State of the Art and Analysis of Design for Assembly of Large and Heavy Parts

Abstract

Design For Assembly (DFA) is a tool to evaluate the design of parts and the products assemblability. Additionally, DFA is a key tool to reduce both cost and assembly time. DFA includes a set of techniques and procedures that, when applied properly, makes the product assembly more efficient. Assembly takes between 20% and 60% of production time, and represents between 25% and 75% of the total cost of the manufactured products. Existing techniques consider weight and size restrictions to assess the design features of the products. All those components not considered within the weight and size constraints are qualified in equal way. For the scope of this research large and heavy parts are defined as parts that measure above one meter and weight from five kilograms to five tons. Most products of large size have assemblies and subassemblies. Additionally there are a number of processes for handling an assembly of large and heavy components. Despite the information identified, further research focused to improve the knowledge in assembly methods is needed. This paper presents the state of-the-art in the assembly of large and heavy components analysis and to be a reference for future research.