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Deliverables pdf

During the design phase of a project, there are three primary deliverables that the customer will receive from PEI.

Quotation Document
The first is the estimate or quotation, which is submitted to the customer after the initial design has been reviewed and a cost evaluation has been completed. Our policy is to present all pricing and delivery data in written form so as to eliminate any chance of confusion or miscommunications. Due to the complexity of many of our projects, we may ultimately submit a number of quotations as the design project progresses and the enclosure evolves.

Assembly Drawing
The second deliverable is sent when our engineers complete the development of the assembly model. At that time, the customer will receive an .IGS, .DXF, .JPG or .PDF file of the assembly via e-mail, along with an approval form to be completed and returned to PEI. If a customer does not have CAD capabilities or wishes to receive hard copy drawings of their assembly model, we will gladly fax 'A' size (8 1/2 x 11) drawings. For customers who require Mylar drawings, we can supply those in 'B', 'C', or 'D' sizes.

Please note that hardcopy drawings submitted on Mylar or on large format paper (sizes , 'B', 'C', or 'D') and/or drawings sent via UPS, FedEx, or USPS may incur an additional fee to cover the cost for that service. For more information about PEI supplied drawings and files, please visit our Documents web page.

Prototype Part
The third deliverable the customer will receive within a project's design phase is the prototype part. As with the submittal of the assembly drawing, the prototype part is accompanied by an approval form that must be signed and returned to PEI before production parts can be manufactured. If the enclosure requires changes, then some or all of another set of deliverables will be required.

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Revisions pdf

One of the many attractive aspects of the PEI process is our ability to quickly handle product changes with a minimum amount of time and cost. Because of our 'No Tooling' capabilities, we can handle changes that may not be possible with other processes or might be too time consuming or costly for the customer to accept. By using the power of CAD/CAM technology, we are able to alter an enclosure's design, change the tool paths associated with those alterations, update the manufacturing process plan to match the changes, and produce a prototype or production quantity of parts within hours or days.

As with all of PEI's engineering activities, we require that full documentation be produced by PEI and accepted by the customer for any and all changes. Because of the complexity involved with our products and the human error that can occur, we do not accept verbal instructions for product revisions. This does not mean that we expect the customer to make a full set of CAD drawings, rather, we prefer that they mark up existing drawings when possible and send them to us for review. Once we understand the changes and how we can implement them, we will update the CAD files and submit those updates to the customer for final (written) approval.

Once final approval has been received by PEI, the engineer assigned will revise the CAM files and documents and release the job for a new prototype part to be built. As with a product's initial design, we prefer to make a prototype part and have the customer approve it before making production quantities. Our experience is that even the simplest changes can lead to unexpected results and the only thing worse than having a part that does not work is having 100 of them!

Finally, on the subject of implementing changes, there are some points regarding the implementation of revisions that should be kept in mind. To begin, while we would prefer some advance notice of the expected changes, we can and have been known to implement product modifications midstream in a production run. We have numerous examples where customers have asked us to make running changes for such things as relocating standoffs, enlarging a connector hole, or adding additional vent slots. If it can be done, we will do it and because it is one of the advantages of our process, we gladly accept changes as a part of our normal business activity. One thing we never want our customers to feel is intimidated or embarrassed to request a change to their part.

However, not all change requests are equal, meaning that some changes are minor and can be implemented in under an hour while others may require a major change to the model and manufacturing tool paths, leading to a more lengthy turnaround. The major difference between the two extremes is based on whether the change affects the geometry of the part. By that, we are referring to the dimensions of the plastic panels and any reference planes. As an example, we can easily increase the size or location of a cut feature such as a connector opening. To add a speaker opening or extend the length of vent slots is also a minor change that will usually take under an hour to implement.

On the other hand, increasing the height of the enclosure any amount may require a great deal more time. Because of the type of revision in this case, the amount of dimensional change is not the issue. Whether the height increases 0.010" or 10.000" it will take the engineer the same amount of time to complete. The reason is due to how our enclosures are constructed and how features and components are referenced. All panels and features are referenced from datum planes that intersect at an X, Y, and Z coordinate point. Once any of those associated planes are altered, all other planes and corresponding features have to be re-associated to the new datum. As such, the amount of time it takes to implement a simple height increase of 0.010" can take several hours or even days to complete.

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Prototype Phase pdf

While the actual manufacturing of the prototype part is done by the production department, the responsibility for part quality, design conformity, and overall part functionality continues to rest with the engineer who designed the part. As such, we view the prototype build as an extension of the whole design process and, while we try to keep it to a minimum, we will sometimes cut and build the prototype part a number of times before presenting the final version to the customer for approval.

