InForm
Product Development

What is the key to a successful full service product development company? Look to InForm Product Development founders Edward Raleigh, a mechanical engineer, and Mark Gilbertson, an industrial designer, for the answer. The 50/50 arrangement of design and engineering ownership is unique in the industry and they attribute this as one of the major reasons for their success. Since 1995 InForm has been offering industrial design, prototyping, mechanical, analytical and electronic engineering services to clients worldwide. Their involvement ranges from turnkey development through specific disciplines consultation.

InForm’s focus on product development is a culmination of all disciplines working toward a common goal—a successful and cost effective product. Their “Design for Manufacturability and Assembly” (DFMA) process ensures that all factors are addressed early in the design cycle to minimize the delay and expense of downstream modifications. “Because of the cohesive nature of the DFMA process our designers and engineers work seamlessly with the client and outside vendors allowing them to compress time frames and reduce development costs,” Gilbertson states. With a process that allows them to design most any product whether manufactured in low or high volumes, they have designed products for a variety of markets including consumer, industrial, commercial, medical, automotive and aerospace.

As a consulting firm, InForm is required to run a number of CAD packages, but SolidWorks has been a favorite since 1996. Gilbertson points out: “We have seen a definite shift towards SolidWorks by our clients over the last 10 years. From our perspective it has helped us reduce costs and improve efficiency due to lower startup costs, minimal training requirements and simplicity of use. We have no reason to switch and our customers seem to agree.”

InForm remains loyal to SolidWorks because of their upgrade innovations and customer support. “It has consistently performed to our satisfaction. Because we utilize SolidWorks in such a fast paced environment, software capability and efficiency is paramount. We consistently ‘push the envelope’ in regards to maximizing those capabilities and have found very few deficiencies,” he adds.

As one of InForm’s major design tools, SolidWorks is used by both the designers and the engineers. Gilbertson explains that initially the industrial designers use SolidWorks, PhotoWorks, eDrawings and Animator to “rapidly visualize and communicate concepts to our client’s sales and marketing teams.” From there, the engineering group utilizes additional add-ins and SolidWorks partner products to complete engineering analysis, mold flow and final part design. Working in conjunction with the chosen manufacturer they customize the databases to their capabilities for optimal cost and time efficiency.

InForm uses several software packages to simulate real-world conditions and test multiple "what if" scenarios in order to improve product quality and reduce failures. “This is a pivotal and growing element of our engineering services. Our engineering programs are becoming more and more complex,” Raleigh attests. They use the Cosmos suite of products for both linear static and non-linear finite element analysis (FEA.) Running MoldFlow on most plastic parts optimizes the part design from both a fill and cycle time standpoint. GearTrax and CamTrax are “excellent tools” for drivetrain engineering and mechanism synthesis when working with cams.

Due to the challenging aspect of many programs, InForm also employs proof-of-principle modeling on regular basis to verify designs early in the development process. They recently purchased a Dimension 3D Printer, which Gilbertson says “is a welcome compliment to our prototype capabilities.” The Dimension, along with other in-house rapid prototyping processes, allows them to customize the Rapid Prototyping process to fit customers’ specific needs.

SolidWorks and its solution partner products have helped InForm’s engineers and designers improve their overall efficiency and technical accuracy. As a consulting firm with an efficient suite of SolidWorks tools, they are able to position themselves as a rapid, cost-effective and broad based resource. “We can market ourselves as a resource that can augment our client’s in-house capabilities or provide a needed service to those lacking our specific expertise. However, in our minds the real benefit of SolidWorks is that it allows the designer or engineer to focus on making the product as good as it can be—as opposed to being hindered by overly complex software,” Raleigh affirms.

InForm is delighted with the training, service and support that Graphics Systems provides. Gilbertson proclaims, “We have had a very close relationship with the personnel at Graphics Systems. They are quick to respond to our requests, consistently address our software support needs and are a ready resource for new products and supplies. We hope to continue our successful relationship for many years to come!”

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