Design for Assembly

(DfA)
Engr. Wan Sharuzi Hj Wan Harun
Industrial Engineering, FKM
 Introduction
• Design is a complex iterative creative
process that begins with the
recognition of a need of desire and
terminates with a product or process
that uses available resources, energy
and technology to fulfil the original
need within some set of defined
constraints.
• Assembly is a process of joining
components into a complex product.
 Introduction (cont….)
• Design for “X”
– manufacturing
– safety and reliability prevention
– quality (six sigma)
– environment
– serviceability
– testability
– functionality
– assembly
– others ……..
 Introduction (cont….)
• Time-based competition,
– Ability to quickly develop,
– Produce and distribute new products,
– Processes.
• Progressive development,
• Diversification to meet customer
needs.
 Introduction (cont….)
• Rapid changes in markets and
technology tend to bring shorter
product life cycles.
• Developing products quickly to
reduce lead times correlated with:
– Cost,
– Quality
 Introduction (cont….)
• Product development includes all the
activities from market needs interpretation
and technical possibilities to finished
production designs.
– Drawings, specifications,
– Tools, fixtures and production programs,
– Prototype production,
– Test activities.
 Approaches to Product
Development
• Today’s products are becoming
increasingly complex.
• In many companies, design and
manufacturing exist as separate
groups. “Over the wall” approach to
design.
 Design for Assembly
(DfA)
• Design for Assembly (DfA) is an
approach to reduce the cost and time of
assembly by simplifying the product
and process through such means as:
– Reducing the number of parts.
– Combining two or more parts into one.
– Reducing or eliminating adjustments.
– Simplifying assembly operations.
– Designing for parts handling.
– Selecting fasteners for ease of assembly.
– Minimizing parts tangling.
 Design for Assembly
(cont….)
 Design a product for easy & economical
production.
 Incorporate product design early in the design
phase.
 Improves quality and reduces costs.
 Shortens time to design and manufacture.
 Design for Assembly
(cont….)
(a) The original design

Assembly using
common fasteners
 Design for Assembly
(cont….)
(a) The original design (b) Revised design

Assembly using One-piece base &

common fasteners elimination of
fasteners
 Design for Assembly
(cont….)
(a) The original design (b) Revised design (c) Final design

Assembly using One-piece base & Design for

common fasteners elimination of push-and-snap
fasteners assembly
 Design for Assembly
(cont….)
• Different DfA methodologies have
been developed.
– Complete
• Objectivity (procedures for evaluating
assemblability)
• Creativity (procedures for improving
assemblability)
– Systematic
• step-by-step procedure
 Design for Assembly
(cont….)
– Measurable
• How to measure assemblability objectively,
accurately and completely.
• Cost information - more objective measure
of product assembly quality.
• Accuracy of cost estimation - indicator of the
quality of the DfA method.

– User-friendly
 Design for Assembly
(cont….)
• Four basic approaches for
implementing DfA have been
identified:
– Design principles and rules,
– Quantitative evaluation procedures,
– Expert/Knowledge-based approach,
– Computer-Aided DFA methods.
 Design for Assembly
(cont….)
• Design principles and rules
– Based on human oriented knowledge.
– Collectively design data and convert
assembly knowledge to design
principles, rules and guidelines.
 Design for Assembly
(cont….)
• Quantitative evaluation procedures
– Based on evaluation procedure.
– Determine the assembly process
operation by operation.
– Quantitative measure is calculated.
 Design for Assembly
(cont….)
• Expert/Knowledge-based approach
– Based on knowledge-based technology –
a knowledge base, inference,
communication and knowledge
acquisition.
 Design for Assembly
(cont….)
• Computer-Aided DFA methods
– DFA systems are integrated with CAD
systems.
– Key role is the representation of
technical objects and procedures for
extraction and processing of
assemblability attributes from 3D CAD
models.
 Aspects of
Design for Assembly
• DfA is applicable to:
– Products consisting of 20 - 200 parts.
– Mainly for mechanical parts (not electronics).

