DFMA is an existing concept for software used in Design for Manufacture and Assembly. As AM seeks to eliminate a lot of the “assembly” from manufacturing, the thirty-third annual International Forum on Design for Manufacture and Assembly, organized by Boothroyd Dewhurst, will also focus on how AM – and specifically Design for Additive Manufacturing – will affect the future of DFMA. DfAM is a design approach that focuses on using complex, optimized geometries to reduce the need for subassemblies and thus improve a part’s quality.
Set to be held on September 11-12, 2018, at the Omni Providence Hotel, Providence, RI, USA, The Forum is the foremost worldwide conference on product simplification and early cost estimating. It is organized for development and manufacturing teams, procurement professionals, innovation managers and entrepreneurs across a wide range of industries.
Specifically, additive manufacturing (AM) equipment provider Renishaw is going to explain “generative design” and innovative solutions to complex AM challenges as developed and tested in its Canadian Solution Centre. In addition Chinese automotive company BAIC (Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co., Ltd.) will discuss using DFMA to control whole vehicle costs and Goldense Group will address the maturing face of globalization, as countries and states increasingly focus policies and resources on becoming centers of excellence for selected industries and technologies—specifically those with high DFMA requirements.
“The 2018 Forum has a strong international focus with DFMA users ready to discuss their costing, design and production methods,” said John Gilligan, president of Boothroyd Dewhurst, Inc. “Each year our manufacturing community tackles ever-evolving approaches for securing a competitive advantage. Increasingly this is for worldwide markets and includes advances in production such as additive manufacturing, better ways of implementing Lean or improving systems engineering. We welcome people to join our Forum discussion, which centers on DFMA yet envelops many aspects of product development in one setting.”
A competitive advantage
This year’s Forum on “Global Competitive Advantage” showcases the DFMA successes and overall strategy of manufacturers that make and market products internationally—increasingly under monetary and trade uncertainties. Examples and metrics will be shared illustrating tested approaches to improving design and production economies that are foundational to weathering changing sales and trade environments. The engineering and manufacturing-based outcomes from DFMA help manufacturers excel in domestic markets and improve cost structures for Build-Where-You-Sell.
A Distinguished DFMA Supporter of the Year winner, Bill Devenish, will deliver four Kohler group papers on subjects ranging from early, data-driven product development to using DFMA very late in “the ship has already sailed” phase of production. Additional presenters include Nick Dewhurst of Boothroyd Dewhurst, Inc., (Opening Address and DFMA Overview), Swiss-based Endress & Hauser (The Million Dollar Story of DFMA at E&H), Starkey Hearing Technologies (The Positive Impacts of DFMA for Hearing Aid Development), and Dynisco (DFMA and Systems Engineering Approaches), among others.
