Summary

In our highly competitive industrialized world of lean production and fast innovation, it comes as no surprise that customers demand instantaneous delivery of individualized products at the best priceperformance ratio. For manufacturing companies, vast product ranges of high quality and complexity mean that flexible development and ramp-up across supply chain networks is crucial to survive and thrive. Global competition, economic pressure, environmental and energy issues demand state-of-the-art capabilities and, above all, timely action. Such formidable challenges can only be met by tightly interwoven lifecycle-oriented engineering and manufacturing technologies and processes. To date more than ever, the ongoing development and integration of digital manufacturing and simulation is critical to eliminate the waste of time and money in the physical world, and to ensure product success as much and as early as possible.

Digital manufacturing and simulation clearly constitute contemporary extensions of the train of thought and practice that Frederick Winslow Taylor started a century ago. The evolution from “Taylormade” to “tailor-made” is in perfect concert with the ongoing customization that customers have learned not only to demand but to even co-create. Apart from lowering cost and improving time-to-market, digital manufacturing and simulation are targeted at intensifying the intimacy, efficiency and effectiveness of co-creation feedback loops, fostering the collaboration of manufacturers, customer communities, independent R&D institutes and individuals. This emerging democratization of design, engineering, production, maintenance, repair, overhaul and recycling marks the impending impact of digital manufacturing and simulation.

In five chapters this book discusses the various topics and issues that are central to the implementation and development of digital manufacturing and simulation. The first “Welcome” chapter presents key concepts, needs and issues. These are further explored in four other chapters: “A Crash Course,” “Challenges,” “Benefits” and “The Future.” Each chapter starts off with an introductory snapshot and concludes with a Bookmark section that relates the chapter to the other parts and the message of the book.

Readers who would benefit from this book belong to various categories, ranging from decision makers and business developers to engineers, technical managers and researchers.

Table of contents:

1. Welcome to the Reality of Digital Manufacturing and Simulation
2. A Crash Course in Digital Manufacturing and Simulation
3. Challenges for Digital Manufacturing and Simulation
4. Benefits in Real-World Examples
5. The Future is Open and Personal