• Requires 1-2 days to perform for a

product.
• Average 30% improvement in the
assembly cost.
• Can be performed in various stages in the
design process and iterated.
 Design for Assembly
Guidelines (General)
1. Aim for simplicity
    Minimise part numbers, part variety,
assembly surfaces, simplify assembly
sequences, component handling and
insertion, for faster and more reliable
assembly.
 DfA Guidelines (cont….)
2. Standardise
    Standardise on material usage,
components, and aim for as much
off-the-shelf component as possible
to allow improved inventory
management, reduced tooling, and
the benefits of mass production even
at low volumes.
 DfA Guidelines (cont….)
3. Rationalise product design
- Standardise on materials, components,
and subassemblies throughout product
families to increase economies of scale
and reduce equipment and tooling costs.
- Employ modularity to allow variety to
be introduced late in the assembly
sequence and simplify JIT production.
 DfA Guidelines (cont….)
4. Use the widest possible
tolerances
Reduce the tolerance on non-critical
components and thus reduce
operations, and processing times.
 DfA Guidelines (cont….)
5. Choose materials to suit
function and production process
Avoid choosing materials purely for
functional characteristics, material
choice must also favour the
production process to ensure product
reliability.
 DfA Guidelines (cont….)
6. Minimise non-value-adding
operations
The minimisation of handling,
excessive finishing and inspection
will reduce costs and lead time.
DfA Guidelines (cont….)
7. Design for process
- Take advantage of process capability
to reduce unnecessary components or
additional processing, such as the porous
nature of sintered components for
lubricant retention.
- Design in features and functions to
overcome process limitations, such as
features to aid mechanical feeding.
- Avoid unnecessary restriction of
processes to allow mfg. flexibility in
process planning.
DfA Guidelines (cont….)
8. Teamwork
- Promote concurrent engineering.
- Establish a product or project based
development organisation involving a
formalised multi disciplinary/departmental
teamwork structure.
- Success is dependent on senior
management buy-in, an open door
culture, staff training and development,
and an ongoing continuous improvement
programme.
 DfA Guidelines (cont….)
All approaches to achieving an easy
to assemble product can be
summarized by the following two
product statements.
1. Minimize the number of parts in an
assembly.
2. Ensure that the remaining parts are
easy to assemble.
 DfA Guidelines (cont….)
• Guideline description
– The major advantage of practicing DfA.
– Fewer parts reduce everything else
needed to manufacture a product.

• Implementation techniques
– Consider the part for elimination.
– Use common parts.
DfA Guidelines (cont….)
– Eliminate features or functions not of
value.
– Eliminate fasteners.
– Design multifunctional parts.

• Outcomes
– Improves quality, reduces opportunities
for defects.
– Shortens product design time.
 DfA Guidelines (cont….)
– Reduces the total material cost.
– Simplifies vendor selection.
– Reduces labor content.
– Reduces assembly time.
– Simplifies the assembly process, factory
layout.
– Reduces need for unique tools.
– Reduces warehouse/stockroom space.
 Design for Assembly
Methods
• Several systems being used in industry:
– The DfA method exploited by Boothroyd
Dewhurst Inc., USA.
– The Hitachi Assemblability Evaluation
Method (AEM) by Hitachi Ltd, Japan.
– The Lucas Design for Assembly
Methodology by Lucas-Hull, UK.
 Where DfA fits in
the design process?
• The design process is an iterative,
complex, decision-making engineering
activity that leads to detailed drawings
by which manufacturing can
economically produce a quantity of
identical products that can be sold.
• The design process usually starts with
the identification of a need, proceeds
through a sequence of activities to seek
an optimal solution to the problem, and
ends with a detailed description of the
product.
 Where DfA fits in the
design process? (cont…)
• Design process involves 3 main phases:
i. Feasibility study,
ii. Preliminary design,
iii. Detail design.
• During the feasibility study, plausible
solutions are explored, and rough checks
are made on performance and product
costs.
• Performance specifications for the most
promising ideas are quantified during the
preliminary phase.
• The detail design results in the piece-part
and assembly drawing.
 Where DfA fits in the
design process? (cont…)
• Design for assembly (DfA) – considered
at all stages of the design process.
• Concepts – analyzed against cost and
performance. A systematic analysis of
product assemblability – performed.
• If cost and performance analyses
require a concept to be redefined, the
efficiency of assembly – analyzed before
final approval.
Boothroyd-Dewhurst
DfMA Methodology
Analyse for
Assembly
OR
Analyse for
OR Special-purpose
assembly transfer
machines
Analyse for Manual
Assembly

