Hello, thank you for joining me for your design and technology lesson.

My name is Mrs. Conway and I will be guiding you through your learning today.

So today's lesson outcome, I can determine and justify the materials and manufacturing processes required to manufacture my design.

So today we're gonna be looking at some of the decisions that we're going to be making as we decide on the materials and manufacturing processes.

And we're gonna think about how we actually justify those decisions and we'll discuss what the word justify actually means.

So these are our keywords for today.

We have justification, manufacturing specification, working property, physical property, and manufacture.

I'll be going through each one of these as we work through the lesson.

First of all, then, we're going to look at selecting papers and boards.

Now, papers and boards are used in a variety of different ways, such as things like packaging, drawing, model making.

They're kind of around us in our day-to-day lives all the time.

And there are also a wide range of different types of papers and boards, and you can choose those different types of papers and boards when you're designing, modelling, and manufacturing as well.

Papers and boards are measured in grammes per square metre and quite often you will see that abbreviated to gsm.

Now, anything under 200 gsm, or grammes per square metre, is considered a type of paper.

Anything over 200 gsm is considered a type of board.

So if we're looking for that difference between papers and boards, it's really down to this gsm.

Now, a type of board is something like a card or a cardboard.

So just to kind of reiterate that, anything under 200 gsm is considered a paper.

Anything over 200 gsm is considered a board.

Right, let's just do a quick check for understanding on that.

What are papers and boards measured in? Is it A, gpi, B, psm, or C, gsm? Pause the video here just to take a moment to think about that.

And the answer, it was gsm.

Well done if you got that right.

So the type of paper or board a designer chooses will really depend on the intended use or the desired outcome for that particular product.

And it's down to the designer to then justify the chosen material decisions.

So what do we mean by the term justify? You may have heard it before.

So to justify our design decisions is to give a reason or an explanation for the decisions that we are making.

So it's just explaining yourself, basically.

Now, decisions on what materials to use when manufacturing will come down to knowledge or research of the material properties.

The manufacture of a product is the process of making it from raw materials using machines or labour.

Now, understanding the properties of a material is really important, because that actually then helps to ensure that the final product is suitable for its intended use as well as then being able to choose from correct manufacturing processes.

The working properties are the way in which a material responds to an external force or a certain environment.

It's also sometimes referred as mechanical properties as well.

Now, a typical mechanical property or a working property would be something like impact resistance, for example.

The physical properties are the characteristics of a material.

So these are the things such as like appearance and features.

These are different to the working properties.

So for example, you would talk about something being smooth or a glossy finish, that would be a physical property because it's referring to the appearance of it.

Let's just do a quick check for understanding on that.

What are the physical properties of materials? Are they A, the way material is used in a product, B, the characteristics of a material such as appearance and features, or C, the shape of a material? Pause the video here just to take a moment to think about that.

How did you get on? The answer was B.

The physical properties of a material are the characteristics of a material such as the appearance and the features, such as it's a red material, for example.

Now, Laura needs to decide what papers and boards would be most suitable for making her accessible herb planter.

Now, she's decided to use boards as opposed to papers and can justify her decision.

Remember, when we're justifying, we're explaining our decision.

So Laura said here, "I've decided to use a board instead of paper.

Paper will not be thick enough or strong enough for my herb planter to support the weight of the herb plants." So she's considered the strength of the material and also that comes with the thickness of the material as well.

And we know that boards are over 200 gsm, which make them thicker and heavier and stronger.

So this is a really good decision that Laura has made and she's justified and explained that really well.

Now, Laura has narrowed her decision down to three types of board and must now look at the properties of these specific boards to make and, again, justify her decision of which ones to use.

Now, she's looked at corrugated card, foamboard, and also duplex board, and you can see examples of these on the screen.

And she's also researched the properties of these three materials.

You don't need to know all the materials off the top of your head when you're doing this.

Sometimes further research is needed to find out a little bit more information about these materials to find out which ones would be the most useful, which ones would be the correct ones to use, and also to justify your decisions.

So Laura's carried out a quick little research, and this is secondary research for this, and she's done this on the corrugated card, the foamboard, and the duplex board.

First thing she's looked at are the properties of the material.

