Design for manufacturing & NPI
Manufacturing & supply chain
697 episodes across 49 shows cover design for manufacturing & NPI. The shows that cover it most are Being an Engineer, Global Medical Device Podcast and Making It. The most recent, from 13 Oct 2026, is “When Production Overtakes Prototyping: Materialise’s Next Phase of AM” from Additive Snack.
Designing so it can be made, and the prototype-to-production transition: DFM/DFA, new product introduction, pilot runs, tooling.
697 episodes from 49 shows, most relevant and most recent first.
697 episodes
How Protolabs turns CAD files into parts in under 24 hours
Marc Kermisch, CTO and AI Officer at Protolabs, explains how the company uses AI and simulation to turn CAD files into physical parts in under 24 hours across CNC machining, 3D printing, injection molding, and sheet metal. He details how…
Mechanical Engineering at Oxide [chapter images]
Oxide mechanical engineers Doug Wibben, Brooks Willis, Elliott Donlon, and Ben Williams discuss scaling manufacturing for the Cosmo rack, focusing on simplifying sheet metal assembly by replacing PEM fasteners with extrude-and-tap features…
S7E12 Flash Training: Design for Assembly: Why Fewer Screw Lengths Makes Everything Easier
Pipeline automation engineer Mark Blakey explains a SOLIDWORKS technique to standardize screw lengths across assemblies, preventing the frustration of managing dozens of slightly different fastener types. By editing Hole Wizard sketches to…
Where it comes up0:13
DeepDive Masterclass Summary Series: THE PRE-ASCENT PROTOCOL - A Summary of the 4-part series (30m40s)
Rob Carl, CEO of Global NPI Solvers, outlines his 'Pre-Ascent Protocol' for navigating the 'Brutal Middle' of New Product Introduction (NPI), using his experience guiding over 500 products and climbing Mount Kilimanjaro as a framework. He…
DeepDive 1-on-1 Series: MAPPING THE ROUTE - Path to the Summit (20m32s)
Rob Carl, Founder & CEO of Global NPI Solvers, explains the 'Pre-Ascent Protocol' for New Product Introduction, arguing that a working prototype is merely a sketch, not a map to mass production. He details how 'architecture freeze' on…
Printing Batteries, how AM is changing Battery Manufacturing and Performance
Karl Littau, CTO of Sakuu, explains how the company is disrupting the stagnant battery manufacturing industry by replacing wet, solvent-based slurry coating with dry powder-bed additive processes. Littau details how this shift eliminates…
How Design-First Thinking Supercharges Manufacturing Performance with Clarity Design Founder Tom Lupfer
Tom Lupfer, President and Founder of Clarity Design, explains how integrating engineering and manufacturing under one roof creates a competitive advantage for his Southern California-based EMS company. He details how data from Ko Young…
S7E2 WEBINAR: Your Manufacturer is Stupid: Why Your Circuit Board Design Is Making Their Job Harder with Chris Denney
Chris Denney, CTO of Worthington Assembly and Circuit Hub, explains how PCB design choices directly impact manufacturing efficiency and cost. He details five critical areas for mechanical and electrical engineers: ensuring component…
Ep. 10: The Scale-Readiness Gap in Robotics | The Robo Success Podcast
Chioma Aso, Founder and Principal Consultant at Polymavericks Engineering, explains the 'scale-readiness gap' in robotics, arguing that a working prototype is a false indicator of manufacturing repeatability. She details her five-pillar…
The Race to Replace Plastic: 2026 SF Climate Week
Julia Marsh, CEO of Sway, and Molly Morse, CEO of Mango Materials, discuss replacing petroleum-based plastics with seaweed-derived polymers and methane-derived PHA bioplastics. They explain how these materials integrate into existing…
AM at a Crossroads: Incodema3D Proves What's Possible at Scale
Sean Whittaker, founder and CEO of Incodema3D, explains how the company evolved from a sheet metal prototyping shop into one of North America's largest metal additive manufacturing operations, now scaling to over 50 Laser Powder Bed Fusion…
Ep. 12: Why Robotics Teams Lose Momentum Before They Ever Ship | The Robo Success Podcast
Mitesh Shetty, Founder of Raprod, explains why robotics and hardware startups lose momentum due to sourcing delays and production bottlenecks. He shares his experience at Honda and Hotchkiss, noting that engineering teams often spend…
Driving down the cost of green hydrogen
Raffi Garabedian, co-founder and CEO of Electric Hydrogen, explains why the green hydrogen market's hype bubble burst due to high capital expenditures (CapEx) and rising renewable energy costs driven by AI data center demand. He details…
#462: Implementing an eQMS: The Ultimate Move-In Guide for MedTech Leaders
Michaela Kivett, a medical device consultant at Greenlight Guru, explains the strategic implementation of an electronic Quality Management System (eQMS) using a 'moving house' analogy to warn against simply migrating messy legacy data. She…
248. Xometry’s Oscar Lovera & How AI Is Rebuilding Manufacturing
Oscar Lovera, COO at Xometry, explains how the AI-powered manufacturing marketplace is digitizing the sourcing of custom parts by integrating design, quoting, and manufacturability feedback into a single workflow. He discusses the shift…