Analyse for Robot

Assembly
 General Design Guide-
lines for Manual Assembly
• The process of manual assembly is
divided into 2 separate areas:
– Handling (acquiring, orienting and moving),
– Insertion and fastening (mating a part to
another part or group of parts).
 Design Guidelines for
Part Handling
1. Having end-to-end symmetry and
rotational symmetry about the axis of
insertion (Fig 1a).
2. Asymmetrical if part cannot be made
symmetrical (Fig 1b).
3. Provide feature that will prevent
jamming (Fig 1c).
4. Avoid features that will allow tangling
(Fig 1d).
5. Avoid parts that stick together,
slippery, very small or hazardous to the
handler (Fig 2).
Fig 1 : Geometrical features affecting part handling
Fig 2 : Some other features affecting part handling
 Design Guidelines for
Insertion and Fastening
1. Design with little or no resistance to
insertion.
– Provide chamfers,
– Provide clearance. (Fig 3 – 6)
2. Standardize – common parts, processes
and methods (Fig 7).
3. Use pyramid assembly (Fig 8).
4. Avoid holding parts down (Fig 9).
5. Design a part which can be located
before it is released (Fig 10).
Fig 3 : Incorrect geometry can allow part to jam during
insertion
Fig 4 : Provision of air-relief passages to improve
insertion into blind holes
Fig 5 : Design for ease of insertion: assembly of long
stepped bushing into counter-bored hole
Fig 6 : Provision of chamfers to allow easy insertion
Fig 7 : Standardize parts
Fig 8 : Single-axis pyramid assembly
Fig 9 : Provision of self-locating features to avoid
holding down and alignment
Fig 10 : Design to aid insertion
 Design Guidelines for
Insertion and Fastening
6. Listed in order of increasing manual
assembly cost:
– Snap fitting
– Plastic bending
– Riveting
– Screwing
(Fig 11).
7. Avoid the need for repositioning (Fig
12).
Fig 11 : Common fastening methods
Fig 12 : Insertion from opposite directions requires
repositioning of assembly
 Design Guidelines for
Insertion and Fastening
• Guidelines are insufficient for a number of
reasons:
– Does not provide any means to evaluate a
design quantitatively for its ease of
assembly.
– No relative ranking of all the guidelines that
can be used to indicate which guidelines
result in the greatest improvements in
handling and assembly.
– These guidelines are simply a set of rules,
provide the designer with suitable
background information to be used to
develop a design that will be more easily
assembled than a design developed without
such a background.
 Development of the
DFA Methodology (Cont.)
• Analytical method (1977) for determining
the most economical assembly process
and analyzing ease of manual, automatic
and robot assembly.
• Experimental studies – to measure the
effects of symmetry, size, weight,
thickness and flexibility on manual
handling time.
• Additional experiments – to determine the
effects of part thickness of the grasping
and manipulation, the effect of weight on
handling time for parts requiring two hands
for grasping and manipulation.
 Development of the
DFA Methodology (Cont.)
• Experimental and theoretical analyses –
to determine the effects of :
– chamfer design on manual insertion time,
– part geometry on insertion time,
– obstructed access and restricted vision on
assembly operations.
• Classification and coding system for
manual handling, insertion and
fastening processes – developed and
presented.
– Time standard system in estimating manual
assembly times.
 Development of the
DFA Methodology (Cont.)
• To evaluate the effectiveness of DfA
method, two-speed power saw –
analyzed for initial and new design.
Initial design
No. of parts : 41 parts
Estimated assembly time : 6.37 minutes
New design
No. of parts : 29 parts
Estimated assembly time : 2.58 minutes

• 29% reduction in part count.

