Integration of DFMA and sustainability - A case study

Abstract

In recent days, incorporation of sustainability principles in product design is gaining importance to survive and compete in the market. The goal of this work is to simultaneously apply the DFMA and sustainability principles in product design. For this purpose, a bike horn is chosen as a candidate product. The three dimensional model of an existing bike horn is created in a modelling package. The DFMA principles are applied to reduce the number of parts, cost of materials, manufacturing processes and the assembly time. The number of parts and total cost were reduced by 22.92 and 24.59%, respectively. The sustainability concepts are then applied on the product with a view to reduce its impact on the environment. It was found that, the carbon footprint and the total energy consumed were reduced by 13.04 and 8.69%, respectively. Thus, the integrated application of DFMA and sustainability concepts results in not only economical product but also eco-friendly one.