IB Design Technology 10.3 Computer-integrated Manufacturing Questionbank

(a) List two components or technologies that would typically be integrated in a CIM system for producing the mouthguards.

(b) Outline how CIM could be applied to handle high order volumes at the start of term while still producing mouthguards customised to each student.

(c) Outline one advantage and one disadvantage of moving from the current manual process to a CIM cell for this product.

(d) Explain how integrating CAD, CAM and automated inspection in a CIM system could reduce remakes and improve the efficiency of the manufacturing process for the mouthguards.

(a) List two elements or technologies that could be part of Forge’s CIM system.

(b) Outline one application of CIM in this factory beyond just machining the part.

(c) Explain how introducing CIM could affect Forge’s operation, including advantages and disadvantages.

Which of the following is not a characteristic of Computer-Integrated Manufacturing (CIM)?

(a) State two components or technologies that are typically integrated within a CIM system.

(b) Outline how CIM could be applied to VeloForge’s customer configurator to link the customer’s choices to factory production.

(c) Outline one advantage and one disadvantage for VeloForge of adopting CIM for frame production.

(d) Explain how CIM could help VeloForge coordinate design, production and inventory so that customised frames are produced accurately and on time.

Legal counsel, financial auditing, and human resource management

Product design, material requirements planning, and shop-floor production

Demographic research, retail marketing, and product disposal

Hand-sketching, manual assembly, and face-to-face sales

Forge manufactures aluminium bicycle crank arms. The company is planning to modernise its production by introducing a computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM) system that links design, planning, manufacture and inspection.

The proposed workflow is:

1. A designer creates the crank arm in a CAD system and exports the model.
2. CAM software generates CNC toolpaths for a milling machine.
3. A central database stores the bill of materials (BOM), routings and machine programs.
4. Barcodes on pallets identify each part as it moves via a conveyor to machining, washing and inspection.
5. A coordinate measuring machine (CMM) checks key dimensions and automatically updates the quality records.
6. The system can schedule jobs, reorder material when stock is low and produce traceability reports.

A mid-sized bicycle manufacturer, VeloForge, produces commuter and e-bike frames. The firm is considering a shift to computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM) to link its design studio, production equipment, warehouse and order processing.

VeloForge’s proposal includes:

• customers configuring a frame online (size, colour, accessory mounts)
• automatic generation of a digital product file for the factory
• robots and CNC machines cutting and welding tubes
• sensors collecting data during welding and painting
• automatic stock updates and scheduling of work orders

Figure 1 shows a prototype screen from VeloForge’s online configurator.

Figure 2 shows an example of the order summary sent to the factory.

Integration of design and manufacturing processes

Real-time monitoring and control

High dependence on manual labour

Improved production efficiency