Optimization of Design Margins Allocation When Making Use of Additive Remanufacturing

Requirement changes can result in substantial overdesign because of the way design margins are allocated at the beginning of the design process. We present a design optimization method for minimizing overdesign by making use of additive remanufacturing and recently defined constituents of design margins (buffer and excess). The method can be used to obtain a set of design decisions for different changing requirement scenarios. We demonstrate our method by means of a turbine rear structure design problem where changes in the temperature loads are met by depositing different types of stiffeners on the outer casing. The results of the case study are visualized in a tradespace, which allows for comparison between sets of optimal, flexible, and robust designs. Results show that the optimized set of design decisions balances flexibility and robustness in a cost-effective manner.