How can manufacturers contribute to the design process for better product engineering?

I'd like to add the time perspective, early onboarding is key to have full synergy effect. If manufacturer of key parts come in late it could affect timeline due to need of late redesign or late develoment of assembly fixture.

Early involvement w/ your manufacturer to establish capability & understanding issue of concerns. Establish your design intent & importance of their support to collaborate to made it happen. Be pragmatic & honest on both sides. Establish detail & clarity on documentation for closure. That's my style & it has work well with me till today.

Being responsible to share information from the beginning to the end in the whole manufacturing and how the product works over test, manufactures need to be introduce since the beginning of design to share their point of view.

Manufacturers play a crucial role in enhancing the design process to achieve better product engineering outcomes. To make a meaningful contribution, they should first and foremost grasp the design intent. This involves thoroughly understanding the creative vision and goals behind the product's design. In essence, when manufacturers understand and actively contribute to the design process, they become valuable partners in creating products that not only meet design expectations but also excel in terms of functionality, durability, and overall engineering excellence.

Some times designers will take input from the manufacturer as an attack on their design capability. There in no place for an ego in optimization. Input from experienced manufacturers will often add improvements rather than trivial changes.

This is one of the good design methodology to consider factors in design stage which fosters ease of manufacturing and cost optimization. It should not have differentiation as design team and manufacturing team, instead it should drive cross functional working and aim for concurrent engineering. Design engineers should have sense of manufacturability to develop innovative products.

In my experience, this works only in textbooks. The costs are a closely guarded secret of the manufacturer. The material choice and and tolerances are set by the engineer. The manufacturer likes to see an engineer making expensive choices because there is more money to earn on that.

In my experience, manufacturers will often give feedback on DFM but even better feedback is available with a broader search on the process in question. I have only recently had bad feedback which pointed to a more expensive part, but much more rare over time.

In my experience manufacturer almost does not see the cost since it is hidden by designers. However, manufacturers have a big impact on processes and its tolerances, what can reduce costs while designers are developing a new product or updating some existing product. One more principle used by manufacturers that can avoid some risks is reducing complexity on the design and become easier to assembly and handle the spare parts and product.

The manufacturing engineers should try to educate design engineers about the capabilities of in house machinery. They can also suggest redesign to save costs before production release.

I belive that assembly animations is critical first step to paperless manufacturing, and its an easy transition for modern digital tools.

Any company not using cad in this century is one you should avoid doing business with. I am sure college grads already know that. This isn't a revelation.

This is more of a recent possibility. I have had product development efforts have an Agile feel with rapid prototyping cycles and improvements. It is viewed as expensive, but the speed of development is massively improved. Author Joe Justice has fascinating content in his book “Scrum Master” and YouTube giving ample examples from Musk’s companies and others.

Also only found in textbooks. Agile and lean are used in some software development, I have never seen it used in engineering. Flexible, iterative, feedback loops, really doesn't work in engineering where every new iteration means weeks of waiting for new aprts and a trash bin filled with expensive parts from the previous iteration.

Lean needs to be implemented company wide. And everyone has to accept it isn't perfect but it saves money. Vendors will fail to meet lead time they promised and ypu will run out of stock. It happens. it happened before lean

Manufacturers involved in the problem-solving and design phases will make the product more competitive and easier to manufacture. In my experience, manufacturers, along with designers, typically have at least one meeting to discuss problems, actions, and future solutions, providing an opportunity for everyone to share their ideas.

Also only found in textbooks. Companies encourage meeting deadlines. So all creativity and experimentation is suppressed. Training costs money so this is also kept to a minimum.

We often introduce trivial processes to control manufacturing output. A good designer is supposed to understand the manufacturing processes, and intent. Pick the right designer to avoid multiple processes and checkpoints in development and production. A good designer is the key.

Early Involvement - Manufacturers should be involved from the initial stages of design. This early collaboration ensures practical insights and feasibility considerations are integrated, leading to more efficient and manufacturable designs. Feedback Loop - Establish a continuous feedback loop between manufacturing and design teams. Regular communication can identify potential production challenges early, allowing for design adjustments that reduce costs and improve manufacturability. Leverage Technology - Utilize advanced manufacturing technologies like 3D printing for rapid prototyping. This approach allows for quick testing and refinement of designs, ensuring the final product is both innovative and practical to produce.

Studying the history of similar products and learning from their experiences can make a huge turing point in the process of product engineering. Also exertion of some efforts on the R&D department and providing the right atmosphere can eliminate distractions and improve results in a tremendous way.

I think if there is a partnership between a designer and a specific manufacturer, it is important that the designer is aware of the manufacturing capabilities of the manufacturing company. A lot of times, you can find yourself designing something that is perfectly manufacturable, but without the right tooling it becomes a big problem. Understanding the manufacturing capabilities of the company you intend to use will make the partnership easier in both directions.