Dawson Shanahan Ltd — based in Welshpool, Powys — has released a new guide to improving component quality and profitability through the process of designing components for manufacturing; this is available as a free download from the company’s Web site (www.dawson-shanahan.co.uk).

Designing For Manufacturing provides useful examples of how and why products developed and manufactured by leading companies have been abandoned or required a complete re-design due to the failure to meet manufacturing cost targets.

It also provides a best-practice example of where design-for-manufacture enabled a flawed component to be produced at a lower cost, in fewer operations and with an improved surface finish.

Jeff Kiernan, commercial director at Dawson Shanahan, said: “By focusing on manufacturing and assembly considerations earlier in the product-development life-cycle, engineers can make better design decisions. Our new guide helps companies to achieve this by giving them the information they need to enhance component quality and boost profitability in the process.”

With over 70 years’ experience, Dawson Shanahan is a global specialist in the cold-forming and machining of high-precision copper, aluminium and ferrous components and assemblies.