Why Bother with a Prototype?
The number of components and the complexity that goes into a serial manufactured product can create serious and costly issues if they are not properly managed between the design and the production stage.
Taking the time to work with your sheet metal supplier to manufacture and sign-off a prototype will not only give you the confidence that your product is ready to move into scalable manufacture; it will also allow you to see your concept come to life and identify any final amendments or tweaks.
Preparing for Prototype Manufacture
If you are able to supply CAD drawings, we will work with you ensure these are optimised for manufacture. We have a wealth of experience of designing improvements to sheet metal components and assemblies; which means we can supply you with accurate, technical drawings which are ready for production. We are also able to adapt drawings, sketches or briefs to develop a 3D design, which we can then use to manufacture a prototype.
New Product Introduction
More complex products and drawings will often go through our New Product Development (NPI) process. This is an interactive process which allows for close collaboration between us and our customer; with an end goal of creating a signed-off prototype which can be effectively scaled for manufacture. Our NPI Engineers will look at Failure Modes Effect Analysis (FMEA), Design for Manufacture (DFM) and product and process flows.
This ensures we have ironed out any potential manufacturing issues and that we have the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) in place to allow for a clean handover to our manufacturing teams.
Next Steps
Once a prototype has been manufactured and signed off by the customer; we move into full-scale production. Take a look at our capabilities pages to see the steps product goes through from start to finish.
Would you like to talk to someone about developing a sheet metal prototype? Get in touch and we will be happy to discuss!