With the goal of presenting a prototype part that meets the customer's expectations, each panel and detail is measured for compliance with drawing specifications. Any out of tolerance measurements or visual variations are marked on the prototype drawings and presented along with the part to the engineer for his analysis and, when necessary, program revision. It should be noted that any such revisions are solely those involving the manufacturing of the part and do not affect the enclosure as previously presented in the assembly drawing to the customer.

One of the key goals for this final stage of design development is ensuring the customer's needs for form, fit, and function are achieved while meeting our internal need for manufacturability. Panels, components, and hardware are not only checked for specification compliance but also for their contribution to the overall look and feel of the final product. Many times, specifications are developed without empirical data to justify their need, cost, or efficacy. As such, we have found that once the customer reviews the prototype part with our engineers, tweaking of the design, process, and/or specifications is required. Ultimately, the end result is a high-quality enclosure that meets the visual and physical goals of our customers.

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Design Phase pdf

DESIGN PHASE - Engineering Process

There are three engineering stages that a new project goes through before moving onto manufacturing. Each of these stages covers a specific phase of the development of the enclosure as it evolves from a design concept to individual components and finally to the point where the data can be sent to production for CNC cutting and assembly.

Assembly Design - Drawing Approval
The Assembly Design stage involves creating the model from which detail panels and tool paths will be developed. The goal at this stage is to replicate what the customer wants as a finished product and to present to them a drawing or CAD file for their review and approval. Until that approval is received in writing, the project cannot continue to the next stage.

Detail Design - Flat Panel Development
At the Detail Design stage, the customer's approved model is further developed into detail panels and components. With each of these individual parts mated together to form the enclosure assembly, we verify that all fits, clearances, and tolerances are within our manufacturing capabilities prior to cutting the first panel. By manipulating the CAD design to show how the individual parts will form the final assembly, we eliminate the cost associated with producing a series of prototype parts. As a point of reference, it is not uncommon to find that this stage takes longer than creating the initial design model. However, when done correctly, this added engineering time is more than offset by the machine time, labor, and materials saved in manufacturing.

CAM Development - Toolpaths and Prototyping
Finally, the last stage in our Design and Engineering process is when we develop the tool paths that our CNC machines will use to cut the panels. During this stage there may be some final design tweaking to accommodate the manufacturing process. This stage is completed when the engineer posts the job to our server from which the production floor can access the files and run the prototype part.

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Quote Phase pdf

The Quotation Phase is when we conduct the pre-design and feasibility review such that a design concept can be presented along with budgeting cost numbers. During this phase, many of the issues involving form, fit, and function are discussed between PEI and the customer so that we both fully understand the requirements of the their product and capabilities of our process. What is important here is to have a two-way line of communication so that the end product is not over-engineered creating excessive cost or under-engineered leaving the customer disappointed.

It should be stated here that while we attempt to fully understand the project requirements and include those features that the customer needs and wants, this is still at the very early stage of the project and, as such, the opportunity for changes, additions, or deletions later in the project is present. For that reason, as the project moves from the conceptual design stage to the finite engineering stage we will continuously monitor the situation and if we detect a change that will affect pricing, we will notify the customer immediately.

For more information on the PEI Quotation Process, please refer to the web page for that information.

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Overview pdf

 OVERVIEW - Engineering Process

The foundation of the PEI process is anchored in our ability to design manufacturable enclosures without the use of hard tooling. This 'No Tooling' approach not only reduces the cost for low volume production, it also allows us to deliver design drawings, prototype parts, and production run quantities in a matter of days or weeks as opposed to months. To accomplish this, we rely heavily on our engineering team and the Pro/Engineer CAD/CAM tools they employ to quickly develop complex and aesthetically appealing enclosures.

Because of our 'No Tooling' process, every project regardless of size or simplicity must go through the design process (CAD) in order to create the manufacturing (CAM) files used to produce the parts. We refer to these CAM files as our 'Soft Tooling', in the same manner that a molding company refers to their molds as 'hard tooling.'

The engineering process for a new product involves four distinct activities or stages:

Quotation and Pre-design
While this stage takes place before an actual PO or Work Order is initiated, the basis for all following engineering activity will result from how the product is conceptualized during this stage of development. Typically, customer supplied drawings and sketches are received at this time and all features and functions are defined in order to calculate an accurate cost of the project.

Design Development
During this stage, the details of product including finite dimensions, components, materials, etc. are defined. At the completion of this stage, an Assembly Drawing is presented to the customer for their approval.
CAM Development After the PEI design is approved, our engineer develops the manufacturing files and CNC machine tool paths that will be used to produce the product. This stage is actually an extension of the Design Development stage and typically marks the half-way point of the product designing process.

Prototype Development
This is the final stage of the engineering process where our engineering department begins working with our manufacturing department to produce the final product. During this stage, both the product and the manufacturing process are reviewed and needed adjustments are initiated.
These four stages are further explained under the topic headings Quote Phase, Design Phase, and Prototype Phase.

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