• 59% reduction in assembly time.
 Boothroyd-Dewhurst
DfA Method
• Addresses the problems of:
– determining the appropriate assembly
method,
– reducing the number of individual parts
that must be assembled,
– ensuring that the remaining parts are
easy to assemble.
 Boothroyd-Dewhurst
DfA Method (Cont.)
• The methods of assembly are
classified into three basic categories:
– Manual assembly,
– Special-purpose transfer machine
assembly,
– Robot assembly.
 Boothroyd-Dewhurst
DfA Method (Cont.)
• Based on the parameters (no. of
parts and production volumes) that
influence assembly efficiency and
hence cost.
• Using chart for assessing the
available assembly methods.
• A set of rules and charts for
assembly efficiency.
 Boothroyd-Dewhurst
DfA Method (Cont.)
• Manual assembly process can be
divided into two separate scopes of
tasks:

– Handling
– Insertion and fastening
 Boothroyd-Dewhurst
DfA Method (Cont.)
• Assembly efficiency for manual assembly

3 x NM
EM =
TM

NM = theoretical minimum number of parts

TM = total manual assembly time
Pneumatic piston sub-assembly
Worksheet for pneumatic piston subassembly
Redesign of pneumatic piston sub-assembly
Worksheet for redesign of pneumatic piston subassembly
 Theoretical Minimum
Parts Assessment
• The theoretical number of parts is determined 
by asking three questions:
– Does this part move relative to another?
– Do the mating parts have to be made of different 
materials?
– Do the parts have to be separate to allow servicing 
before or after assembly?
• If the answer to any of these questions is ‘yes’, 
then that part cannot be eliminated.
 Assembly Efficiency (AE)
• 2 main factors influence the assembly
cost of a product:
– The total number of parts in a product,
– The ease of handling, insertion and fastening of the
parts.
• AE is obtained by dividing the
theoretical minimum assembly time by
the actual assembly time.
Ema = Nminta / tma

Nmin = theoritical minimum no. of parts

ta = basic assembly time = average time for a part
tma = estimated time to complete the assembly of the actual
product
 Classification System
for Manual Handling
• Classification no. consists of 2 digits:
each digits is assigned a value of 0 to 9.
• First digit is divided into 4 main groups:
– First digit of 0–3
– First digit of 4–7
– First digit of 8
– First digit of 9
• Second digit of handling code is based
on flexibility, slipperiness, stickiness
and fragility of a part.
 Class’n Sys. for Manual
Insertion and Fastening
• Concerned with the interaction between
mating parts.
• Basic assembly tasks: screw, weld,
rivet, force fit, etc.
• Design features that significantly affect
manual insertion and fastening times:
– Accessibility of assembly location,
– Ease of operation of assembly tool,
– Visibility of assembly location,
– Ease of alignment and positioning during assembly,
– Depth of insertion.
 Class’n Sys. for Manual
Insertion and Fastening
• The two-digit code numbers range from
00 to 99.
• First digit is divided into 3 main groups:
– Group I : First digit of 0 – 2 : Part is not secured
immediately after insertion.
– Group II : First digit of 3 – 5 : Part secures itself or
another part immediately after insertion.
– Group III : First digit of 9 : Process involves parts that
are already in place.
• Groups I and II are further subdivided
into classes that consider the effect of
obstructed access and restricted vision
on assembly time.
 Class’n Sys. for Manual
Insertion and Fastening
• The second digit is based on the following
group divisions in the first digit:
– Group I : For a first digit of 0 – 2 : Classifies whether
holding down is required to maintain orientation or
location.
– Group II : For a first digit of 3 – 5 : Classifies whether
the fastening operation involves a simple snap fit,
screwing operation or plastic deformation.
– Group III : For a first digit of 9 : Classifies mechanical,
metallurgical and chemical processes.
• For each two-digit code number, an
average handling or insertion and
fastening time is given, as shown in Fig 15
and 16.
Fig 15 : Manual handling - estimated times (seconds)
Fig 16 : Manual insertion - estimated times (seconds)
 Effect of Part Symmetry
on Handling Time
• Symmetry – one of the principal
geometrical design features that affects
the times required to grasp and orient a
part.
• Assembly operations involve 2 component
parts:
– the part to be inserted,
– the part (assembly) into which the part is inserted.
• Orientation involves the proper alignment
of the part to be inserted. Divided into 2
distinct operations:
– Alignment of the axis of the part that corresponds to
the axis of insertion,
– Rotation of the part about the axis.
 Effect of Part Symmetry
on Handling Time (Cont.)

