Two years ago, I was warned by a friend that if I went with a Delta faucet, it would fall apart. I did not heed that advice because I liked Delta pull-out faucet model 474 NN (NN designates brushed nickel). Indeed, two years later, threads in the soft plastic that holds the aerator in the spout stripped. To its credit, Delta customer service shipped a new spout free of charge the day after I filled out a simple e-mail form describing the problem. In checking on the order , a cheery and competent customer service rep came on the line and confirmed the shipment. I was impressed.
But it made me wonder what type of plastic was used in the spout. What were engineering and cost tradeoffs made in deciding what plastic to use? I'm mechancial enough to screw in an aerator without mauling the threads, but I thought this plastic was unusually soft. After all, anyone is going to clean the aerator from time to time and that means removing it. So I my call is into Delta. Stay tuned for explanation or offer your if you have one.
Almost every automaker has had to 'pick a side' when it comes to alternative fuel options and ways to divest from a reliance on gasoline. Fiat is looking to back compressed natural gas or liquid propane as an interim solution.
Plastic may not be the most beloved of materials to the more environmentally minded, but Plasti 2012 aimed to mold a different opinion of the material in people's minds.
The rare earth element market has become steadily more rational, and new sources coming online will continue to reduce costs. Still, it is unlikely that prices will drop to their former lows.
Against a backdrop of mounting product complexity and a need to keep a lid on development costs, companies are recognizing a need to make simulation a more integral part of the design process. In response, vendors in the CAD world are building out CAE functionality as part of their CAD suites while simulation vendors are building tighter integrations to leading CAD tools. Keith Meintjes, Ph.D., Practice Manager, Simulation and Analysis at CIMdata, Inc., joins Design News CAD Editor Beth Stackpole in this radio program to explore the new face of integrated CAD and CAE, how companies are benefitting from this tighter partnership between platforms, and how integrating CAE earlier in the development cycle pays off in optimized product designs.
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