Industrial and Commercial Processes Flashcards
What is one-off production?
The design and manufacture of a single item or product
Name 3 advantages of one-off production
- Unique product each time
- High quality product as high level of skill is needed
- Products can be made to measure
Name 2 disadvantages of one-off production
- Labour-intensive = takes a long time to produce, so you may have to wait a long time for the product to be produced
- Very expensive
What is batch production?
System of manufacturing used to produce a fixed quantity of ‘batch’ of identical products
Name 3 examples of one-off products
- Wedding dress
- Stadiums
- Ships
Name 3 characteristics of one-off production
- Highly skilled workers
- Constant discussion with client
- Specialist area of work (e.g. jewellery)
Name 3 characteristics of batch production
- Production-line set-up
- Workers semi-skilled and flexible
- Parts often bought from other companies and assembled
Name 2 advantages of batch production
- Quick response to customers’ demands
- Production line can be changed quickly
Name a disdvantage of batch production
Tools need to be reset for new production run
What is mass production?
Making the same product continuously
Name 2 characteristics of mass production
- Semi-automated with much computer control
- High level of investment in machinery
Name 2 advantages of mass production
- Low unit costs
- Can operate 24/7
Name a disadvantage of mass production
Initial machinery and tooling costs are very high
Give 3 examples of products that are produced by batch production
- Clothes
- Watches
- Baked goods
Give 3 examples of products that are produced by mass production
- Cars
- Televisions
- iPhones
When is sand casting used?
When producing complex shapes
Give 3 examples of products that are sand casted
- Car engine parts
- Kitchen and bathroom taps
- Screws
Describe how sand casting works
- Encase a mould pattern (usually made from wood) in moulding sand = relief pattern
- Consists of 2 parts: cope and drag
- Cope contains 2 taper tubes (act as delivery tubes for the metal): runer and riser
- Remove pattern to leave an empty cavity
- Drag and cope placed together
- Sand tightly packed around them (to prevent air being trapped inside/metal getting out)
- Pour molten metal into riser to fill the tubes
- When metal solidified and cooled, sand removed and taper tubes cut
Name 3 advantages of sand casting
- Any waste can be reused
- Complex shapes and forms can be achieved
- Hollow products can be achieved with the use of cores
Name 3 disadvantages of sand casting
- Consumes great deal of energy in order to melt metal
- New sand cast has to be packed each time the product has to be made
- Time-consuming to pack sand each time
Name the tool
Pillar drill
Name the tool
Hand drill
Name the tool
Cordless drill
Name 3 advantages of a pillar drill
- Can be used continuously
- Chuck can be removed to accept larger drill bits
- Speed can be varied
Name 2 disadvantages of a pillar drill
- Fixed in one position
- Can be dangerous
Name an advantage of a hand drill
Portable
Name 2 disadvantages of a hand drill
- You need to provide the power
- Will only hold bits up to 10 mm
Name 3 advantages of a cordless drill
- Portable
- Generally has a variable speed control
- Can be made to reverse direction
Name 3 disadvantages of a cordless drill
- Power limited by battery type and size
- Charging batteries can take some time
- Will only hold bits up to 10 mm
What does wood turning allow?
Allows circular wooden products to be made
Name 2 products that can be made using wood turning
- Fruit bowls
- Stair spindles
What are lathes used for?
Used to ‘turn’ materials = to make round objects
Describe how you use a lathe (include safety things)
- Piece of material is held and rotated by the lathe, while a tool or bit is pressed onto the material to cut it
- Before using it, check all guards are in place & aren’t cracked
- Keep your hands away from moving pieces
- Make sure lathe is set to rotate at the correct speed for the material being cut + tool used
- Make sure material is held tightly and straight
- Long pieces of material needed to be held securely at both ends (stops it from wobbling)
Describe how you prepare wood for a lathe and explain why you do this
Make saw cuts and remove corners by planing = allows wood to fix onto lathe without slipping
Name part A
Drive centre
Name part B
Tailstock
Name the turning process
Facing
Name the turning process
Parallel turning
Name the turning process
Taper turning
Name the turning process
Parting
Name the turning process
Drilling
Name the turning process
Knurling
Describe the turning process facing
Tool moved at right angles to axis, facing end surface
Describe the turning process parallel turning
Tool moved parallel to axis to form a cylinder, reducing the diameter
Describe the turning process taper turning
Tool moved at angle to axis to produce a taper
Describe the turning process parting
Narrow tool fed into work to trim, to length or part work from stock bar
Describe the turning process drilling
- Tail stock used to hold chuck into which a dril can be placed
- As work rotates, drill is fed into the work
Describe the turning process knurling
Hardened steel wheel pressed into the rotating work to produce straight or diamond pattern
Name 3 advantages of metal turning
- Chuck can hold a variety of sizes and lengths
- Very accurate sizing can be achieved with fine adjustments of the cross slide
- Drilling and tapping can be carried out
Name 3 disadvantages of metal turning
- Very difficult to set up non-cylindrical items
- Long objects can flex if not correctly supported along their length
- Once an object has been removed, it is difficult to reset it to centre
Name 3 products made by blow moulding
- Shampoo bottles
- Water butts
- Milk containers
Describe how blow moulding works
- Tube (parison) of softened plastic is inserted into a solid mould
- Air is then injected which forces the plastic to expand to the shape of the mould
- Product dropped out of machine as two halves open
Name 3 advantages of blow moulding
- Very cheap unit costs
- Produces high volume - can run 24/7
- Not very labour-intensive
Name 3 disadvantages of blow moulding
- Initial costs of machine and tooling very high
- Sometimes a seam if left around product where mould closes
- Products sometimes need to have flashing removed
Describe vacuum forming
- Sheet of thermoplastic (e.g. HIPS) is heated until it goes soft
- A mould is put onto the vacuum bed & bed is then lifted close to the heated plastic
- Air is sucked out from under the plastic = creating a vacuum
- Air pressure from outside the mould then forces the plastic onto the mould
Name 3 examples of product made from vacuum forming
- Yoghurt pots
- Trays
- Masks
Name 3 products made by injection moulding
- Buckets
- Bottle caps
- Wheelie bins
Describe injection moulding
- Hopper filled with plastic pellets
- Which are then fed along the machine by a large screw & are heated as move through it
- Once the plastic is fully melted, the molten plastic is injected into a mould
- Mould made out of 2 separating halves which come together to from whole shape of product
- Cools in the mould until solid and then is released
Name 3 advantages of injection moulding
- High level of accuracy
- Little or no secondary surface finishing required
- Identical components formed each time
Name 3 disadvantages of injection moulding
- Initial machine and mould costs high
- Some flashing may have to be removed
- Sprue pins need to be cut off
Name 3 things you need to do before vacuum forming
- All vertical surfaces need to be slightly tapered = so product can easily removed from mould
- Round off sharp corners = don’t puncture or rip the plastic
- Incorporate vent holes to avoid pockets of aire becoming trapped
Name 3 advantages of vacuum forming
- Lightweight, hollow products can be made
- Relatively cheap moulds can be made from MDF in school workshop for a one-off item
- Surface textures can be moulded into products
Name 3 disadvantages of vacuum forming
- Thermoplastic material sometimes thins too much and may burst/pop
- Webs sometimes form between items = product formed cannot be used
- Products need to be trimmed and cut out