Today’s post covers why design for manufacturability (DfM) is vital for product success when investing in 3D design firms. You may have felt that surge if you’ve ever had a great concept for a product. You look around and see others getting it, using it, and making it their own. Maybe you even drew it on a napkin at lunch or sold it to a buddy in hopes of getting it. But a great idea is just the start, as many inventors and businesses have learned. There is a turning street full of potential minefields between the concept and the buyer.
One of the largest things you can do to save money and time is to ignore design for manufacturability services, or DfM. Don’t scroll on and think this is some boring engineering talk nobody but factory folks wants to sit through. DfM is not some boring checklist factory folks are curious about being the end itself. It is the magic dust that keeps your product idea from becoming a cautionary footnote. It is your idea’s fitness coach, boot-camping it in order to make it through the nasty world of suppliers, factory floors, and customer specs.
Here, we are going to explain to you why DfM is valuable, and how it’s an investment of your time if you’ve got the right design firm to support you. We are going to demonstrate how a platform like Cad Crowd will place you side by side with the pros who will do the heavy lifting for you.
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The story of two widgets: a DfM lesson in disguise
Let’s begin with a story. WidgetWorks and GizmoTech are two companies that, independently, came up with the idea of a coffee mug that stirs itself. WidgetWorks hires a product concept design firm that comes up with a terrific, high-tech sketch. It has lines that would be the envy of anyone astride a sports car and a stirring rod that would never be out of place in a science fiction movie. The investors are awestruck. The prototype performs equally well on the laboratory bench. But there’s a catch.
The agitator gear works on five separate vendors, with tighter tolerances than the drum, and a manufacturing process so advanced that seasoned technicians wince with rage. But GizmoTech’s got a company that’s practiced DfM from the start. The mug is trendy and cool, but they made the pieces simple so it’s a snap to buy them. The stir assembly is simple, robust, and easy to manufacture. They’ve even sketched out how it’ll be packaged up and shipped without it getting broken.
Six months later, WidgetWorks is stuck in delay, shock, cost, and angry emails. GizmoTech is filling mugs, posting TikTok selfies of delighted customers smiling over mugs, and making hand over fist money. Tough luck: DfM is working magic.
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What exactly is design for manufacturability?
DfM is the methodology for product designers to design a product so that it may be manufactured at low cost, efficiently, and in a dependable manner. It considers materials, processes, assembly techniques, tolerances, and even potential supply chain issues many months before you ever cut anything in plastic or metal. Imagine making a robot toy comprised of a lot of different joints that you could only put together with tweezers and a magnifying lens. It looks great on the CAD display, but making it is a nightmare. DfM makes you think about the hard questions first: Is there a way to make this easier?
Can we use normal materials instead of just using rare ones? Is this group going to need an origami degree? DfM is not stifling your imagination. It is actually a catalyst for your imagination. If you think about manufacturing early enough, you will discover other innovative means of doing what you want to have done, such as putting multiple parts into one molded part or employing an assembly procedure that doesn’t save assembly time but saves integrity.
That’s where your product design company can step in. Most companies have no idea about manufacturing. A seasoned firm with DfM will walk you through solutions to look at, function, and production constraint issues. Cad Crowd, for instance, can put you in touch with design companies and independent designers who walk the tightrope as a business. They can bring a fresh perspective to your idea and infuse it with battle-tested expertise, and save you expensive surprises down the line.
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Why DfM avoidance is the same as wedding planning without inviting the wedding venue
Not doing DfM is equivalent to planning a wedding without going ahead to check with the wedding hall to see if they have enough chairs, parking, or even electricity. You might take weeks going about choosing the perfect flowers, choosing invitations, and choosing a band, but on your wedding day, end up having your guests standing in mud listening to an acoustic guitar. The same applies if you dive headlong into product design without DfM services. Absolutely, you can create a good-looking prototype. Then you find:
- Tolerances so close that precision machines are unable to measure them.
- Your twenty-stage assembly when all it needs is five.
- You bought a plastic that is now back-ordered worldwide.
- One source recently hiked price makes a critical contribution.
