Author(s)

F. Cappello, T. Ingrassia, A. Mancuso & V. Nigrelli

Abstract

Redesign of a product becomes necessary as a consequence of the evolution of the market requirements, of the man creativity, of the influence of the environmental factors, of the technological development etc. The redesign activity, especially in a context of exasperated economic competition, has become a crucial point in order to try to increase the competitiveness, if not even the life, of a product and/or a company. The redesign must allow the resumption of the increasing process of the performances. This aim requires a methodical and structured approach, which can also cause the modification of the standard conception of the product. In this paper the possibility to reduce the mass of a semitrailer is analysed, modifying its structure. Various solutions have been considered, characterized also by new topology and/or materials, and between all of them the one constituted from a structural floor in composite material has been chosen. Keywords: redesign, semitrailer, composite material, structural floor. 1 Introduction The redesign activity, like in case of the design, was performed for years without the help of specific methodologies, simply by formulating various alternative solutions between which to choose that thought the best one, on the basis of more or less empiric criteria. In general however, the obtained results in such a way turn out acceptable in simple problems with few variables. In the other cases the procedures of design and redesign must be developed using systematic and rational approaches. By a methodical approach, the designer, in all the phases of the procedure, has tools which allow him to reduce to the minimum the possibility of identifying inopportune project modifications, which would involve the risk of the bad success of the product. During the redesign of a product an evolutionary logical passage is developed, from an initial state (As is state) to a final one (To be state) (Vernadat [1]), which represents the aim to be

Keywords

redesign, semitrailer, composite material, structural floor.