Efficient engineering through computer-aided design of experiments

Computer-aided design of experiments (CADOE) is discussed. Work performed using ECHIP software to meet quality and productivity goals for injection molded plastic components is detailed. An example of a fan shroud clearly shows that CADOE provides a powerful and efficient method for solving engineering problems. Although in some cases Taguchi methods may be slightly more accurate, CADOE methods such as ECHIP will usually find a solution to problems with a reduction in time and costs required. The actual time required to run the molding trials for the fan shroud was 3-0.5 h, plus 1 h of running time to confirm the predicted values on a faster molding cycle