How Should Mechanical Design Validation Work?

Finding a problem with a part design is one thing. Finding it after production tooling has already been built is a much more expensive conversation.

That’s why mechanical design validation needs to happen early. Before a design moves forward, there should be a close look at how well it fits the manufacturing process and where potential problems could show up.

For powder metal parts, much of that work happens during design and quoting. It gives engineers time to work through potential changes before they become changes to finished tooling.

A good validation process helps answer a pretty practical question: Is this design ready to move forward?

Mechanical Design Validation Starts With the Print

When we receive a new part design, the print is our starting point. We take an initial look at the design for potential concerns before the project moves further into quoting.

At this stage, we’re looking at three areas:

• Geometry: Can the part be produced without creating unnecessary challenges for the tooling?
• Tolerances: Are the requirements realistic for the manufacturing process?
• Material properties: Do the specified properties line up with what the part needs to do?

Any one of these can affect whether a design is ready to move forward. Atlas Blog_ How Mechanical Desi…

This review is also a chance to talk through the design with the customer’s engineering team. If something needs another look, it’s better to have that conversation while the design is still being worked out rather than after tooling decisions have been made.

What Can Stop a Design From Moving Forward?

A design may work for the finished part but create problems for the tooling used to make it. Those concerns need to be identified before the design is finalized.

A few areas we look closely at include:

Tolerances deserve particular attention here. A dimension on a print still has to be achievable within powder metallurgy tolerances. If a tolerance cannot be held statistically at the required Cpk, it may need to be revisited before the project moves forward.

Identifying these concerns early gives engineers time to address them before tooling is built.

What Needs to Be Validated Before Tooling?

Mechanical design validation also needs to account for how the finished part is expected to perform. These requirements should be considered during design and quoting, while there is still time to address concerns before tooling is built.

Mechanical Properties

Strength and hardness requirements can influence decisions made early in the project. Reviewing those requirements against the proposed design helps determine if changes need to be discussed before moving forward.

Material Properties

Powder metal density, porosity, and microstructure also need to be considered during this stage. Each can affect how a powder metal part performs and may influence decisions made during the design process. Atlas Blog_ How Mechanical Desi…

The exact validation needs will depend on the part and its requirements. Defining them during design and quoting gives the engineering team a clearer picture of what the part will need to meet before production tooling is built.

What Happens When Validation Finds a Problem?

Finding a concern during validation gives us a chance to work through it before the project reaches tooling. What happens next depends on how much the proposed change affects the finished part.

In many cases, these conversations happen during the design phase, well before samples are produced.

The goal is to resolve the concern at the point where changes are still being made to the design, rather than carrying a known issue into tooling.

How Do Samples Confirm the Design?

Once the design has been reviewed and any concerns have been addressed, samples provide the next opportunity to see how those decisions work in practice.

During sampling, the part can be evaluated against the requirements established earlier in the project. This may include dimensional checks along with the material properties identified during design and quoting.

Samples can also establish a baseline for the part. That gives the engineering team a point of comparison as the project moves into production and can be useful if questions come up later.

The results help determine if the design is ready to move forward or if another adjustment is needed before production tooling is finalized.

Make Mechanical Design Validation an Early Conversation

The best time to work through a design concern is while the design can still change. Mechanical design validation gives engineering teams that opportunity before tooling decisions make those changes harder to address.

Starting during design and quoting leaves time to review potential concerns and make adjustments before the project moves ahead. By the time production tooling enters the picture, the design should have already gone through that work.

Design Your Next PM Part With Confidence

Good design decisions start well before tooling is built. Use our PM Design Guide as a reference when developing a part for the powder metallurgy process.