Alignment of Design and Manufacturing for E.V.

One of the biggest challenges in electric vehicle design is making sure that both teams, which work separately on different parts/electronics and materials for each application respectively (i.e., BIW vs. battery), are aligned with one another so they can produce a perfect product from start to finish without any discrepancy or delay throughout the production process.

DREs or Design Responsible Engineers must consider four factors when creating a new electric vehicle:  

1. Automation – Robots are a game-changer for the auto industry. They put cars together in many cases, so whether they can perform this task needs to be considered when designing your vehicle's automation process and considering how accessible these bots will need to remain throughout production time.  
2. Semi-Automation - Most of your production process is likely without human interaction if you have a modern assembly line. But what about when things get tricky? You can't just leave these complicated tasks up to machines! Before you go manual, you may consider a semi-automated or offline system with a human operator, like a pedestal system for stud welding or clinching products.  
3. Manual Assembly - the automotive industry is full of tasks humans must complete. From IP or instrument panels, bracket attachments, and acorn nuts on your wheel hubs being torqued onto the car, there will always be manual assembly in this field regardless of some start-ups' lofty goals.  Use it wisely because adding more Run Rate Hours (RTHs) will increase cycle times and rate of production. The biggest takeaway is that cheaper parts can increase manual assembly time. Buying an engineered plastic or fastener can cut times in half in many cases.  
4. Tier versus Direct – Does your tier have the equipment to join your materials or attach your fasteners to the designed part? In many cases, a #rivet tool can have an 18-week lead time, so if you have put 200 Monobolt® Rivets on your battery box, you must ensure they have what's needed to install them.   

What is DFM?  

Design for Manufacturing in the automotive process is called manufacturing engineering. With robots, controls, and automation ruling the EV space, it's a village of control engineers, joining engineers, #welding engineers, #assembly engineers, #fastener engineers, and seasoned maintenance teams. Design must have a constant connection and voice to these teams.   

The Finding Fasteners team helps the design team bridge the gap in their plant, working towards a common goal of efficient, easy, and fast assembly.