~ Design & Technology ~ 

A~Z

The Design Cycle

Project Guide

Reminder of ...Planning & Making

What materials and processes are you intending to use ?  How would your product be made commercially in large numbers ? What will be the necessary stages of your putting the item together ? Have you got all the resources you need to complete the project ? How long will it take ? How could it be improved - even at this late stage ?  At what stages would it be best to test your creation ?  Would a questionnaire that found out peoples subjective views about your design be useful and at what stage should quantitative testing be done ? Could it be made in batches?
In practical testing where quantitative results are obtained how can you make sure that no damage is done ? - (i.e. testing to destruction).  If there is any printing to be done on parts of your product when should this be done ?

At this point you might consider more developments - In this example of the base plate of an embossing machine would it be better to join the pieces using screws rather than the time consuming method of brazing? Would this be more efficient when thinking of making the product in large numbers. The use of CAD/CAM will have made the product much easier to model and made any changes much easier to visualise.

Whilst you are planning the manufacture of your product why not include a section that looks at recycling and the impact that different materials and processes have on the environment. There is now much greater concern being shown by large companies about the way in which their manufacturing affects the atmosphere and the planet's future.

There are lots of examples on the web....  There are Cost implications too.

Check the web for 'life-cycle analysis' and how the cost of products can be assessed throughout their lives