Prototyping is one of the most important parts of any design. The prototype can be a quick cardboard mock up of the design, a sort of rough and ready approach to quickly iterate ideas and develop a clearer understanding of the complexity or issues with the design. This process allows for quick changes and evaluation to keep the project moving forward.

The prototype could be developed as a final working model, that is used in presentations to gain valuable feedback of the final design. The prototype could be used to check for fitment of the item in its place. One of the biggest reasons for using prototypes, is you get to evaluate the product and test it, before cutting any production tooling. This could prove to be fatal to a new project, as we have experienced with a clients sliding door closer.

Why you should prototype:

The client had created his own design of the sliding door closer, and came to Peter to have the plastic injection moulds made. The main issue with the clients design was that it was not going to deliver the requirements as they were explained to Peter. Peter had suggested changes and put forward the option of making a working prototype of the mechanism to evaluate installation procedure and prove the mechanisms operation is delivering the required outcome. The client being so confident in his idea, wished to skip this vital step, which proved to be his downfall. The day the off tool samples were produced the client arrived and was happy with the result. Unfortunately when the client went to install the door closer mechanism he was extremely disappointed that he had not listened to Peter. The design did not work and was extremely difficult to fit, which meant the tooling was of no use and the project had to go back to the drawing board. Peter developed a new concept, redesigning the closer components around the existing aluminium extrusion which were already in stock. When the project was finalised the door closer had achieved the requirements of fitting and operation. The loss of time and extra development and production costs, created financial challenges for the client which lead to the abandonment of the project.

There are many different ways to construct a prototype, and below are a few of the methods we use to develop prototype models.

  • 3D printers
  • CNC machining, both 5 axis machine centres and CNC lathes
  • Foam cut and formed by hand to help with form representation
  • Cardboard used to build rapid prototypes to develop quick ideas
  • Hand shaped clay to develop organic form.
  • Silicon rubber molds used to create up to 10 prototypes for testing and evaluation
  • Timber cut and formed by hand or CNC router
  • Laser cutting

Peter’s tool-making background makes this process a breeze..