Why Integrate Design and Manufacturing?

There are many great books, videos and resources that cover concepts and best practices for the design of products. The same can be said of resources to understand common manufacturing and assembly practices. However, it is often difficult to find these in a single location. That is the main objective of this text. As a mechanical engineer, you should have some exposure to the product and system design processes and common tools. However, this resource alone will not fully prepare you to be a design engineer. Additionally, you may find yourself working the manufacturing domain. This text will provide a reasonable background on many common manufacturing methods and best practices. However, you will not fully be prepared to work as a manufacturing engineer and will need to learn a lot more about specific processes and tools.

Ultimately, this text is a jumping off resource with the intent to point you towards your own quest of continuous improvement.  It is up to you to decide what type of engineer you want to be.