Engineering 2

Engineering 2

1. Scales of production

   • One-off
     • Where just one product is made for a customer. Could be a prototype
       • Examples
         • Personalised products.
   • Batch
     • A set number of identical products. Some flexibility to individualise designs.
       • Examples
         • Monthly magazine, furniture, electrical goods, clothing.
   • Mass
     • Products produced in large quantities. Often involves automation.
       • Examples
         • Food, cars.
   • Continuous
     • Automated production can continue for months. Often produces low-cost products.
       • Examples
         • Toilet roll, petrol, washing-up liquids, washing powder, bricks, food.

2. Reducing waste (4 R's)

   • Reduce
     • Engineers should think about using less materials and energy to manufacture products.
   • Reuse
     • If a product can be used again, this reduces the amount of materials going to landfill.
   • Recover
     • Waste materials can be treated to generate heat or power for other uses.
   • Recycle
     • Products can be broken down into materials that can then be re-manufactured to make new items.

3. Modern materials and processes

   • Metal foams
     • Metal foams are cellular structures made with metal rather than polymers.
       • They are often used as soundproofing in vehicles, or as crash protection.
         • In electronics they can be used as heat sinks.
   • Powder metallurgy
     • A fine metal powder is compacted into the shape required, then heated in a controlled way to bond the particles together.
       • Powder metallurgy is used to make complex designs.

4. Lean manufacturing

   • Just-in-time
     • Materials and components are delivered to a production line when they are needed, thus reducing cost and time. Many well-planned manufacturing systems are based on just-in-time.
   • Kaizan
     • To make things better, a company needs to improve continuously. Kaizan is a system where ideas that are suggested by workers that can be used to make production better.
   • Poka-yoke
     • Mistakes often happen in engineering. Poka-yoke is a method that can be used to eliminate human error where tasks are repeated. The benefit to staff is that jobs become less boring.

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