Design notes.(SITE TO SEE)

Coatings, molding and gaskets are often in a specialized category of made-to-order manufacturing. Understanding the types of processes and materials that make up this category is no easy task. Deciding which combination suits a product's temperature, part functionality and durability requirements is only the first step in unraveling the mystery of how chemistry and engineering intersect in the polymer solutions business. Since its founding in 1949, the Ames Corp. has built a reputation on educating clients on the ins and outs of this niche manufacturing. The outreach started with discussions and pamphlets on the rubber settings that the company bonded typewriters with and picks up in the 21st century with the coating materials for copier and printer markets.

Ames released a new supplement to its corporate Web site, the Design Solutions Center, www.amescorporation.com/design_solutions_ctr.html, which helps a group of material scientists and engineers determine a customer's needs and devise a complete design solution" based on a checklist that the visitor to the site fills out. Examples of companies that have used the project form include an aircraft engine manufacturer, a respiratory protective device manufacturer and a fuel cell component manufacturer.

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The Design Solutions Center is easy and quick to navigate. Once the market application (industrial/automotive, government/military, alternative energy, office automation) is identified, visitors are asked to describe the project goal whether it be new product development, performance improvement or cost reduction. A timeline for the potential project is then noted. Ames applies Six Sigma techniques to the project data that's collected from this checklist in the effort to identify performance improvement and cost reduction opportunities for the prospective client.

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