Over the last years, there has been an increased demand in agility and enhancement through optimising the value chain to meet industry protocols and full product specifications.
And the statistics speaks for themselves. The UK government estimates that by 2040:
- 95% of validation and homologation done virtually.
- 75% cost reduction for new product introduction,
- Faster time to market: from 5 years to 18 months
(source: UK government digitalisation roadmap, March 2021)
This reaffirms how engineering integration has attracted much attention in manufacturing research. Collaborative toolsets are effectively helping leverage digital twins to improve effectiveness of design, engineering and manufacturing.
Engineering transformation takes a holistic approach. It’s based on the idea of providing visibility over variant management and product line engineering (PLE), model based system engineering (MBSE), tooling reports and process flow diagrams – just to name a few. It’s an approach that creates a layout plan for the manufacturing process, while also defining input to planning for both control and qualification.
The integrated engineering approach uses data management frameworks that automate workflows for different CAE applications, such as:
- Cost estimation
- Stiffness calculation
- Multibody dynamics.
Integration across functions might include shared goals, main links and consultation links. When data from manufacturing is introduced, this framework enables best fit part matching, while parametric simulations automatically update the models.
The answer to the current challenges embraces technology from partners and third-party suppliers to connect and integrate sensors, devices, applications, systems, machines and virtual models, creating a fuller, richer digital twin and generating immediate real-time insight.
Companies demand cross-domain and collaborative development principles. With a virtual collaborative engineering workflow management toolset, manufacturers can bring more vertically integrated teams to bear on engineering tasks. Such a toolset enables them to work together seamlessly with automated workflows during product development. That ensures the engineering transformation journey is both successful and scalable. To achieve that, it is imperative that organisations consider an optimal way to manage the change for people and a proper solution rollout.
Hexagon’s engineering solutions for smart manufacturing
Hexagon’s capabilities for smart manufacturing provide a unique blend of solutions which ensure that complex design, engineering and production requirements are specified to deliver ROI and value based on product design improvement, part feasibility analysis, manufacturing process validation and optimisation via simulation.
Where does the growth come from?
- Product design improvement, part feasibility analysis
- Manufacturing process parameters tuning
- Manufacturing process validation and optimisation via simulation
- Quick and early formability studies based on part geometry
- Virtual die try-out based on tooling designs
- Spring back compensation
- Detailed virtual try outs considering the real and physical environment
- Accurate material description and flow
- Prediction of part properties during the manufacturing process chain
- Consider the forming history and its impact in the assembly process
- Reduced engineering changes
- Early visibility of material cost and efficiency
- Design optimisation for cost
Interested? Learn more at www.hexagonmi.com/SFx
