Design for Manufacturing Improvised Paint Brush
P.A. Nwobasi
Abstract
Industries utilize men, production tools, machines, processes, materials and capital to shape
and produce materials to meet the various needs of mankind. The competitive system forces a
methodical selection and utilization of the factors of production in the manufacture of high
quality products at low cost. This article is aimed at using a simple but cost effective
manufacturing system in the production of a paint brush for multi-purpose use. The materials
used for the design and manufacture are simple, cheap and readily available. The design is
such that the product can be mass-produced at a low production cost for commercial purposes..
Introduction
Design is the delineation and specifying of size and arrangement of the bounding surfaces
of an object to be produced or manufactured (DeGarmo, Black and Koshser, 2009). The
designed configuration must be analyzed to determine what materials will provide the desired
properties and what process can be employed to obtain the end product at the most reasonable
cost. This action is called the designing for manufacturing or productivity.
Design is the first step in the manufacture of any product. Design usually takes place in
several distinct stages; conceptual, functional and, production design (DeGarmo, et al., 2009).
They noted that in the conceptual stage, the designer is concerned primarily with the functions
the product is to fulfill. Several concepts are visualized and considered and a decision is made
either that the idea is not practical or that the idea is sound and one or more of the conceptual
designs is sound and developed further. The only concern for material is that materials exist that
can provide the desired properties. If no such materials are available, consideration is given to
new materials which should be developed with cost and time limitations (DeGarmo, et al., 2009).
The functional design-stage also referred to as engineering stage is the stage in which
workable design is developed. At this stage, fairly complete drawings are made and materials are
selected and specified for the various components, (Hitomi, 1999). Often a prototype or working
model is made that can be tested to permit evaluation of the product as to function, reliability,
appearance, service ability and so on, (DeGarmo, et al., 2009). After a thorough job on materials
selection, it is expected that these testing might show that some changes may have to be made in
materials before the product is advanced to the production-design stage. Appearance, cost,
reliability and produceability factors are considered in detail at this stage together with the
functional factors. It is of little value to have a perfectly functioning prototype that cannot be
manufactured economically in the expected sales volume, or one that is substantially different
from what the production units will be in regard to quality and liability, (Alting, 1998).
According to DeGamo et al. (2009), it is much better for design engineers to do a complete job
of material analysis, selection, and specification at the development stage of design rather than to
leave it to the production-design stage, where changes may be made by others, who may
probably be less knowledgeable about all the functional aspects of the product.
At the product-design stage, the latest stage, DeGarmo et al. (2009) noted that the
primary concern relative to materials are that they are fully specified, and that they are
compatible with, and can be processed economically by existing equipment and that they are
readily available in the needed quantities for manufacturing process.
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Manufacturing could be defined in terms of system (production), process, machine, or
machine tool, job, operation and tools. For the manufacture of this paint brush, manufacturing is
defined in terms of machines and operational tools. Manufacturing is the use of machines, tools
and labour to produce goods for use or sale, (Kalpakjian and Steven, 2006). Manufacturing refer
to a range of human activities, from handicraft to high-technology, but is commonly applied to
industrial production in which raw materials are transformed into finished goods on a large scale,
(Kalpakjian and Steven, 2006). Out of the three manufacturing systems, job-shop, flow-shop and
project-shop, the flow-shop system will be used in the production.
Manufacturing plays an important role in engineering because it changes the form of
materials into the finished or final product (Khurmi and Gupta, 2010). Modern manufacturing
processes is dependent on research in materials for parts production and the product require a
variety of manufacturing processes for these materials. The various processes used in
manufacturing are classified into the following: primary shaping processes, machining processes,
surface finishing processes, joining processes and processes affecting change in properties,
(Khurmi and Gupta, 2010). The process involved here are; rolling of the metal sheet that will be
used as the band, sanding to produce good surface finishing the handle and painting to give
aesthetic value and protection.
As manufacturing progresses, it is inevitable that situation will arise that may require
modifications of the materials being used. DeGarmo et al. (2009) observed that experience may
reveal that substitution of cheaper material can be made at this stage. They further observed that
in most cases changes are much more costly to make when manufacturing is in progress than
before it starts. Good selection during the production design phase will eliminate the necessity
for most of this type of change, (Hitomi, 1999). These present possibilities for cost reduction and
improved performance. DeGarmo, et al (2009) however, noted that new materials must be
evaluated very carefully to make sure that all their characteristics are well established. They also
noted that a large proportion of product failure and product-liability of new materials must be
established before substitution to avoid the product failures.
Material Selection
There is various method of material selection but the material selection for this particular
design, the case-history method will be used. This method assumes that a particular material has
worked successfully before and that similar components might be made with the same
engineering material and method of manufacture, (DeGarmo, et al., 2009)/
Name of Product: Paint Brush
Introduction: The paint brush is one of the earliest methods for applying paint or other liquid
mediums. It has been used for centuries by artists and home decorators. A paint brush is a fairly
simple product. It consist of a handle, which is made from wood or plastic, bristles, which can be
natural or synthetic, and a metal band. Paint brushes come in wide variety of shapes and sizes
and are relatively inexpensive. Acommon paint brush consists of: (I) Bristles (2) Handle (3)
Metal Band.
