Product & Tooling Design & Development
Design consulting services are offered on a case-by-case basis. If you are looking to design and develop a product, tooling or fixturing, I can potentially help.
PVF offers:
Rates:
Consulting and drafting work is done on a per hour rate of $100 per hour.
PVF offers:
- Consulting: input of ideas and technical knowledge to brainstorm and problem solve new designs and products
- CAD Drafting: drafting of designs in 2d or 3d
- Production Planning: PVF can help plan the best methods to produce your product
Rates:
Consulting and drafting work is done on a per hour rate of $100 per hour.
Concurrent Design & Engineering:
I like to use techniques of concurrent design and engineering when developing designs. Concurrent design essentially means that you are thinking about all aspects of how an item will be used, made, and even sold and marketed all at once, and up-front in the design process. This helps ensure that the item being designed works as intended, meets the customer needs, is easily and affordably produced, looks good, and has adaptability for future changes. This method of design thinking can sometimes take more up-front work, but it greatly helps ensure the design actually meets its end goals, can make it so far less prototype iterations are necessary, and makes sure the design is affordably produceable. Therefore, using techniques of concurrent design can save an enormous amount of time and money in the full process of going from an idea to a finished and successful product.
I like to use techniques of concurrent design and engineering when developing designs. Concurrent design essentially means that you are thinking about all aspects of how an item will be used, made, and even sold and marketed all at once, and up-front in the design process. This helps ensure that the item being designed works as intended, meets the customer needs, is easily and affordably produced, looks good, and has adaptability for future changes. This method of design thinking can sometimes take more up-front work, but it greatly helps ensure the design actually meets its end goals, can make it so far less prototype iterations are necessary, and makes sure the design is affordably produceable. Therefore, using techniques of concurrent design can save an enormous amount of time and money in the full process of going from an idea to a finished and successful product.
Design Tools
Autodesk CAD/CAM Software:
- Capable of 2d and 3d modeling
- Can animate multi-part assemblies
- Produces photo-realistic renders of CAD models
- Simulates and tests stresses using Finite Element Analysis (FEA)
- Plan and program tool paths for machining operations via CAM software
- Can save models in multiple formats compatible with many types of software
Photo-realistic render of a design for one of the first fixtures ever made for welding Flat Mount disc brakes
CAD model of a PVF design for Quick-Relese Fender Mounts
BikeCAD:
- Used specifically for designing bicycle frames
- Can check component clearances
- Produces geometry, fit, and machining dimension drawings
The draft of this frame was created in BikeCAD. Mitering angles are shown here to produce the frame
2d Drafting:
- Your design can be 2d drafted for reference purposes, to provide measurements for manufacturing, or for later securing intellectual property rights
- Drafts can be done in traditional coordinate measurements or Geometric Dimensioning & Tolerancing (GD&T) format
GD&T can be used when drafting to call out very specific types of tolerances for manufacturing
Prototyping & Contract Manufacturing:
PVF can potentially make the prototype for your design, as well as offer contract manufacturing. However, availability to offer this very much depends on the specific project details, as well as current workload with PVF's custom frame build queue.
PVF can potentially make the prototype for your design, as well as offer contract manufacturing. However, availability to offer this very much depends on the specific project details, as well as current workload with PVF's custom frame build queue.
A finished flat mount welding fixture, used by several framebuilders including Firefly Bicycles
Broad overview of PVF's In-House Fabrication Capabilities:
- Milling & Lathe Operations: Cut, shape, drill, tap, and machine virtually any type of metal
- CNC Machining: machine complex and repeatable parts
- Joinery: welding, brazing and soldering via TIG welding and Oxy-Acetylene torches
- Bending: shape and bend tubing to custom profiles
- Metrology: accurate inspection using measuring devices with traceable standards
- Bicycle Specific: specific fixturing for producing all types of bicycles to the highest standards