Ep. 38 - Taking Prototypes to Production
Stephen Haus and Lucian Chea Hunt of Opulo discuss the Engineering Validation Test (EVT), Design Validation Test (DVT), and Production Validation Test (PVT) phases of new product introduction. They contrast the rigid, high-stakes processes…
Bonus Episode: Behind the scenes at the UK's leading robotics centre
Steve Maclaren, Chief Operating Officer at The National Robotarium, explains the centre's mission to bridge the gap between UK robotics research and commercial adoption through its five pillars: talent, research, adoption, data, and…
#420: MedTech Synergy: The Project Manager and Quality Professional Relationship
Beth Waring, a medical device consultant at Greenlight Guru, discusses the critical relationship between project managers and quality professionals, advocating for a shift from a 'police force' mentality to a collaborative partnership. She…
S6S25 Andy Thompson | Practical Applications of GD&T
Andy Thompson, a mechanical and manufacturing engineer with over 20 years of experience at Northrop Grumman, explains how Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T) serves as a critical common language between design, manufacturing, and…
#467: Combination Product Compliance: PMOA, 21 CFR Part 4 & QMS Alignment
Jim Fentress, Director of Regulatory Affairs at Galero (a Santa Group company), explains the regulatory complexities of combination products, focusing on how the Primary Mode of Action (PMOA) dictates FDA oversight. He details the…
When Production Overtakes Prototyping: Materialise’s Next Phase of AM
Bart van der Schuren, CTO of Materialise, explains how the company transitioned from a 1995 service bureau to a production powerhouse, recently surpassing prototyping with serial manufacturing. He details the three pillars of…
237. Vibe Manufacturing: MIT’s AI Text-to-Manufacturing System
The hosts discuss MIT's 'Vibe Manufacturing' system, an AI-driven platform that converts speech into physical objects using robotic assembly. They analyze the technology's pipeline, which integrates natural language processing, text-to-CAD…
S5E18.5 PDX: James Rogers
James Rogers, a staff design engineer at Johnson & Johnson specializing in surgical robotics, discusses his upcoming presentation at the Product Development Expo (PDX). He advocates for 'manufacturing for design,' arguing that…
Altium Requirements Portal: Simplifying Engineering Docs
Marco Witzmann, Head of Requirements Portal at Altium, explains how the Requirements Portal integrates with Altium Develop to solve engineering documentation chaos. He details the tool's ability to manage complex requirements, trace them…
R&D RADIO: Brian Chau from Chau Time
Brian Chau, founder of Chau Time, an R&D operations consulting firm, explains his four-phase process for taking food products from concept to commercialization. He details the concept of 'fiber stacking' used in functional chocolates like…
Bonus Episode: Restoring marine ecosystems with robots
Niall McGrath, CEO of Robocean, explains how his company uses amphibious robots to restore seagrass meadows, addressing the critical need to scale restoration efforts to meet global climate and biodiversity goals. He details the…
#426: Software as a Medical Device: Securing Your Digital Future
Jose Bohorquez and Mohamad Foustok from CyberMed explain that Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) must be treated as a medical device from inception, integrating security into the architecture rather than treating it as an afterthought…
HDI, Manufacturing Clashes, and More with Mike Tucker
Mike Tucker, Director of Engineering and Technology at Millennium Circuits, discusses the frequent clashes between HDI/UHDI design intent and manufacturing realities, emphasizing that many 'errors' are actually design choices that fail to…
Inside GM's Additive Industrialization Center with Ante Lausic
Ante Lausic, Lead Process Engineer at General Motors' Additive Industrialization Center (AIC), explains that scaling additive manufacturing (AM) in automotive requires AM-native designs, automotive-grade materials, and cost-effective…
The Automation Trap: Why Automating Chaos Won't Save You, Ep #18
Hosts Nick Golner and Caleb Mertz, joined by workholding expert Eric Nekich, analyze the first chapter of a fictional story about Gary, owner of IronClunk Machining, who attempts to automate his chaotic shop by copying Klaus of LeanStream…
A New Era of Design Engineering Productivity w/ Hugo Nordell
Hugo Nordell, founder and CEO of Encube, explains how his software addresses the gap between design intent and manufacturability by leveraging AI to predict CNC machining costs and climate impact at the point of design. He argues that…
217 - 5 Fixable Problems Holding Back Drug–Device Programs
Subhi Saadeh, founder of Let’s Combinate BioWorks, outlines five critical quality issues in drug-device combination products, drawing on his experience at Pfizer, Gilead, and Baxter. He addresses documentation misalignment in design…
What Will the Future Hold for Ultra HDI in PCB Design?
