Development of a cable support system

Abstract: The aim with this project is to generate a design and a prototype of a cable
support system that is aesthetic and simple in its design, is cost-effective
to produce and will become a strong competitor on the market. The project is
performed at Stratco in Adelaide, Australia in 2006 as the Master Thesis for
the MSc programme in Ergonomic Design & Production Engineering at Luleå
University of technology. During the project systematic methods were used to
generate concepts that meet customer needs.

The result is a final concept that features improved connections and a safe,
appealing design. It also has an improved cable fastening method. Several
prototypes of different parts were manufactured to aid in the analysis and
development. The final concept was analysed for load capacity using finite
element analysis and actual load testing. The load testing showed that a
lighter material thickness can be used and still get similar results as the
competitors. Usability tests were performed for some parts. They show that
more development is needed for the connection of the tray and the cable
fastening. Manufacturability was analysed and also the investment needed in
machinery and tooling. The market was estimated to show the economic
feasibility and together with the investment cost a payback period was
calculated for different market shares of the product. This showed that a
certain market share needs to be reached to justify the investment.

Confidential until 2010-03-05