You can have a look here, if we look at corrugated card to begin with, she's commented on the fact that the properties of corrugated card are that it's lightweight, strong, good impact resistance, and also recyclable.

What she's also done is looked at the typical or common uses of that material as well.

And you can see here she's commented on corrugated card being used in packaging, shipping boxes, and also product protection, so to protect the products, which of course is brilliant because we know it's impact resistant.

Feel free to pause the video to read through the rest of this table that Laura has created.

Now, Laura, by doing this, has been able to then find a little bit more out about each of these materials and the properties of these materials, and this will help her make her decision.

So Laura stated her decisions here, "I have decided that corrugated card would be the best material for me to use for my accessible her planter.

It is strong enough to support my herb plants, but lightweight enough to be easily moved around when cleaning.

I also wanted my product to be sustainable, and as it is a recyclable material, this will be great for when the product is at the end of its life cycle." Now, each of these sentences is a decision that Laura has made, and you can see that each one has been justified by referring to the research that she's carried out.

Let's just do a quick check for understanding on these materials then.

Which material is lightweight, strong, impact resistant, and often used for packaging? Is it A, B, or C? Pause the video here just to take a moment to think about your answer.

And the answer was A, it was that corrugated card.

Well done if you got that right.

Now, Laura also needs to consider her possible manufacturing processes when deciding on her possible materials.

To do this is to ensure that the material she chooses suits her process, and also vice versa, so the other way round as well.

Now, one way Laura could manufacture her product would be to use a laser cutter, for example.

And she's just said a little think about that here.

"If I use a laser cutter, I could manufacture my idea with accuracy and speed once I had the CAD, computer-aided design, files correct." So she's recognised the fact that a laser cutter would help her manufacture with speed and accuracy.

A laser cutter is a machine that uses a high-powered laser beam to precisely cut or engrave materials such as board, timber, polymer, and fabric.

It can also cut metal as well, but you usually need specialist laser cutters to do this.

A laser cutter is an example of computer-aided manufacturing, or CAM.

This is an example of a laser cutter.

You might have one in your school, or you might have seen one before.

They will all look slightly different depending on the brand of the laser cutter.

Now, to cut boards on a laser cutter, you can follow these easy steps just to work through.

So the first thing you need to do is choose the right cardboard.

You want to make sure that you are picking clean, dry, and flat board and avoid anything like treated or coated board.

You then have to set up the laser cutter.

Now, to do this, you'll have to adjust things such as the power and the speed settings.

Now, this will be entirely based on your machine, but typically you're looking at about 30 to 50% power and a high speed for clean cuts on cardboard.

It's always a good idea, however, to really just test it on a scrap piece of your chosen board first, to make sure that you've got the right power and speed settings.

You're then gonna focus the laser.

Now, some laser cutters will do this automatically.

For other laser cutters, you may need to do this manually.

Now, this is to ensure that proper focal distance is there just so you can get a sharp and precise cut.

The next thing you do is you're going to secure the cardboard.

Now, with some materials, you don't actually need to secure the material down to the bed of the laser cutter, but because cardboard is lighter weight, it can move about a little bit, especially with the extraction being put on.

So to secure it is just gonna prevent it from slightly slipping, 'cause you want it to be as accurate of a cut as possible.

So you're gonna lay it flat on the cutting bed and then you can use something like masking tape, for example, to really just make sure that's secured in place.

Masking tape is perfect.

It will very rarely damage the cardboard and also it wouldn't damage the laser cutter, but it can be peeled off really easily, but still strong enough to hold it in place.

You're then going to adjust or turn on the ventilation.

So you need to turn on the exhaust fan just to remove any smoke.

That also helps to prevent flare-ups that can occur as well, especially when cutting card.

This is a really important health and safety tip, so make sure you don't forget this step.

And then lastly, you're going to run the cut.

Run the cut basically means you're going to start the actual laser cutter.

Now, it's again a really good idea just to start with a low-power test cut, 'cause then you can adjust the settings needed to then get a clean finish.

It's really important you monitor the cutting process closely.

Cardboard is flammable, so if you have got your settings wrong and maybe your speed is too slow, it can mean that sometimes the card may just actually combust and you may have a little bit of a fire.

