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Fulham Tile Company Project – Rough cut stone and wood artifacts
Section 1 – Objectives of the project
To design and prototype a range of marble artifacts utilising the fabricating facilities and material presently available to the user company.
Additional plant may be specified but only a modest investment in plant is expected.
The existing materials comprise 7mm, 8mm, 10mm and 20mm slab marble of varying varieties and varying overall sizes of slab from a 305 x 150mm to 2000 x 1000mm stock of scrap has accumulated comprising random sizes, the majority falling within the following sizes.
Oval 500 x 400 x 20mm Sink cuts outs
50 x 50 x 70 x 10mm Triangles
505 x 150 x 10mm End of line tiles
300 x 400 x 20mm Rough edge slabs
It is proposed to utilise the scrap in the fabrication of the marble artifacts and so capitalising what is otherwise a waste product.
The following list has been determined as a reasonable cross section of artifacts which the designs will lend themselves to:
Tissue dispenser
Vase
Planter
Picture frame
Toilet roll holder
Letter rack
Stationary holder
Ash tray
Shelf – to wall
Waste bin
Bedside/coffee table
Fruit bowl
Wall light
Mirror frame
Telephone shelf
Make-up mirror and shelf
Plant stand
(The designs have in fact resulted in one product servicing two or more of the above artifact descriptions by a combination of elements or by the perceived possible use of the object by its potential owner.)
Section 2 – Sketch designs for artifacts as listed
Sketch designs for the artifacts were presented to the directors of the user company to establish early in the project the feasibility of the proposed designs.
Inherent in the design was the facility to cope with random sizes of material and to allow a tolerance margin of at least 25mm. The device for decoration the slab material was proposed in the same vein to allow for random patterning, and for the operators being unskilled.
By applying an angle grinder, a tool used frequently in the stone trade, to the surface of the slab material to chalk marks made from the templates the scoop or wisp of a groove is easily and quickly applied to the material again – allowance of a tolerance margin of 25mm is catered for.
The sketch designs were understood and accepted by the user company.
Section 3 – General arrangement drawings
General arrangement drawings were produced to crystallize the sketches into a dimentioned product ready for the production of prototypes.
The original artifact list was shortened to:
Tall side table
Tissue dispenser
Ashtray and mount
Waste bin and mount
Make-up mirror and shelf
Mirror
Coffee table
Components forming the waste bin, ash tray and planter etc., would be formed from pressed steel and subcontracted for production by the user company.
Section 4 – Photographs of the prototypes made
The prototypes were in fact fabricated in MDF and chipboard.
Templates were made for the production of the prototypes, so during the process of making the prototypes it was possible to mimic the anticipated manufacturing process. The thickness of the materials used were 22mm MDF and 38mm chipboard.
The coffee table and tall side table are the only two items requiring a thicker slab material for the surface elements and it is proposed that lamination of stone slab is carried out to achieve this thickness.
(See slideshow for images)
Section 5 – Production drawings
Production drawings were drawn for the short-listed items as fill size patterns, which, when done, the entire range would form the main tool issued to the shop floor for production.
[slideshow_deploy id=’2715′]Section 6 – Conclusion and recommendations
The work carried out in accordance with the terms of reference for this project will equip the user company with the potential to easily fabricate a collection of prototype artifacts in marble or slate, establishing for themselves a product range practical and appropriate to their present manufacturing capabilities, and which will venture into the market place as a contemporary product, evocative in its form
The nature of slab materials presents itself in industries other than stone masonry.
As the perceived value of an object depends in part on the substance of the material used it, can be conceived that the products may be fabricated in sheet metal, slabs of hardwoods, sheet of laminated board, glass, armalite or cardboard.
Allow Mark Lewis to create a bespoke product range for you.