Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DFMA)

[Sergio1]

My question is about the implementation of DFMA in a Engineering or Design Center?, Would somebody advises me on the following questions?:
1.- What are the beneficts of the implementation?
2.- What are the steps that I should follow to implement it?
Thanks in advance

 

[knobhead]

Hmm, I'll try and remember some of my college stuff for this...
Basically it means analysing a component or assembly, and deciding how you can simplify it. So, for instance, you see two parts held together with a fastener, and you'd try to think how you could use a single component in it's place, reducing 3 components to 1.
It's also a way of making life easier for prod eng's, by thinking about the manufacture of the part at the design stage. So instead of spending weeks on a design only for the prod eng to take one look at it and tell you you can't have that cos we won't be able to get it out of the mould, (or whatever handy excuse), you involve the production people from the start so you can think about not only what the component has to do, but how easily you can manufacture it.
It's one of those study-of-the-bloody-obvious type things, but the aim is to simplfy things, which in theory cuts leads times and production costs. A search for Concurrent Engineering should get you a load of hits on this.

 

[revdode]

The most important aspect of DFMA is really involving and listening to your manufacturing or subcontractors. This may seem obvious but I've seen a lot of customers start DFMA programs and get no real benefit from it, mainly because they don't really want to believe that someone in a machine shop has a better understanding of how to make their product than they do.

Minimising part count as an ideal predates DFMA, but unless it is done with manufacturing in mind it can result in overly complex components. Minimum part count <> minimum cost.

 

[gavk]

What are the trade-offs in DFMA in respect to the Aerospace Industry?