appropriately. At the same time, operators will make detailed plans for quality control and personnel training.
4. Scale up and production
The high use of management review method to verify whether the design and production plan of the developed products are clear. If this is the case, a medium weight product may be manufactured during sample production in accordance with standard manufacturing requirements. The "beta" products produced will be provided to the marketing department, sales team and key customers to determine the acceptability of the products. As before, products designed and manufactured may be modified to solve important problems. When all stakeholders (marketing, sales, manufacturing, key suppliers, key customers) are ready, products are produced based on the sample production process and initial inventory of products is established, and then products are put on the market.
5. Role of mold design
Mold quotation, mold design and mold manufacturing support a huge product development process. When a quotation for tooling and / or part costs is required, it usually means the beginning of the conceptual design phase or the detailed design phase. At this time, if the mold engineer or mold maker gives a full and detailed design, it is unreasonable,
The reasons are as follows:
1. A lot of work of early mold design is carried out at the same time with imperfect product design;
2. Due to the consideration of manufacturing process or product performance, the mold design may need to be greatly modified.
The mold development process usually starts with the initial design without details. If the initial design is used directly, it may lead to the production of unsatisfactory products. Key parts needed to start mold design