Fig 17 : Alpha and beta rotational symmetries for various

parts
 Effect of Part Symmetry
on Handling Time (Cont.)
α -symmetry: rotational symmetry about an
axis perpendicular to the axis of insertion.

α = 1800 α = 3600 α = ?
 Effect of Part Symmetry
on Handling Time (Cont.)
β -symmetry: rotational symmetry about its axis of
insertion.

β =0 0 β = 1800 β =?
 Effect of Part Symmetry
on Handling Time (Cont.)
Thickness: The length of the shortest side of the
smallest rectangular prism which encloses the part.
Size: The length of the longest side of the smallest
rectangular prism that can enclose the part.

Thickness

Size
Thickness
= radius
Exception
General Rule when cylindrical and
Diameter < Length
 Effect of Part Symmetry
on Handling Time (Cont.)
• Several different approaches have been
employed to determine relationships
between the amount of rotation
required to orient a part and the time
required to perform that rotation.

• Two most commonly used systems are:

– The methods time measurement (MTM)
– Work factor (WP)
 Effect of Part Symmetry
on Handling Time (Cont.)
• In the MTM system, the “maximum
possible orientation” is employed, which is
one-half the beta rotational symmetry of a
part.
• The effect of alpha symmetry is not
considered.
• This system classifies the maximum
possible orientation into 3 groups:
– Symmetric
– Semi-symmetric
– Non-symmetric
• These terms refer only to the beta
symmetry of the part.
 Effect of Part Symmetry
on Handling Time (Cont.)
• In the WF system, the symmetry of a
part is classified by the ratio of the
number of ways the part can be
inserted to the number of ways the part
can be grasped preparatory to insertion.
 Effect of Part Symmetry
on Handling Time (Cont.)
• The relation between the symmetry of a
part and the time required for orientation
is determined by the summation of the
alpha and beta symmetries, given by:
Total angle of symmetry = α + β
• The effect of the total angle of symmetry
on the time required to handle a part is
shown in Fig 18.
• The shaded areas indicate the values of
the total angle of symmetry that cannot
exist.
Fig 18 : Effect of symmetry on the time required to handle
a part
 Effect of Part Thickness
and Size on Handling Time
• 2 major factors that affect the time required
for handling during manual assembly are:
– the thickness
– the size of the part.
• The thickness of a “cylindrical” is its diameter
whereas, for non-cylindrical parts, the
thickness is defined as the maximum height of
the part with its smallest dimension extending
from the flat surface (Fig 19).
• Cylindrical parts are defined as parts having
cylindrical or other regular cross sections with
5 or more sides.
Fig 19 : Effect of part thickness on handling time
 Effect of Part Thickness and
Size on Handling Time (Cont.)
• When the diameter is greater than or
equal to its length, the part is treated as
non-cylindrical.
• Fig 19 shows the parts with a
“thickness” greater than 2 mm present
no grasping or handling problems.
• For long cylindrical parts,
Fig 20 : Effect of part size on handling time
Fig 21 : Examples of parts that may require tweezers for
handling
Fig 22 : Effect of symmetry on handling time when
parts nest or tangle sevely
Fig 23 : Geometries of peg-and-hole
Fig 24 : Effect of clearance on insertion time
Fig 25 : Points of contact on chamfer and hole