And meanwhile, while you’re busy addressing those problems, your budget’s gone out the window, your schedule’s gone down the drain, and your competitor’s done something a lot simpler but brilliant.
The human side of DfM
DfM is not material or hardware. DfM are individuals. Think of a temperamental, tiny piece of assembly line that seems to have been designed so it will slip out of your hands. Think of a customer who is provided with a shaky product because the design had not been designed to accommodate the material chosen. By doing it right, by following the principles of DfM, you are doing it for every single person in the supply chain: the assembly technician who needs a working process, the quality product engineer who needs accessible test points, and the customer who needs a product that just works right out of the box.
Your shareholders will even sleep better at night because you’ve mitigated risk. When you are selecting DfM, you are not compromising you’re building a solid foundation. You’re prototyping in the field, and not on screen. And that’s more exhilarating than some slick render, ultimately.
How a design firm with DfM capability delivers value
A good design house takes several times as much as a group of talented 3D artists and CAD software. They are your protection against your production nightmares. They will inquire about a pain-in-the-neck part today that will be worth millions in the future. Is the geometry of the parts in the real world for injection molding? Will this fastening system hold up to shocks during shipping? Can we cut down on the number of single products to make them easier to find? Is there something cheaper that works just as well?
These firms with world-class DfM capability also happen to have supply chain relationships or specialized expertise in factory operations. They can dictate manufacturing processes, lead times, and even packaging issues. To add a business like that as a partner is not an added expense. It’s a bet on your product’s future. Sites like Cad Crowd allow you to perform this search. Instead of hearsay or speculation, you can look at portfolios, reviews, and contact specialists whose area of expertise is compatible with what you need. If you need a sheet metal design specialist, an injection molding specialist, or a PCB layout specialist, then Cad Crowd can refer you to your desired specialist.
Common DfM fallacies that trap designers and business people
There are a few myths circulating about DfM, and a couple of them are rather old. Let us separate the fact from fiction and hopefully contemptuously ridicule the myth.
Myth 1: DfM stifles creativity
This is complaining that guardrails ruin the enjoyment of driving along a mountain road. DfM won’t murder creativity. It concentrates it. It is the way in which most of the good stuff occurs along the way, working within the constraints of manufacturing. A wise DfM designer can utilize constraints as the basis for innovation.
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Myth 2: DfM is reserved for large companies
Startups are mistaken in thinking that DfM is something to avoid after they’ve “made it.” Small companies have the most to gain by avoiding costly rework. A lean entrepreneur cannot afford to lose the cost of a production failure. DfM is an insurance policy, not a luxury.
Myth 3: If the prototype works, mass production will work
This is maybe the most deadly of myths. Prototypes can be lovingly hand-fashioned with devotion. Mass production is not so. A solution that will work in your basement once will not work when mass-produced in the thousands.
Myth 4: Any designer knows manufacturing
All. Not every good prototype designer has an understanding of the shop floor of the manufacturing world. Some might be excellent at drawing wonderful images, but will have no clue as to how the world is for manufacturing. With. Working with a platform like Cad Crowd, you can avail the best talent who come. Combine the art of the artist with rational capability.
Common product flops due to poor DfM
The world is full of cautionary tales in which ill-considered DfM had the best of it and made a joke with no punchline. Here are some to entertain you – and instill a little fear.
The battery compartment disaster
It was a single company that produced a best-selling toy that employed a battery pack so loosely that parents needed to open the toy halfway, even just to replace batteries. Consumer reaction was merciless: “Great toy, hell to change the batteries.” It cost them millions in redesigning.
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The invisible screw
One firm created a cooking appliance that required a one-minute screw to hold an extra mobile part in position. They screwed it in so far inside the machinery that they could not remove it with a standard screwdriver. They had to have them ordered special one at a time per assembler. A professional design for manufacture and assembly designer would have saved them with one moving change.
The impossible snap-fit
One of the electronics manufacturers made a phone case with an advanced snap-fit closure. It was trendy, but in production, they found that a lot of force needed to be used to snap pieces together and snap cases were being produced as well as a pile of scrap. It is funny now, but stressful and expensive then. They also remind us cheerfully that DfM is not to be feared.