Tara Dunn, Director of Training and Education at SMTA, discusses the evolution of Ultra High Density Interconnect (UHDI) technology with host Zach Peterson. They explore the technical distinctions between SAP and MSAP processes, the…
The Future of Energy: Generating Sustainable Natural Gas with Casey Handmer of Terraform Industries Part 2
Casey Handmer, founder of Terraform Industries, explains how his company produces sustainable natural gas by vertically integrating solar power, direct air capture, and methanation to minimize capital expenditure. He details the use of…
203: Design for Manufacturing for a New Invention Product
Paul Davis, a senior industrial designer at Mako Design, explains the critical importance of integrating Design for Manufacturing (DFM) early in the product development process. He contrasts basic visual CAD with manufacturing-grade CAD…
Episode 160: Robotic blacksmiths - Edward Mehr
Edward Mehr, Co-Founder and CEO of Machina Labs, explains how their RoboCraftsman system uses AI-driven robotics to perform flexible, on-demand metal forming for aerospace, defense, and automotive industries. He details the transition from…
Technical documentation in industrial design - IDology #19
Piotr Dalewski and Rafał Piłat of Mindsailors explain that technical documentation serves as a universal language between designers, manufacturers, and quality control, ensuring parts meet precise tolerances and standards. They argue that…
S2 E4: Scaling up Manufacturing with Scott Miller
Scott Miller, a hardware veteran with experience at iRobot, explains the strategic progression of manufacturing techniques, specifically focusing on the transition to injection molding. He details the economic crossover points, design for…
From Fixed to Mixed: Mindset Shifts That Power Lights-Out Manufacturing, Ep #24
Hosts Nick Goellner, Eric Nekich, and Dave Vuyk discuss the mindset shifts required to transition machine shops from fixed, operator-dependent processes to mixed, automated workflows. They highlight the ROI of modular workholding and…
Seabound’s Bold Approach to Carbon Capture in Shipping with Alisha Fredriksson
Alisha Fredriksson, Co-Founder and CEO of Seabound, explains how her company uses modular shipping containers to capture CO2 from ship exhaust via calcium looping technology. She details the business model of selling containers and…
Ep. 10 - Automation Equipment
Lucian Shapar and Stephen Halls of Opulo discuss their experiences with manufacturing automation, categorizing tools into 'easy wins,' 'easy punts,' and 'on the fence' decisions. They highlight specific successes like the 'Bobby' belt…
232 - MedTech Material Selection: Cost, Compliance, Sustainability, and Biocompatibility Risk
Lucas Pianegonda, founder of Gradical, explains why medtech companies must move away from defaulting to legacy materials or molder preferences toward a structured, data-driven material selection framework. He details how early decisions on…
Chatting Ultra HDI: Chrys Shea, PCB Miniaturization & Challenges Ahead
Chrys Shea, President of Shea Engineering, explains the design and utility of advanced test vehicles for Ultra High-Density Interconnect (UHDI) assembly, focusing on challenges like the leading edge effect and tombstoning. She details how…
Structural Electronics in Altium Designer: 3D PCB Designs Explained
Jack Henriques, product manager at Altium, demonstrates structural electronics functionality in Altium Designer, covering 3D PCB designs, printed electronics, and 3D-MIDs. He explains how the software handles routing on curved surfaces…
PCB Assembly Mistakes Designers Keep Making: PCB West 2026 Preview
Zach Peterson hosts Mike Buetow (PCEA), Chrys Shea (Shea Engineering), and Daniel Stanphill (Aurora Boardworks) to preview the circuit assembly track at PCB West 2026. The panel discusses common PCB design-for-manufacturing mistakes, such…
Dimming the Lights: How to Build a Shop Ready for Automation, Ep #17
Hosts Nick Golner, Caleb Mertz, and David Buick launch the 'Automation Academy' series, arguing that machine shop automation is a survival necessity driven by labor shortages and global competition. Caleb Mertz, an automation integrator…
Final call to join us at PDX 2025!
This episode is a promotional announcement for the PDX 2025 Product Development Expo, scheduled for October 21–22 in Phoenix, Arizona. The event is described as a two-day hands-on training experience for engineers, featuring over 50…
Where it comes up0:00
210. Origami-inspired Concrete Construction
Hosts discuss research by ETH Zurich PhD student Lote Shadabi Bishan on origami-inspired concrete construction that reduces CO2 emissions. They explore how a reusable, foldable mold made of wood and fabric creates strong, vaulted concrete…
S3 E5: AI in Hardware: The Future of Design, Manufacturing, and Innovation with Kristen Edwards
Kristen Edwards, CTO and co-founder of Pensa Technologies and MIT PhD candidate, discusses integrating AI into hardware engineering workflows, emphasizing the need to track decision reasoning and manage data governance. She explains that…
John Taylor on the Embedded Systems Cookbook
John Taylor, co-author of 'The Embedded Project Cookbook' with Wayne Taylor, discusses his 30+ years of embedded systems experience and the practical 'recipes' in his new book. He contrasts this hands-on project management guide with his…