Engineering robust solutions
Will your product always perform safely? Are you confident it will be robust enough to withstand every anticipated use and misuse condition? How will performance be affected by manufacturing and environmental variation?
Understanding, modelling and controlling the parameters that influence product performance and safety is fundamental to a successful project outcome. Through many years’ experience of designing safety-critical products we have developed processes and techniques that drive robustness and reliability into our designs. Our approach is underpinned by our highly qualified engineers whose exceptional technical capabilities in design and analysis are amply supported by our virtual and physical prototyping facilities.
Virtual prototyping
We make extensive use of mathematical and computational models to understand and assess the predicted performance of our concepts from an early stage.
The insights we gain influence concept selection and technical development decisions, ensuring that the solutions we propose will be robust in the face of manufacturing and environmental variation and will maximise the probability of successfully meeting the specified performance requirements.
Beyond the integrated modelling and simulation capabilities within our Creo Parametric and SolidWorks computer-aided design packages, we make use of bespoke mathematical modelling and state-of-the-art specialist software such as Moldflow Plastics Insight and ANSYS Mechanical Finite Element Analysis.
All our engineers use simulation tools as an integral part of the development process, but we have also developed a team of specialists who undertake the most complex computational fluid dynamics, injection moulding simulations and non-linear analyses.
Prototype testing
Physical prototypes and rigs allow us to formally verify product performance, validate our mathematical and computational models and develop our understanding of complex systems.
Our in-house prototyping workshop includes high-speed five axis CNC machining centres, precision 3D printing, vacuum resin casting and laser cutting machines. Staffed by an experienced team of technicians, this allows us, usually in close cooperation with our electronics and software teams, to efficiently produce and rapidly iterate the engineering rigs and prototypes we need to test our ideas.
Our test laboratory is equipped with a wide range of functional testing and inspection equipment, including environmental test chambers, automated force and torque measurement, precision balances, and CMM touch probe and vision-based measurement systems.
Variation analysis
Understanding the impact of manufacturing variation on a product is key to the success of a project and cannot be addressed as an afterthought.
To achieve reliable performance, a comprehensive approach to analysing and specifying manufacturing tolerances must be employed from the start of development. This is especially true for high-volume products.
We can use a variety of specialist variance analysis software such as CETol, Minitab and KISSsoft to analyse and control component tolerances. However, we have also developed and validated our own bespoke tolerancing tools, which our engineering team have carefully tailored to meet the specific requirements of robust product development.
Risk management
Our development of safety-critical products in all our market sectors, and class-leading medical devices in particular, requires a rigorous approach to risk management.
We analyse risk from systems, detailed design and human error viewpoints by deploying a wide range of tools such as Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA), Fault Tree Analysis (FTA) and Hazard and Operability (HAZOP) studies. These risk management techniques are used at appropriate stages of the development process to identify, investigate and mitigate risks in a transparent and controlled manner.
