• 10 Question or less - Design Readiness Check

    Free - 2 minutes - Instant Results
  • What intended manufacturing process does your part use?

  • Part: Injection Moulding

    If unsure of any question, answer with NO for explanation
  • 1. Has the split line been defined to simplify tooling and easy ejection?*

  • The split line is where the two halves of the mould meet, and it always leaves a faint line on the part. Placed carelessly, it can cross a curved cosmetic surface or a sealing face instead of sitting on a natural edge where it's far less noticeable. This is critical element to define the draft direction of the part. 

     

  • 2. Is the wall thickness consistent throughout the part?*

  • Thick sections cool slower than thin ones. That mismatch is one of the most common causes of sink marks, warping, and internal voids.

     

  • 3. Have ribs been used instead of thick solid sections to add strength?*

  • Thickening a whole section for stiffness causes sink marks. Ribs add strength without adding bulk as long as they're sized correctly relative to the wall.

     

  • 4. Has draft angle been applied to every vertical wall?*

  • Draft is the slight taper that lets a part release cleanly from the mould. Without it, parts can drag, scuff, or get stuck during ejection.

     

  • 5. Have any features that would block the part from releasing (undercuts) been identified?*

  • An undercut is any feature that physically blocks the part from pulling straight out of the tool. Usually only caught once the tool is already being built, which is an expensive stage to discover it.

     

  • 6. Have tool-safe elements been identified and defined?*

  • Tool-safe design is used when a part contains a critical dimension or functional feature. The mould is intentionally designed so that this feature can be adjusted after the initial tooling is manufactured. Removing steel from a mould to increase a feature size or clearance is relatively simple and inexpensive, whereas adding steel back to reduce a feature size is significantly more difficult, costly, and can affect tool quality. Designing critical features as tool-safe provides flexibility during mould trials and optimisation, reducing development risk and minimising costly tool modifications

     

  • 7. Have the dimensions that actually matter for fit and function been clearly marked?*

  • Not every dimension on a drawing is equally important. Without a clear list of what's actually critical, no one (including your moulder) knows where to focus.

    Dimensions generally fit into three groups; 

    1. Critical dimension (circled dimension)
    2. Reference dimensions (bracketed dimension)
    3. First Article Inspection (FAI) dimensions 

     

  • 8. Has a tolerance stack-up been done across the full assembly, not just individual parts?*

  • Individual tolerances can each look fine and still combine to make an assembly that doesn't fit or seal properly. A stack-up checks them together and ensures the design maintains function across the entire tolerance range.

     

  • 9. Has a specific measurement method been defined for each critical dimension?*

  • Some dimensions need calipers. Others need a CMM or specific fixturing. Without an agreed method, two people can measure the same part and get two different answers increasing variation. This can cause failures during process validation activities. which are expensive to repeat. Alternatively, failing parts can be measured and considered a pass resulting in non comforming parts being released. 

     

  • 10. Has weld line strength been checked for any load-bearing feature, not just its appearance?*

  •  Weld lines are usually treated as a cosmetic issue, but they're also a genuine structural weak point. A feature that needs to bear load across a weld line can fail there first. A gate position can have a large impact on this. 

     

  • Part: Machined

    If unsure of any question, answer with NO for explanation
  • 1. Have the dimensions that actually matter for fit and function been clearly marked as critical?*

  • Not every dimension on a drawing is equally important. Without an explicit list of what's critical, no one (including your machine shop) knows where to focus inspection effort

    Dimensions generally fit into three groups 

    • Critical dimension (circled dimension)
    • Reference dimensions (bracketed dimension)
    • First Article Inspection (FAI) dimensions 

     

  • 2. Has a tolerance stack-up been done across the full assembly, not just individual parts?*

  • Individual tolerances can each look fine and still combine into an assembly that doesn't fit. A stack-up checks them together, worst-case, before anything is cut.

