aki NPRO Process

aki NPRO Process

aki NPRO process defined

Concept

  • Brainstorming
  • Analyse customer and market
  • Idea generation
  • Macroenvironment has 6 sources of new ideas:
  1. Technological
  2. Political/legal
  3. Demographic
  4. Social/cultural
  5. Economic
  6. Natural
  • Technology push / market pull / society demand
  • Screened ideas into projects
  • Development of product/customer requirements
  • Concept generation - Form, benefit/need, technology

Design

  • Purpose of design is:
  1. Aesthetics
  2. Ergonomics
  3. Function
  4. Manufacturability
  5. Servicing
  6. Disassembly
  • Design for different routes e.g. speed to market, ease of manufacture, customer needs, corporate identity.
  • Use of CAD improves design and makes it far easier, reduces need for prototypes.

Rapid Prototype

  • There are two main types of prototypes:
  1. Comprehensive is complete, fully functioning and full sized
  2. Focused is not fully functioning or developed, designed to examine specific attributes
  • Reduces product development costs (40-70%)
  • All use computer generated models
  • Virtual prototypes becoming more popular to cut costs
  • Different types of rapid prototypes - SLA and SLS most popular
  • Not always good representation of final part (materials, dimensions etc.)

Prototype Tooling

  • Run test prototypes before final tool
  • Reduces cost of producing final tool before being sure it is correct
  • Virtual simulation software becoming more popular for tool design (reduces the need for prototype tools by simulating conditions before tool design finalised)
  • True 3D moulding analysis now used (even fibre orientation during moulding) software such as moldflow

Production Tooling

  • Choosing correct material very important
  • Correct design and manufacture reduces costs further down the line mainly due to improved wearing (Cr content), and good tolerances.
  • Extremely complex tooling for some products - not a problem if good design of tool has been carried out
  • Manufacture (CNC milling etc)
  • Tolerances very fine

Validation

  • Validation can be defined as: the process of confirming, corroborating, substantiating or checking that something is "as intended"
  • Usually involves checking products characteristics against defined requirements
  • Finished parts must meet certain validation standards before they can be put into full production
  • Comparing model data to real life data for validating parts
  • Some form of comparison must be carried out - either between simulation and real life or just between various simulations
  • Performance of final product and processes involved in making it can be validated

Production

  • Continued product optimisation and cost evaluation
  • Production process continually optimised (problems in production can lead to improved processing)
  • Savings for customer constantly evaluated to remain most competitive
  • Tool modification and repair where necessary