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Based on the results of initial research, six work packages have been defined within the project:
- Market research and project communication
- Tools to manage distributed working
- Automation of mould design and manufacture
- Data exchange between surface and solid modellers
- Electronic sculpting
- Online marketplace to support the mouldmaking supply chain
Market research and project communication
Incorporating ongoing feedback from mouldmakers and their supply chains to ensure that the project was guided primarily by real needs and experiences. Project results were disseminated on this website on an ongoing basis, and seminars held in the UK, Spain and Portugal. An e-business demonstration centre was formed in the UK and Spain to show the benefits of e-business and online collaboration.
Tools to manage distributed working
The development of tools to support collaborative mould design. Many European mouldmakers are collaborating on mould design, with work encompassing several companies and geographical locations. Tools were developed to support distributed working, notably PS Team from Delcam. This work package provides the first example of the use of these technologies within the mould and die industry, demonstrating the business benefits which can come from new processes and ways of working. Areas to be addressed include:
- Agendas and minutes for e-meetings
- Managing work specifications and changes via the Internet
- Communication between mouldmaker and customer
- Electronic Document Interchange (EDI)
- Using the Internet to provide customers with diagnostic assistance and best practice design guidelines
Automation of mould design and manufacture
The development of CAD tools to automate mould design processes which currently involve a great many CAD operations. It is becoming possible to automate common sequences into intelligent automated 'Wizards'; improving the productivity of existing operators, reducing product design lead times, reducing the training required for new operators, so decreasing cost and removing barriers to growth.
Other less obvious business benefits can be gained: for example, automating CAD functions for generating electrode models for mould cavity manufacture means that electrode modelling can move from the CADCAM office to the shop floor, encouraging multi-disciplinary shop floor product teams to produce better quality products, faster.
Processes which could be automated in this way include:
- Electrode modelling and manufacture
- Slide design
- Cooling design
- Parting surface design
Information and a demonstration of Delcam's Powershape software, which includes the PS-Moldmaker module is available on the Delcam Website.
Data exchange between surface and solid modellers
Toolmakers often deal with several different design companies and send and receive data to and from many different CAD systems. At present the transfer of solid models, including topology, is still very unsatisfactory. Software to heal a group of surfaces into a solid is available, but only has a success rate of around 70%. Mouldmakers rely totally on data exchange and, as the norm is for both mouldmaker and customer to be using solid modelling software, it is vital that these data exchange problems are solved. This work package researched the causes of poor data transfer, including discontinuities in surfaces, self-intersecting surfaces, very small edges and re-intersection to heal small gaps.
Electronic sculpting
Moulds often incorporate engraved reliefs, but the software developed to handle them uses a different internal geometric technique to solid and surface modellers. The modelling of the relief is therefore not integrated into the design of the main mould cavity. This work package aimed to integrate these two approaches to enable a radically new way of modelling hybrid (solid/surface/relief) models.
With such a technology, manufacturers can gain distinct competitive advantage and increase 'off-the-shelf' appeal for their moulded products. For example, the use of engraved reliefs can enable an apple juice bottle to feature 3D apple shapes. The key is to be able to develop such shapes quickly and easily. Other application areas include ceramics, shoes and coins/metals/badges. Problems to be solved include wrapping/flattening and the integration of hybrid/surface data.
Online marketplace to support the mouldmaking supply chain
Most emerging e-marketplaces support horizontal market sectors. This work package aims to develop a vertical marketplace for the mould and die sector, linking suppliers, customers, designers and all other involved parties. Membership of such an e-marketplace means that a mouldmaker can receive requests for quotations, place quotations, receive orders, manage concurrent design and manufacture, organise delivery and receive payment - securely, all via the web.
An online marketplace needs several levels of support:
- Infrastructure: the base level should provide basic support for businesses joining the marketplace, including security, business directories, business document exchange mechanisms, search tools and so on.
- Business applications: a set of Business to Business (B2B) support applications, including collaborative design tools, requests for proposals and quotations, selling and purchasing tools and so on.
- Services/content: building and managing the content of the marketplace and adding services such as engineering, data conversion, digital catalogues, 3D reconstruction, simulation and assisted training.
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