Innovation in major domestic appliances never stops. Manufacturers battle to attract savvy buyers with new features, improved efficiency and styling to match the latest trends in kitchen design. Speed to market is critical, putting product development teams under intense pressure to get prototypes into testing and in front of potential buyers. Materials and processes that Read more
The lights in modern cars do more than illuminate dark roads. They’ve become a design signature of many OEMs. Audi started this trend in 2004 with the LED daytime running lights fitted onto the A8, and lighting technology has advanced rapidly since then, making auto lamp mold production a critical part of automotive manufacturing. Today Read more
Conventional, long-life tooling is expensive, which often makes it unfeasible for low-volume production scenarios, which require specialized low-volume tooling. Without innovative thinking, high per-piece part/tooling costs can render even the best designs uncompetitive. Worse yet, new products might not even get to market! So what do you do in a situation that calls for a Read more
Here’s a fairly typical prototyping and low-volume production scenario: The prototype performed well in testing so injection molding tools were commissioned. Months later, the first molded components were assembled. Much to the team’s dismay, parts that should have moved jammed. Design changes were needed and the launch date suffered. Understandably, panic and recriminations followed. Close Read more
In an era when car companies sell some 17 million vehicles a year in the U.S., it seems at first glance that there is little reason for the automotive components industry to explore low-volume manufacturing. The reality is rather different. Niche vehicles and the development of new models drive a constant need for parts produced Read more
Tooling for plastic injection molding presents a formidable barrier to any team needing a plastic prototype or a few parts for prototype testing and evaluation. For one, the price tag can run into six figures. But lead time is often an even bigger issue. A moderately complex mold tool might take six months to machine, Read more
When many people think about an automotive prototype, they assume it represents a single step in the validation process between the initial design of the product and the final production run. In actuality, automotive prototyping plays a number of vital roles during the design validation process that culminates in manufacturing. An automotive prototype can be Read more
The launch for a new product is looming. As the engineer of a large corporation, you’ve scrambled to get the designs ready in time. Now your task is to figure out how to move the product from the design phase into production so your company can get to market before the competition. Your deadlines are Read more
During the prototyping stage in appliance manufacturing, quick turnarounds for low-cost, small-batch production runs are key to iterating a new product successfully. As a result of these demands, many appliance design engineers have eschewed metal prototyping since common methods such as die casting or die stamping are cost-efficient only at large volumes. However, multiple new Read more
Multilayer plastic injection molding (sometimes called co-injection molding) involves injecting two resins into one mold at the same time. The core material is surrounded on both sides by the skin material and then simultaneously pushed through the injection gate or nozzle into the mold, creating a three-layer product in the same amount of time it Read more
Electric vehicle batteries have two main problems when it comes to range. First, they can’t yet match the energy density of gasoline, which makes them bigger and bulkier than a gas tank. Second, recharging is slower than filling a gas tank and a bigger battery simply increases the time needed to recharge. (Plus, it also Read more
Today’s pickup truck manufacturers are caught between a rock and a hard place when it comes to lightweighting. They need to increase fuel efficiency while retaining the power and performance consumers have come to expect from their trusted automotive brands. Moreover, this challenge is not unique to truck OEMs and suppliers. In fact, many current Read more