So you need to be keeping a really close eye on that.

Let's just do a quick check for understanding on that laser cutting process.

What speed should the laser cutter be when cutting boards? Is it low, medium, or high? Pause the video here just to take a moment to think about your answer.

And the answer was high.

You want that speed to be quite fast when cutting boards because of that flammable nature of cardboard.

You want it to be cutting through quickly and not kind of lingering at any particular point.

So these are some typical settings for when you're cutting corrugated card on a laser cutter and that's what Laura's doing with her particular product.

And here's an example of a laser cutter cutting corrugated card.

Right, onto your first task, then.

You're going to research the properties of the possible materials for your product and then you're going to complete the table below to compile your research.

This is similar to what Laura did, but feel free to choose whatever materials you are considering and that are most suitable for your product.

And this will be very personal to you and your process.

Once you've chosen your materials, you're then going to research the properties of those materials, as well as the typical or common uses of those materials as well.

The next task you're going to do is then decide upon your chosen material, and you're going to use Task 1 to help you do this.

Not only are you going to then decide upon your chosen material, you're then going to justify your decision based upon the research you've done in Task 1 and also any possible manufacturing processes you're considering at this point.

Remember, to justify is to explain your decision based upon that research.

Okay, pause the video here to have a go at these two tasks, and good luck.

How did you get on? Now, as ever with something like this, I'm going to give you examples of what you might have said, but your own personal research will be very different to the people around you and also to my example here.

So this was the example that Laura did.

Now, she researched corrugated card, foamboard, and duplex board.

If we have a little look at foamboard, for example, her properties of foamboard are that it is rigid, lightweight, easy to cut, and a nice, smooth surface.

Common uses for foamboard are model making, signage, and also presentation boards.

Hopefully you've managed to fill that table with all the properties and the common uses for your chosen materials or possible materials.

The second part of that task was then to actually decide upon your chosen material and justify that decision.

Now again, this is just an example of what Laura's decided, and your answer will be slightly different, but just check your answer to make sure that you have it justified.

So you've explained your decision and you've explained it by referring to the research that you've gathered in Task 1.

So what you might have said is, similar to what Laura said here, "I've decided that corrugated card would be the best material for me to use for my accessible herb planter." She then goes on to make her decisions, sorry, to explain her decisions.

And we've read these through before, so I'm not gonna read them through again.

But again, feel free to pause the video here if you'd just like to remind yourself and compare your answer to hers.

We're now gonna look at manufacturing specification.

Now, a manufacturing specification is a document that contains all the information needed to manufacture the product.

It's produced after the final design has been decided upon and drawn out.

So this is different to a design specification.

This is after all the designing is complete.

Now, what a manufacturing specification typically includes is a product description.

Now, product description is a detailed overview of the item being manufactured.

It's just explaining what the product is.

Materials, so any details on the materials that have been decided upon being used.

Dimensions.

So dimensions, the exact measurements and the tolerances as well.

It also includes the processes.

Now, this details on how the parts are manufactured and also how those parts are put together.

Also, tools and equipment, any machines, tools, and technology needed to do that manufacturing process.

Quality standards.

The quality control measures that are gonna be put in place as you go through the manufacturing.

And any health and safety as well.

So the health and safety considerations that need to be taken into account whilst the product is being manufactured.

Let's just do a quick check for understanding on that.

What is the purpose of a manufacturing specification? Does it A, contain all the information needed to manufacture the product, B, describe how the product will be marketed to customers, or C, list only materials needed without any technical details? Just pause the video here to take a moment to think about that.

How did you get on? The answer was A, it contains all of the information needed to manufacture the product.

The manufacturing specification should include enough detail so that along with the parts list and the working drawing, there is enough information to manufacture the product without needing to actually discuss it with the original designer.

It should contain all of the information to be able to work from.

Now, using the subheadings on the previous pages and the bullet points helps to actually organise your manufacturing specification and helps to make it really clear for others to follow.

So if you use the examples that I've just gone through, you'll make sure that you do actually include everything that needs to be included in a typical manufacturing specification.

Now, Laura has started her manufacturing specification here.

Now, she started with her product description and she's just explained it a little.