Part Name: Bristles
Material: 100% Pure Bristle
Design: Bristles of the same length are bunched together and adhered to the handle. Ends of the
bristles may be split for better performance.
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Function: To hold a liquid coating agent or adhesive while transferring it from it’s container to
the workpiece, leaving an even layer.
Part Name: Handle
Material: Kayapis (Shora squamata), a wood belonging to the Philippine mahogany
classification.
Production
Method: The handle has a tapering profile with rounded edges that was machined by computer
numerically controlled (CNC) router, in one pass. There is also a hole drilled at the end of the
handle. Both the drilling and shaping of the handle were done on a multiple tool CNC machine
while the wooden blank was held down by a vacuum clamp. The handle has been sanded to 180
grit and there is a stamping stating that the brush is 100% pure bristle. This stamping was done
with a steel letterpress stamp coated with ink.
Design: The handle was designed to be produced quickly and at a low cost. All manufacturing
processes for the creation of this wooden handle are fully automated and therefore allow
continual production without human error.
Function: The handle’s function is for holding the brush. The purpose of the hole is to provide a
medium where the brush can be hung.
Part Name: Metal Band
Material: Steel
Production
Method: The metal band gets it’s design by roll forming. Several bands are roll formed on a
strip of steel and separated by cutting.
Design: The band is designed to wrap around the handle and bristles. The ends of the band are
joined together with a lock seam. The band is fastened to the handle by five equally spaced
punches on each side of the brush. The punch forces metal into the wood producing a permanent
bond.
Function: The band helps hold the bristles and the handle together.
Product’s Simplicity The paint brush is easy to use and relatively inexpensive. It is used mostly
by painters for household and some outdoor paintings. Paint brushes are trashed after use
because they are relatively cheaper to buy than cleaning them up.
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2 inches 100 % pure
bristle paint brush
Product Improvement: Bristles should be easy to wash or should be replaceable with the aid of
adjustable metal band.
Manufacture of Paint Brush Using Local Raw Materials
Local industries or cottage industries are established with the aim of solving the problems of the
locality such as provision of needed goods, improving the economic and social conditions.
Paint brush could be easily produced in these local industries using local raw materials available.
Locally produced paint brush could be produced using the following raw materials:
(i). Coconut fibres as bristles –
(ii). Gmelina as wood material
(iii). Metal band Handle –
Part Name: Bristles (Coconut- Fibres)
Material: Coconut- Fibres
Design: Coconut- fibres are cut and the inner fibres beaten,washed and allowed to dry. After
drying, they are cut into pre-determined sizes and then dyed black. Coconut-fibres of the desired
length are then bunched together and adhered to the handle.
Part Name:
Handle
Material: Gmelina wood, a soft wood found locally everywhere in Nigeria.
Production
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Method: The handle could be produced locally in any timber market, or wood cottage industry
using gmelina wood. The handles are produced in line with existing handle design. The function
of the handle is to allow the brush to be hand-held. The purpose of the hole is so the brush can be
hung.
Part Name: Metal band
Material: Steel
Method: The metal band gets its design by roll forming. Several bands are roll formed on a strip
of steel and are separated by cutting with snips. These metal bands are purchased locally.
Design: The band is wrapped round the handle and the coconut- fibres. The ends of the band are
joined together with lock seam the meal is fastened to the handle by five equally spaced punches
on each side of the brush. The punch forces the metal into the wood producing a permanent
bond.
Product’s Simplicity: The coconut-fibres paint brush is easy to produce, use and inexpensive. It
can easily be produced by students, industrialist etc, for our local uses. This local production will
go a long way in boosting our economy
Product improvement: Other fibre bearing materials should be exploited for use.
Conclusion
Although paint brushes are relatively cheap in the market, it must be appreciated that they are
use-and-dispose materials. As such, the day to day demand of the product is very high.
Improvised paint brush is simple, cheaper and will eliminate importation stress on the economy.
It is also important to note that there is a close and interdependent relationship between the
design of a product, selection of materials, processes selection and equipment, layout of
processes and tooling selection and design. Each of these steps must be carefully considered,
planned and coordinated before manufacturing starts.
References
Alting, E. (1998). Manufacturing engineering processes. New York: Marcel Dekker.
DeGarmo, E.P., Black, J.T., and Kohser, R.A. (2009). Materials and processes in
manufacturing. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
Hitomi, K. (1999). Manufacturing system engineering. London: Taylor and Francis Ltd.
Kalpakjian, S., and & Steven, S. (2006). Manufacturing engineering and technology. London:
Prentice Hall.
Khurmi, R.S., and Gupta, J.K. (2010). A textbook of workshop technology manufacturing
processes. Rudrapur: Nirja Publishers and Printers Ltd.
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