Six Sigma software for product design

Citation

(2002), "Six Sigma software for product design", Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, Vol. 74 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/aeat.2002.12774fab.012

Six Sigma software for product design

Six Sigma software for product design

Keywords: Software, Product development, Design, Mechanics

Sigmetrix LLC recently announced the release of Version 6.0 ssof its CETOL 6σ (“Six Sigma”) software for mechanical tolerance analysis. CETOL 6σ analyzes 3D solid models created in Pro/ENGINEER or imported to Pro/ENGINEER from any other solid modeling system. The software is said to guide engineers toward design revisions that optimize part tolerances and yield finished products with fewer defects. By pinpointing part tolerances early that would cause later problems in manufacturing, the software reportedly helps manufacturers avoid expensive production delays, eliminate material scrap, and reduce warranty costs.

Hundreds of companies around the world in the aerospace, automotive, and consumer products industries use CETOL 6σ to verify that a design under development will achieve the desired level of quality. CETOL 6σ claims to have become standard technology used by many top companies implementing design for Six Sigma practices in their product development processes.

“Tolerance analysis during design has become a product differentiator as companies seek to increase quality and gain competitive advantage”, says Tim Bogard, president and CEO of Sigmetrix. “Because our software reliably identifies which features in a design are truly critical to quality, it allows engineers to focus on details that most influence manufacturability. With CETOL, engineers can verify that designs will yield the expected quality before production begins”.

Tolerance analysis has been difficult for engineering organizations to exploit because it is computationally intense and time consuming. Traditionally, many companies have used historical tolerancing data from past products or incomplete spreadsheet approaches to define how much variation is acceptable before product performance suffers and customers grow dissatisfied. The problem is that historical or simplified data do not serve as a reliable guide to understanding the performance of complex new products.

According to Sigmetrix CETOL 6σ automates tolerance analysis so engineers can apply it regularly during fine-tuning of designs. Version 6.0 of the software offers engineers more ease of use in analysing part tolerances and more tools for balancing performance and cost during assembly design.

Updated features include the following:

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  Assembly parametric mode: modeling of joints for tolerance analysis uses existing Pro/ENGINEER assembly constraints, cutting modeling time in half.

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  Enhanced part overlay modeling: “Drag and drop” functionality and intelligent GDT filtering speed up testing of alternative part dimensioning schemes.

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  Hierarchical integration: handling of multiple levels of structure with analysis “rolling up” from one level to another allows a true comprehensive analysis of any assembly.

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  New data management and process library architecture: handling of analysis model data is streamlined for quick optimization of multiple design alternatives.

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  XML report technology: customizable XML templates allow automatic creation of reports with graphics and text for improved communication among decision makers.

Sigmetrix is a partnership between the creators of CETOL 6σ software and Rand Worldwide. In 1999, PTC selected CETOL 6σ for worldwide distribution as its preferred tolerance analysis solution. Sigmetrix also has a special research relationship with Brigham Young University’s ADCATS program.

Details available from: Sigmetrix, Tel: +1 975 542 7517; Fax: +1 972 542 7520, Web site: www.sigmetrix.com