"I am making an accessible herb planter that will hold at least six herb plants in pots.

It is designed so that all of the plants will get the sunlight and they are easily accessible for watering and picking.

The product is stepped with space for two pots per step and it will sit on the kitchen counter." Now, that forms her product description, so the first part of her manufacturing specification, and it's quite clear by her explanation of what she is making.

She then goes on to discuss the materials.

"I'm going to make my product out of five-millimeter corrugated card for the main body of the product." So you can see here she's been quite specific on the thickness of the board.

That's important.

"I'm also going to use three-millimeter acrylic sheet for the top of each step to provide protection from water." So she's considered the fact that obviously there might be some water around the actual plants, and if she's using papers and boards, she needs to be conscious of that and may need to use an additional material into that as well.

Now, that was just the start of Laura's manufacturing specification.

Now you're gonna have a go at writing your own as well.

You're going to use the subheadings below to help guide you through this.

Now, you may not be able to complete all of the subheadings at this particular stage, but just try to complete as many as you can.

If you get to one and think, "I'm not quite sure of the answer," don't worry, don't panic.

You can talk back through with your teacher, but also you just may not have actually worked that out at this stage yet.

So just to remind you of what those subheadings are, they're product description, materials, dimensions, processes, tools and equipment, quality standards, and also health and safety.

Pause the video here to have a go at this task, and good luck.

How did you get on with that task? It can be quite daunting when writing a manufacturing specification, because you're having to now make some really solid decisions and it can be a little bit scary.

One thing I will say about a manufacturing specification is as you start to actually make your product, it's not the end of the world if it slightly changes from your manufacturing specification, that's kind of part of the process.

You'll work some things out or things might have to change slightly as you start to make, that's fine.

So try not to be too intimidated by writing a manufacturing specification thinking you have to get it right from the start.

That's not the case.

Now, as we said, Laura has started her manufacturing specification.

She did go on past the product description materials to talk about her dimensions.

So for dimension she's written, "My product will be 300 millimetres in depth and 265 millimetres in width, with an overall height of 150 millimetres." Now, if you remember, we always write our dimensions in millimetres so we can work with the greatest amount of accuracy, and that's what Laura's done here.

She's also stated each step will be 50 millimetres tall and 100 millimetres wide.

And she's also explained, "I've calculated that there'll be enough space for two one-liter plant pots on each step." So she's just explained how she's worked those measurements out.

She's also gone on to discuss a little bit about her processes as well.

"I'm planning on using a laser cutter to cut out the side profile of my product and will replicate many copies of this.

I will build it up in layers using lamination for strength.

Glue will be used to attach each layer to the next." And she's also explained that, "I will use a jig to ensure accuracy of placement of each layer." So she's explained the process through, but again, if that changes slightly as she works through the making of it, that's not a problem.

But she's trying to make it as clear as possible from her testing and her trialling and the decision she's made about how this should be made.

Remember, a manufacturing specification should be understood by a third party without the need for the designer to explain or give any further details.

It should be able to stand alone as a working document Right, yours is gonna be slightly different to Laura's, as I always say.

However, just compare to yours.

Do you think you've got enough detail in there? Do you think it's clear enough? Again, some of the subheadings you won't have been able to answer, but have you been able to answer all the ones that you can? Right, let's summarise today's lesson.

So today we've been looking at materials and manufacturing processes, and we've really been looking at papers and boards.

And the type of paper or board a designer chooses will depend on the intended use or desired outcome.

So your material choice really has to be focused on what it is you are trying to actually achieve with your product.

It's down to the designer to justify their chosen material decisions.

And to justify, if you remember, is to explain your design decisions based on the research or the facts.

Understanding the properties of a material is really important, because it helps to ensure the final product is suitable for its intended use, as well as being able to choose the correct manufacturing process.

And lastly, we looked at a manufacturing specification, and a manufacturing specification is a document that contains all of the information needed to manufacture a product by a third party, someone else reading through that.

Okay, thank you for joining me for your lesson today.

I hope that you enjoyed it and I hope you gained quite a lot of information from that.

Good luck with finishing off your manufacturing specification and adding more detail to it as well.

Thank you very much, and I will see you soon.