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In general, the product development process from idea to volume production is the same for any industrial product.
This Product Development Chain consists of several phases each with it's own characteristics and demands. The transition
from one phase into another is not clearly distinct but one phases moves into another over a period of time
Each phase requires a different approach on technological, commercial, financial, logistic and quality aspects. Where in
the early phases speed and responsiveness are very important, in the volume production phase the focus is on piece price,
off course without loosing the attention on other aspects.
Virtual Prototyping is the common name for any method or operation in which information is gathered about some product or
design by means of an IT tool, e.g. without the physical presence of any object itself. With the technical possibilities
of today one can save a great amount of time and money using these systems. Information is gathered in a rather short amount
of time in the very early design stage and the design can be adjusted over and over again until it's according the right
specifications. Time consuming prototype runs can be restricted to a minimum which improves the Time To Market of a product.
The most common and known use of virtual prototyping is 3D modelling of mechanical objects to achieve engineering information
or just for presentation purposes. However, the range of applications reaches far beyond. 3D animations, simulation of mechanical
and electronic characteristics in static and dynamic environment, 3d digitising of physical objects, process simulation,
and even the use of Virtual Reality to simulate assembly processes are applications which are used today.
However a lot of information can be collected from virtual prototypes, there's always a moment when the first physical prototype
is needed. This can be for commercial reasons like for customer presentations of for trade fairs, but physical prototypes can
also be required as an engineering aid, e.g. to verify the virtual prototype data. In this stage it's not very costly to obtain
a physical prototype as long there are no requirements on functionality. When these concessions are made prototypes can be
obtained very quickly as well. Modern techniques, like Rapid Prototyping for plastic and metal parts, make it possible to
manufacture mechanical models without the use of tools. Enimco works together with partners which made prototyping to their
core business which guarantees a quick turn around on prototype demands.
As soon as the information collected from the virtual and physical prototypes justify the proceeding of the development process,
the need to test the functionality comes up. Prototypes need to be manufactured which will have the same specifications and
characteristics as the part made in volume production. This means material specifications, electronic characteristics, etc.
These prototypes can be used to set-up a volume production test facility, to have it tested in the customer's application, to
perform lifetime tests, for marketing tests etc.
On one hand these parts need to be as from the final production process, on the other hand the flexibility is required to make
modifications to the product quickly and against a fair price as a result from the functionality tests, and subsequently test
it again. To achieve this, proper project management, supply chain management, use of the latest technologies on rapid
prototyping and rapid tooling are critical success factors to keep the product development within planning and budget.
Once the functional tests are satisfying and the product is released for production the typical phase of ramping up enters the
scene. The product is ready to be manufactured and to enter the market, but there's no volume production process available.
Since the "go"-decision to start spending money on production tools and the actual design of the process as well were depending
on the results of the functional tests. The phase between functional prototyping and volume production is called the
pre-production phase. Where the main focus in the previous phases was on aspects like speed and lead-time, the focus shifts
now to piece price and process control. The pre-production phase is needed to bridge the gap, especially when volume production
is projected in another country. Flexibility and supply chain management are critical success factors in this phase. Forecasts
turn out to be very unstable in this phase and can go up and down on a daily basis, and also the transition to low labour
countries and to other parties require a lot of attention. Meanwhile the volume production process is getting ready step by
step and the production process and the supply chain can change a few times before the final set-up is ready and released.
Enimco has it's partners both local and in low-labour countries. Combined with supply chain management as one of it's core
competences Enimco is a perfect partner to bridge the gap between prototyping and volume production.
Finally the product is manufactured in the process as it was meant to be. This introduces new items to be focused on,
depending on the character of the product like high-techor low-tech, low volume or high-volume, product life cycle, etc.
In the volume phase, any aspect is important: product quality, process quality, delivery performance, piece price, efficiency,
etc. Proper production planning, supply chain management, logistics, quality assurance etc are critical success factors.
Enimco recognises the fact that each product is different from another and requires the most suitable processes for that
particular product. Therefore Enimco sets up a specific supply chain for each product to be manufactured, with the most
suitable suppliers for that specific product in the chain. With partners in the Netherlands and other Western European countries,
Eastern Europe and the Far East, Enimco is always able to fits the process to the product.
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