How to collaborate with a design firm
Collaboration with a 3D product modeling design firm is essential. The clearer your goal, boundaries, and expectations, the better the result. The following guidelines will guarantee simple and successful collaboration:
1. Clarify your big picture
Decide on the worth of your product, market, and end use. A good designer will make better decisions if he or she is aware of what you envision.
2. Be logical in terms of budget and schedule
Biting the bullet on schedule or budget will not accelerate it or save money. Transparent communication allows the company to make logical choices.
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3. Give DFM input early
Customers may present a half-cooked design and ask for a glaze under emergency conditions. But by presenting DfM upfront, problems can be avoided, not just cured.
4. Ask how earlier problems were solved
An experienced design for manufacturing and assembly company will possess sample problems that they work on. They can show problem-solving and creativity by working on these samples.
5. Use aites like Cad Crowd
Cad Crowd allows you to easily find professionals who fit your needs. You can envision the designers who worked on something similar, so that you don’t have an incompatible expectation risk.
DfM across different industries
DfM is not a universal subject. Other items have to be addressed in different industries:
Consumer electronics
With electronics, DfM choices affect heat loss to assembly efficiency. Heat trapped, reduced life, or an assembly nightmare could be the result of bad layout. The experienced electronics designer can turn parts around for air flow and enjoy free flow on the assembly line.
Auto parts
Auto withstands harsh environments and has to function at low costs. DfM provides realistic tolerances, robust materials, and safe designs without extra cost.
Medical devices
Medical devices are regulated and safe in some cases with very minute components, therefore it’s essential to hire a proficient medical devices design firm. One is left without authorization if a design error is committed, at risk of harming life. This cannot be done in DfM’s situation.
Consumer products
From gym equipment to kitchen equipment, consumer goods are subject to competitive markets. DfM enables you to manufacture in batches without sacrificing quality or price creep above what the customer will accept. For each of these markets, the appropriate consumer product design company, employee or hiring one through Cad Crowd, is your promise of premature success.
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Why DfM saves more than money
DfM definitely saves dollars on the prevention of costly redesigns and nightmares in production, but the return is so much greater than what ends up in the bottom line:
Time savings
Every postponed production will leave you behind schedule for the launch of your product, and your competition is already ahead of you. DfM gets you ahead of the game and on scheduled deadlines.
Brand reputation
A faulty product will kill your reputation. A hiccup is acceptable once, but if failure is repeated, it will topple even a good brand. DfM saves your reputation.
Environmental impact
Saving money by designing better not only saves your pocket but also the Earth. Design for efficient manufacture can cut scrap material and energy usage.
Team morale
The challenging manufacturing project leaves your 3D design team demoralized. Doing the right thing through DfM leaves everyone proud and satisfied, as much as the final product is concerned.
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Cad Crowd advantage
Having an expert can help you with your project when you have no idea what the world of industrial design is like. Platforms like Cad Crowd serve as the middleman, by helping you connect to specialists who are aware of your business and your production needs. Other than that, it can help you:
- Sort through portfolios to search for prior experience.
- Collect job postings and get quotes from experienced professionals.
- Sit down with previous experienced DfM businesses and freelancers for your product category.
When you hire Cad Crowd, you are not contracting the services of a designer – you are contracting the services of an associate who is experienced in how to design to manufacture.
DfM trends shaping tomorrow’s product development
DfM is hardly in slumber. The rate of change of technology is only equaled by the methodology and tools employed in making manufacturing manufacturable. Keeping an eye on the trends will put you at the cutting edge.
Advanced simulation tools
Software programs now allow the simulation of production without a single prototype being created. Simulation designers are able to simulate test stress points, assembly sequences, and material response. It saves costly trial and error.
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Sustainable manufacturing
Environmental concerns are compelling manufacturers to produce low-waste and recyclable products. DfM is a central activity in this context. A good designer can choose low-carbon-footprint materials and processes without compromising performance. There are some other robot assembly lines for other products. Design must take into account how parts would be processed by machines and not by humans. Your product must be made compatible with automated machines with an effective DfM plan.