     

  • 3. Has a specific measurement method been defined for each critical dimension?*

  • Some dimensions need calipers, others need a CMM or specific fixturing. Without an agreed method, two people can measure the same part and get two different answers which can cause failed process validation, or worse, a failing part measured differently and released as a false pass

     

  • 4. Has tool access been checked for every internal feature that a real cutting tool actually reach it?*

  • A feature that looks reachable in a 3D CAD view can be physically inaccessible to any real tool at that specific depth or diameter. The tool holder can collide with the part before the cutting tip ever reaches full depth. This is the machined-part equivalent of an undercut. Specialised tooling can significantly increase costs of parts.

     

  • 5. Has the minimum internal corner radius been checked against realistic tooling?*

  •  A rotating end mill can't produce a sharp internal corner. There's always some minimum radius set by the smallest practical cutter. Designing sharp corners without checking this is one of the most common reasons machined-part quotes come back higher than expected

     

  • 6. Has the most cost-effective machining setup been considered. Can every feature be reached from one or two faces?*

  • A part needing features cut from four different faces requires re-fixturing (or a much more expensive multi-axis machine) compared to one where every feature can be reached from one or two setups. This single factor often affects cost more than material or part size.

  • 7. Has surface finish been specified only where it's actually needed?*

  • Finish affects both function (e.g. a sealing surface) and cost. A mirror finish takes meaningfully longer to achieve than a standard machined finish. Specifying it only where needed avoids paying for quality that serves no purpose.

     

  • 8. Has fixturing been considered for thin-walled or flexible features?*

  • A part can be perfectly toleranced on the drawing and still measure out-of-spec because it deflected under the clamping force used to hold it during machining and/or being measured.  The part isn't wrong, but the way it was held was.

  • Part: Extruded

    If unsure of any question, answer with NO for explanation

  • Foundation — applies to all extruded tube types

  • 1. Have the dimensions that actually matter for fit and function been clearly marked as critical?*

  • Not every dimension on a drawing is equally important. Without an explicit list of what's critical, no one knows where to focus inspection effort. Extrusions may have conflicting measurements on the proximal and distal ends. Both need to be dimensioned so they are measured. 

     

     

  • 2. Has a tolerance stack-up been done across the full assembly, not just individual parts?*

  • Individual tolerances can each look fine and still combine into an assembly that doesn't fit. A stack-up checks them together, worst-case, before anything is cut.

     

  • 3. Has a specific measurement method been defined for each critical dimension?*

  • Some dimensions need calipers, others need a CMM, optical comparator, or laser micrometer built for continuous extrusion monitoring. Each method may have different measurements error reducing consistency. 

     

  • Single-Lumen Round Tube

  • 4. Has wall concentricity been specified so the lumen is centered relative to the outer diameter?*

  • A tube can be perfectly round at every cross-section and still have an off-centre lumen. For anything with a working channel, an off-centre lumen means uneven wall thickness around the circumference which results in a weaker side.

     

  • 5. Has ovality been specified and checked?*

  • Extruded tubes (especially thin-walled ones) rarely come out perfectly round. Some ovality is normal, but unspecified, it can be enough to cause problems mating with a round internal component.

     

  • Multi-Lumen Tube

  • 6. Has the minimum web thickness (wall between lumens) been checked for collapse risk?*

  • The wall separating two lumens is often the thinnest, most vulnerable section in the entire profile. Too thin, and it can collapse or wrinkle during extrusion, or fail under downstream flex. This is a risk a single-lumen tolerance check would never catch.

  • 7. Has lumen-to-lumen position stability been checked, not just each lumen's individual size?*

  • Lumens can shift or rotate slightly relative to each other during extrusion, since their position is held only by internal air pressure and die geometry, not a rigid mechanical constraint. A tube can pass every individual lumen diameter check and still have lumens in the wrong relative position

     

  • Part: Other

  • Browse Files
    Drag and drop files here
    Choose a file
    Cancelof

  • Nice work! That's time well spent

    You have just taken the first step towards more confidence in your design, and identified some areas where you can reduce risk before it becomes expensive to fix.

  • Enter your email below to receive your completed checklist and readiness score.

    Keep it for reference or share it with your team.

  • Your results are on the way

    Your results are on the way

    Check your inbox for you completed checklist and readiness score

  • Want a faster path to a full review?

    If you'd like, tell us a bit about your project and we'll take a closer look.

    No obligations, just a head start if you decide to move forward

  • *
  • Should be Empty: