A methodology for integrated product development using design and manufacturing templates

Purpose - The primary objective of this paper is to illustrate the development of an integrated product development environment using template-based methodology. This system would thus act as an effective tool to reduce cost by foreseeing manufacturability constraints during concept generation phase. Concurrent engineering approach is applied to product and process development and thus the different phases of manufacturing are integrated together. The developed template system is then used for the design of a prototype using an electric motor. Design/methodology/approach - In this paper, implementation of an integrated design based on templates is presented. The developed system components such as design calculations, component search, machine selection, process template retrieval and cost estimation. These components are integrated to relational databases. These databases contain all information required for integrated product and process development. Concepts used in developing the system are independent of the software used. Findings - By using templates, the time required for new product development is drastically reduced. At the same time incorporating computer-aided process planning into the system gives the designer a better understanding of the cost implications of the modified design with respect to manufacturing. The major challenge in implementing of such system is that any changes in the manufacturing facility have to be incorporated in the process plans stored. This can be a tedious job but can be overcome by using hybrid process planning approach instead of variant based approach. Research limitations/implications - The proposed template systems can be further developed to be considered as infrastructure necessary for design within a collaborative engineering environment. Further research and development is necessary for implementation. Though, the result from this case is promising. Originality/value - The paper proposes the structure necessary for the implementation of a template-based system. The approach used in the development of the integrated systems could be used by small and mid segment industries which do not have enough resources for costly software upgrading and complex computer technologies. By using templates, the time required for new product development is drastically reduced.