Fig 26 : Chamfer of constant width
Fig 27 : Geometry of part and peg
Fig 28 : Geometry of disk and hole
Fig 29 : Effects of restricted access and restricted vision
on initial engagement of screws
Fig 30 : Effect of number of threads on time to pick up the
tool, engage the screw, tighten the screw and replace
the tool
Fig 31 : Effect of obstructed access on time to tighten a
nut
Fig 32 : Effects of obstructed access and restricted vision
on the time to insert a pop rivet
Fig 33 : Effects of holding down on insertion time
Fig 34 : Effects of holding down and realignment on
insertion time for difficult-to-align part
Fig 35 : Controller assembly
Fig 36 : Completed worksheet analysis for the controller
assembly
Fig 37 : Conceptual redesign of the controller assembly
Fig 38 : Completed analysis for the controller assembly
redesign
Fig 39 : Rearrangement of connected items to improve
assembly efficiency and reduce costs
Fig 40 : Design concept to provide easier access during
assembly
Fig 41 : Design to avoid adjustment during assembly
Fig 42 : Overstraint leads to unnecessary complexity in
product design :
(a) overstrained design; (b) sound kinematic design
Fig 43 : Overstrained leads to redundancy of parts :
(a) overstrained; (b) kinematically sound
 Hitachi Assemblability
Evaluation Method
• Effective tool to improve design
quality for better assemblability.
• To facilitate design improvements by
identifying “weakness” in the early
design process, by the use of two
indicators:
 Hitachi Assemblability
Evaluation Method
1. An assemblability evaluation score
ratio, E, used to assess design quality
by determining the difficulty of
operations.
2. An assembly cost ratio, K, used to
project elements of assembly cost.
Hitachi Assemblability
Evaluation Method

Assemblability evaluation and design improvement flow

diagram
 Assemblability
Evaluation Procedure
 Theory of Evaluation
• Assembly operations are categorized into
approx. 20 elemental assembly tasks.
• Each task is assigned a symbol, indicates
the content of the task.
• Each of the elemental tasks is subject to a
penalty score which reflects the degree of
difficulty of the task.
 Theory of Evaluation
(Cont.)
• The sum of the various penalty scores for
a part are then modified by the attaching
coefficients and subtracted from 100
points to give the assemblability
evaluation score for the part.
• Total assemblability evaluation score is
then calculated. Score of 80 is acceptable.
Theory of Evaluation
(Cont.)

Examples of the AEM symbols and penalty scores

Assemblability evaluation
& Improvement examples
 Case Study
• Electric Thermo-Pot
• Before improvement
– Number of parts : 92 parts
– Estimated assembly time : 24.58
minutes
– Estimated assembly cost : Yen2949.35
– AEM score : 72.7
 Case Study (Cont.)
• After improvement
– Number of parts : 59 parts
– Estimated assembly time : 11.77
minutes
– Estimated assembly cost : Yen1412.80
– AEM score : 80.4
 Case Study (Cont.)
• Percentage of reduction/increment
– Number of parts : 36%
– Estimated assembly time : 52%
– Estimated assembly cost : 52%
– AEM score : 7.7%
 Summary
• Most appropriate solutions to any
assembly
problem depends on the production
conditions such as:
– production volume,
– life expectancy,
– available equipment,
– product market life.
• Good methodology must have
considerable merit.
Thank you!!!