Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DFMA) - Part one

March 10, 2018 2 Comments



DFMA is a combination of two methodologies, Design for Manufacturing (DFM) and Design for Assembly (DFA). DFM is the method of design for ease of manufacturing of the collection of parts that will form the product after assembly and DFA is the method of design of the product for ease of assembly. This combination enables a product design to be efficiently manufactured and easily assembled with minimum labor cost.


DFA focuses on the optimization of the part/system assembly 


DFA is a tool used to assist the design teams in the design of products that will transition to production at a minimum cost, focusing on the number of parts, handling and ease of assembly. 


Concerned only with reducing product assembly cost 
  • Minimizes number of assembly operations
  • Individual parts tend to be more complex in design 


DFM focuses on optimization of the manufacturing process. 


DFM is a tool used to select the most cost-effective material and 
process to be used in production in the early stages of product design. 


Concerned with reducing overall part production cost 
  • Minimizes complexity of manufacturing operations 
  • Uses common datum features and primary axes 
 

Fig.1 - Design before DFMA optimization

Fig.2 - Design after DFMA optimization
  
The DFMA methodology allows for new or improved products to be designed, manufactured and offered to the consumer in a shorter amount of time.  DFMA helps eliminate multiple revisions and design changes that cause program delays and increased cost. With DFMA the design is often more comprehensive, efficient to produce and meets the customer requirements the first time.  A shorter total time to market frequently results in lower development costs.  The application of the DFMA method results in shorter assembly time, lower assembly cost, elimination of process waste and increased product reliability.


  
        Fig.3 - Design before DFMA optimization                  Fig.4 - Design after DFMA optimization


Many companies today are integrating the DFM and DFA practices through design and manufacturing teamwork. The Design for Manufacturing (DFM) and Design for Assembly (DFA) techniques are two different classifications. DFM techniques are focused on individual parts and components with a goal of reducing or eliminating expensive, complex or unnecessary features which would make them difficult to manufacture. DFA techniques focus on reduction and standardization of parts, sub-assemblies and assemblies. The goal is reduce the assembly time and cost. But if you think about it, they must be integrated to prevent one from causing negative effects on the other. The designer may seek to combine parts to reduce assembly steps, quantity of parts and hardware. If the resulting parts are difficult or expensive to manufacture then you have gained nothing. We must work together to accomplish both goals. The principle goals for simultaneous DFM/A are detailed in the next Post - Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DFMA) - Part two.

  

Filipe Araújo

Technical drawer since 2004 and Mechanical Design Engineer since 2009. Worked in the Automotive Stamping Tool Industry followed by Pump and Hydraulik Machinery Industry, as well in Industrial Automation Machinery. Several Freelance works as Product Designer.

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