Total Design Process such as product design specification. It explores all the details of product design and development process while handling all the basic concepts of the initial design. It also gives all the details of the embodiment design and all the important attributes that are a must in the process of Total Design Process. The paper also explores the utilization of the common tools and techniques of design such as DFMA and FMEA. The paper succinctly explores all the aspects that are of importance to the success of any process of material design and general manufacturing process.

A product design specification (PDS) is an expression of a not yet designed that product is meant to be produced from scratch. Its objective is to make sure that the resulting design and development of a certain product meets the standards expected by the end user.

The PDS acts as the very first boundary in the process of’ developing a given product. However, it will can naturally grow as it is guided through the many different stages in the design process

Figure 1. makes an general assumption that the conceptual design for a given product is already in existence and therefore it concentrates on how one can resolve the conflict that exists between the shape and form of a certain a product, the selected material and the process of selection of a given process is considered. It is very evident that the output of any viable design process should have a specification that does the role of detailing the various ways in which the product is to be formed, and the standards to which it is must be manufactured. Such a level of specification will take into consideration the firm’s manufacturing might, the relative performance of every candidate raw materials, the general behavior of the given market and several other technical and even commercial factors.

The process of design activity is initiated by a particular idea for a product. However, there is never much of a point in making a product if one can’t sell it so the initial idea is mainly coupled with the information regarding the market and then expressed in terms of the market needs. The market needs are defined by means of PDS which transforms with the given product, commencing as the main expression possessing only a vague idea but then gradually gaining much more complexity and detail as the given product design takes form. One approach to make sure that a comprehensive PDS checklist is employed.

It would therefore be a mistake big to imagine that this particular PDS checklist is a cure to design solutions. The important thing to consider and envision is that the PDS increases in complexity as the design becomes increasingly refined and every question in the list will eventually have to be asked on several occasions, the answers becoming more fathomable on each iteration. One attempt to come up with a description of this iterative development of the PDS is by use of the spiral design model (Fig.2)

According to Figure 2. The idea of demanding to reconsider the three main areas of product shape, properties of the materials and the process capability is reiterated . The continuously increasing size of the spiral therefore represents the basic fact that the amount of detailed information that is associated with the PDS grows with each and every iteration.

However, the main parts of the PDS that are considered to be important depend on ones viewpoint and purpose. For example, consider the contrasting viewpoints of a certain engineer who works for a main foundry and is in the process of trying to utilize the spare manufacturing profitability capacity, and another aeronautical engineer who is designing on a new kind of anti-stall flap of an airliner. Product teams with the required expertise in engineering design, the best marketing and coupled with the right production are required if an appropriate balance is to be achieved through the process of design activity. Team leaders, often referred to as the product champions, will be need to be chosen for their particular skills that depend on the nature of the final product. The main skill, however, which is most of the time required by such a person, is good leadership.

Concept design

Conceptual design is the exhaustive construction of the main ideas and concepts which a user requires in order to learn about what a product is made of, what it can achieve, and how it is intended to be utilized. It may also address other attributes such as what a product is not intended to be, what it can’t achieve, and how it is not intended to be utilized. Conceptual design is carried out from the user’s point-of-view.

Conceptual idea of design is very different from the element of engineering design of a given product, which actually specifies both the architectural and the programming details of how a certain product is to be implemented in code of design. That is to mean that an engineering design is to be done from engineer’s point-of-view.

The conceptual design process entails a series of steps for converting the basic requirements into a user interface design. The whole process commences by getting to the core of an application that is where the central concept is born and then proceeds through the organization of the functionality from the point-of-view of the users. In the process, a deeper understanding of needs users and their particular requirements are developed. The outcome is an outline or concise model of the user’s interface that can be further evolved and developed during the more detailed user interface design phases.

Detailed design

A detailed design is a fundamental requirement and a necessity to every manufacturer in that it exists at all the intersection of the several product development and evolution processes. Considering this broad influence, together with the impact of the prevailing industry dynamics like the distributed product development, the major shortening of the product development lifecycles and the highly improved product complexity, firms are feeling very intense pressure to come up with better and detailed design process.

Detailed Design

A detailed design is fundamental to every engineering process; the detailed design process changes the concept alternatives, and the preliminary physical architectures. It also changes design specifications, and accompanying technical requirements into final and cross-disciplinary design specifications. The designs are then increasingly refined and then all the all accompanying documentation that are required for manufacturing process are completed so as to achieve a timely delivery to the customer of a completely defined and complete product.

Benefits of an Optimized Process for Detailed Design

An optimized process for detailed design enables companies to have a high frequency in deliver of competitive and high quality designs that give clienteles real value. Thus the benefits of an improved and detailed design process may include:

Improve Design Productivity may enable a centrally controlled and management of all data which may be in the form of mechanicals, softwares and even documents. This might also necessitate concurrent design of interrelated components. Thirdly it can also ease and sharpen drive design to meet vital requirements. Lastly it can automate and streamline the generations of deliverables such as assemblies, drawings, and manufacturing plans

Increasing Design Process Efficiency on the other hand enables a design investigation either with or without a formal data management. Secondly it sees that everybody is working on the correct version of the product data. Thirdly it improves project implementation and visibility into team progress.

Optimize Design Reuse also benefits by reducing design cost by promoting part reuse and protect from component duplication. This also improves the ability to haste and easy find appropriate classified designs

DFMA

Several firms employ the DFMA tool in its more traditional duty of product design simplification and increased cost reduction, however, as the level of sophistication and utility of the tool increases it does not really expand beyond its initial traditional role.

It means that to in fact utilize the tool throughout the whole process of product development cycle, from the early concept stages through to the end of life. The major areas of use include but are not confined to the following. The process of product costing, the stage of early product costing while it is still in the sub-assembly level, the process of concept selection, the process of competitive benchmarking of the product, the process of assembly instruction, the process of creating the time standards, the process of cost reduction, the process of vendor quote verification and the process of design simplification

FMEA

Utilization of the FMEA (Failure Modes and Effect Analysis) tool in a certain project assists in the determination of failures in advance and to come up with negative/invalid test scenarios. This important tool must therefore be utilized before the particular project has achieved the design phase, which should really bring benefits in the achievement of good design control.

Conclusion

It is necessary for every product that is to be manufactured to be taken through all the steps of the design process. There are also tools that must be utilized in the process so as to bring out an efficient product that meets the requirements and the need of the customers. It is therefore necessary to attach utmost importance to the theme of Total Design Process.

Appendices

Figure 1: A sub-system showing the product design

Figure 2.A diagram showing the spiral design of the PDS

Fig 3: Process Design

Bibliography

CROSS, N., (2006). T211 Design and Designing: Block 2,-page 99.

Hollins, W & Hollins G.Total Design: Managing the Design Process in the Service Sector

The Open University (UK), (2001). T881 Manufacture Materials Design: Block 1: The design activity model,-page 10. Milton Keynes: The Open University.