Deere & Co. reduced costs 7 percent from the original target for a swing-out landing deck with an integrated ladder that provides access to a combine engine during maintenance.
The cost reduction occurred as result of an analysis of the design with Design for Manufacturing and Assembly software and a two-day assembly review with suppliers. That process yielded 83 design improvement ideas.
The catalyst for the review was a big cost problem with the original redesign. “The supplier quote for the redesigned assembly was 26 percent higher than target,” says Matt Saxton, a cost management specialist at Deere who worked with design engineers at Deere and its suppliers.
Deere engineers studied three specific aspects of the design for cost savings:
Deck sheet, which is a section of perforated metal flooring. “We went to a sheet size that was less expensive to begin with and saved dollars per pound,” says Saxton. “Plus we utilized the sheet much better.” Deere saved 60 percent by reducing the size of the deck sheet.
Structural support. The first time around, Deere used fabricated C channels to provide the assembly with internal structural support. A switch to rectangular tubes eliminated a metal forming step and reduced weight. “Less effort is required to pull the landing out from the side of the combine, and a lighter machine uses less energy,” says Saxton. Ironically, a supplier called later and said pricing had changed for the fabricated C channel, making them the most economical choice.
Ladder rails. In the original design, side rails for a pullout ladder were made from round steel tubes. A switch to rectangular-shaped tubes reduced weight with no sacrifice in structural support. Less manufacturing was also required to mate parts. A supplier suggested shortening the side rails by 3 mm to gain more economical use of a standard tube length. In the new scheme, three sections of tube are cut from a standard 20-ft length.
The original 17-part ladder now has 10 parts.
The original driver for the redesign was the requirement to make the vehicle compliant with Tier 3 regulations for emissions standards for off-road vehicles issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Deere developed a family of new Tier 3 engines to meet the requirements. The new engine is a different size, forcing a larger design of the combine platform. The design team also wanted to increase the structural rigidity of the assembly.
THE DFMA software used for the analysis came from Boothroyd Dewhurst, Inc. in Wakefield, RI.
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 Rear view of Deere combine shows the swing-out deck. |
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