Configuration Management: When to Change Part Numbers and Revisions

For today’s blog post, we will be discussing the importance of when to change part numbers and revisions on manufacturing drawings. This is a major part of engineering change control and maintaining the proper documentation based on the minor and major changes made. Before we get started, it is important to mention that this blog is not meant as a “how to” of maintaining documentation and engineering change control. Many OEMs and companies maintain their document control based on their own system of rules of configuration or interchangeability (when to change part numbers, how to properly roll revisions, what letters and numbers to use, etc.). Continue reading

Engineering Drawings vs. Manufacturing Drawings

Engineering drawings, manufacturing drawings. Tomato, tomato. Right? – Wrong. Although these two terms can sometimes be used interchangeably, there is in fact, a distinction between the two.

The truth is, there is a big distinction between engineering and manufacturing altogether! Most of the time, there are departments that are for each within a company since they require a different set of skills. Although there is a difference between the two, they go hand in hand and work together for the end result. However, in smaller companies, the distinction can become lost since one or a few people handle the engineering and manufacturing together. This article will demonstrate the difference between the two types of drawings and why they are both important to have. Continue reading

5 Steps: How to Manufacture a Product

Being a manufacture of thousands of products, we have come across customers who have been in business just as long as we have and  the process of manufacturing products comes second nature. Then there is the customer who has all their ducks in a row, and it’s their first time actually creating their first prototype. But, then there’s the customer who has just come up with this great idea, and comes in with his idea written on a napkin. We’ve seen it all…literally. So we thought we would put this blog post together that will be a road map for those who either need some guidance into manufacturing their parts, who need assistance in where to start before getting parts manufactured, and a hand for those who are looking to bring their product back to the US and need some refreshers of working with US manufacturers. Continue reading