With industries striving towards increased customisation of complex products through engineer-to-order, methods are continuously sought to rationalise the product development process. To this end, a framework is proposed using CAD configurators, utilising design automation and knowledge-based engineering to integrate sales and design processes in product development. The application of this framework to the design of spiral staircases is described and analysed, with results showing decreased lead-times and a decreased risk for design errors.
It was the dead of night as two grand full moons stood in the sky with reproachful frowns. 'How fast are we driving now?' I asked. 'Ninety-six,' said Adriaan and carelessly turned the wheel three full rotations. 'Where are we driving now?' I asked. 'Round the market square in Rittenburg,' said Adriaan. 'Rittenburg is a beautiful old town,' I said. 'It has a sightly medieval town hall, with a monumental staircase.' 'No,' I said, when the noise had ceased, 'it had a sightly medieval town hall. Now look what you've done! You can't go up these monumental stairs by car!' 'Is this your vehicle?' the officer asked. 'Was,' we said, as we shook off the remains.
Companies manufacturing customized engineer-to-order (ETO) products are decelerated by repetitive work, misinterpretations and uncoordinated processes which prohibits the achievement of mass customization. Being able to deliver customized product with low costs and fast delivery times, the concept of mass customization, is a prerequisite for maintained competitiveness with the demands from the market today. This paper presents a product configuration system (PCS) for customized products using design automation enabled by knowledge-based engineering (KBE) and enterprise-wide optimization (EWO). With this approach, the process from sales to delivery of customized products can be extensively rationalized. The PCS consists of two modules. The first being a configurator for use in the sales quotation stage. Here, customer requirements are captured, and used to generate alternatives feasible for the customer context. Thereby, correct quotations can be generated at the sales instance. The second module is the enterprise-wide configurator where accepted orders are concurrently optimized for their detailed and final design, considering the current state of the production and concurrent sales cases in the company. In other terms, instead of adapting the supply chain according to the design of the products in the order entry, the design of the products in the order entry are adapted according to the state of the supply chain. Thereby, resources can be efficiently utilized to the benefit of both the customer and the company, with reduced costs and delivery times. An implementation of the PCS in a case concerning spiral staircases, an ETO product, has shown potential of substantially reducing resources and errors and enable a reliable process supporting achievement of mass customization.
Maintaining high product quality while reducing cost is essential for mass-customised products, requiring continuous improvement of the product development process. To this end, design automation should be utilised in all stages of a product’s develop process and lay the foundation for automation of repetitive tasks throughout the process from interaction with the customer to design and production in order to mitigate errors and minimise costs. In this paper, a design automation and production preparation framework is proposed that can facilitate automation from initial stages via CAD to production. Examples of the framework are shown in the shape of proof-of-concepts systems developed by master students in the context of a course in design automation at Linköping University. Included disciplines such as automated planning of robot assembly paths, CNC manufacturing files and production drawings are described, based on design automation, Knowledge-Based Engineering, and design optimisation. Additionally, variations of the framework are implemented at three SMEs, and the results thereof are presented. The proposed frameworks enable interaction and connection between the “softer”, human centred, aspects of customer interaction within sales, with more traditional “harder” engineering disciplines in design and manufacturing.
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