Global supply chain issues
History has shown us how fragile supply chains can be. Design for Manufacturability today involves designing with multiple vendors and materials so this won’t happen. A design for a single factory in one location can be a nightmare with shipping around the world.
Real-life example: when DFM turned a failing project around
A new firm that made kitchen equipment was sure they were ready to start making their goods. Maybe the prototype looked perfect, but manufacturing it for big launches doubled the time it took to make it. The launch was affected by the high price. What they did was, hire a product design and analysis team from Cad Crowd that knew the basics and advanced concepts of DfM.
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The professionals were able to decrease the installation time in half by simply changing the housing and adding two screws to a single molded clip. That move rescued the business and brought in hundreds of pounds for each batch while retaining the same schedule for the project. There are a lot of examples of this kind of turnaround. People who work in DfM should be able to see big improvements that will have a big impact.
Creating a culture of DfM in your organization
Even if you’re outsourcing to a product engineering design specialist, it’s worth having a culture of DfM in your organization. Here’s how you do it:
- Train employees. Offer workshops or lunch-and-learns about the fundamentals of DfM.
- Reward pragmatism. Give attention to those who propose design modifications that make the manufacturing more efficient.
- Document lessons learned. There is always something new to be discovered in each project. Record so that you would be able to apply those lessons next time.
- Involve manufacturing early. Involve factory representatives or suppliers in design discussions. They could prevent costly mistakes.
By involving DfM as a seamless process and not as an add-on, you enhance your pipeline for product development and make it reactive.
The hidden benefits of early manufacturing input
If the factory workers and suppliers are part of the team from the outset, they have more to gain from your success. They will go out of their way to recommend process efficiencies or make special concessions. It also protects against the fear of “design freeze panic,” when a last-minute modification threatens to destroy your timeline. The earlier the input is gathered, the less agonizing the changes. The end result is a design-to-manufacturing process that is peaceful, and fewer nights in bed for your project managers.
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Why startups should give extra care to DfM
Startups have wafer-thin margins. One wrong move while producing can wreck capital or drive investors under the bus. Unlike established companies with war chests of fat, the startup won’t have the room to ride out an expensive rebuild. DfM is insurance. It prevents your great idea from exploding in the air on its way to manufacture. It assures your investors that you’ve considered pitfalls.
It also allows you to concentrate on marketing and expansion, rather than lunatically applying patches over an avoidable disaster. Such a program as Cad Crowd can be a real asset. They offer startups great design resources for a percentage of the cost of keeping an in-house staff.
Pulling it all together
DfM is not a dry formality or a paperwork ritual. It’s the pulse of a successful launch. To be manufacturable-aware and investing in the right design engineering professionals is a courtesy to remind you to keep within your schedule, budget, reputation, and sanity. You’re being considerate to the manufacturers who’ll produce your product, the buyers who will buy it, and the investors who gambled on you.
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One of the biggest things to do is to hire a design house with DfM expertise. It’s the difference between enjoying raising a glass to partying over a successful launch and running around making apologies for delays. That’s why sites like Cad Crowd are worth their weight in gold. They put you in touch with experienced DFMEA designers and firms that’ve learned the hard way and understand what not to do. You are not hiring someone capable of creating a nice piece of sketching; you are bringing aboard an investment partner who knows how to take your idea and turn it into something factories can make, customers will buy, and markets will sell. Your Next Step
How Cad Crowd can assist
When you are prepared to turn your idea into a reality, look ahead and consider the process. Will your idea flow smoothly into production or be shelved until such a time as you most likely have changed in the meantime? Don’t leave your product’s destiny to Fortune.
Go check out Cad Crowd today and find design companies and individual professionals who will guide you through DfM and beyond. Their site is full of professionals waiting to transform your doodle into productizable art. You can be a small startup business with big aspirations or a large business seeking consolidation, and Cad Crowd will lead you to the right know-how. Contact us for a free quote.
