Product Assembly Kit

C. A. Collins

The Product

A model assembly kit.

A 1/72nd scale aircraft.

Rated skill level 4 of 5.

Its selection was inspired by the DFA tenets associated with assembly toys.

Product Assembly Drawing

Manual Assembly

Tools are required Cut parts from ‘trees’ Tweezers small parts Glue & applicators Paints & brushes Magnifier glass Speed & accuracy

limited by physical skills of operators

Product DFA Analysis

The sum of parts totals 80 components The product does not minimize parts The small parts hamper assembly process Gluing parts does not reduce skill or time Low CAM and PAM indicate poor design

Product Design Changes

Design for simplicity; join fuselage & nose Minimize small parts; probes, seats, etc. Drop redundant parts; windshield, etc. Snap fit parts to lessen skill and time.

Redesigned Assembly Drawing

Evaluation of the Redesign

The parts total only 18 for a 78% reduction CAM&PAM improved to 9.69 high merits Snap fit parts lowers skill level, lessens time Has all DFA tenets for good assembly toys Has improved hard assembly probability

Conclusions

Design the product so that it is easy to assemble manually – consequently it is highly probable that it will be easily assembled automatically. …Andreason