New textbook "Integrated product development with fiber-reinforced polymers" published by Springer

Fiber reinforced polymer composites (FRPC) offer outstanding advantages, with the high lightweight potential probably being the most striking, but by far not the only one. Integrated product development is required for an efficient and successful product development with FRPC, exploiting these advantages. In this context, a new textbook published by Springer provides the corresponding basics.

In a first part, the material-specific advantages of FPRC and the typical areas of application are presented. Subsequently, it is shown which problems are created by conventional, non-integrating product development and how these problems are potentially overcome by integrated product development (IPD). In addition, it is explained why IPD is of particular importance for FRPC.

At first, an approach to IPD for FRPC-parts is presented in the main part of the book. The further structure corresponds to this approach and explains step by step how a catalogue of requirements is defined as well as how this basis is used to develop a concept, a design, and a final construction. In this context, simple but effective methods for the selection of fiber materials, semi-finished products and manufacturing processes are defined. Their application allows fundamental decisions to be made at an early stage of the development process, so that they can serve as a basis for developments in various areas. This enables an efficient, simultaneous development of design, manufacturing, and material aspects. A concluding chapter describes an approach to techno-economic evaluation, before coming to a final decision between different alternatives. Throughout the book practical application examples show the reader, how to put the gained knowledge into practice.

The author of the textbook is PD Dr.-Ing. habil. David May, who is working at IVW as junior research group leader and manager of the field of competence “impregnation and preforming technologies”. The textbook is based on a lecture Dr. May gives at the Technische Universität Kaiserslautern.

The book, published in  Springer’s series “Engineering Materials”, is available as hardcover and as ebook. https://www.springer.com/de/book/9783030734060

A German version was already published in the last year.