We provide mechanical design and enclosure services to help you design the physical housing and mechanical components for your electronic system — offering industrial design, enclosure design, thermal management, mechanical analysis, and manufacturing support with experienced mechanical engineers who understand electronics packaging, thermal management, and design for manufacturing ensuring your product is functional, manufacturable, and attractive.

Mechanical Design Services

Industrial Design:

• Concept Development: Create design concepts, sketches, renderings
• User Experience: Design for usability, ergonomics, accessibility
• Aesthetics: Design attractive appearance, brand identity
• Material Selection: Choose materials for appearance, durability, cost
• Color and Finish: Select colors, textures, surface finishes
• Cost: $5K-$25K for industrial design

Enclosure Design:

• Mechanical CAD: Design enclosure in SolidWorks, Fusion 360, or similar
• PCB Integration: Design mounting, connectors, cable routing
• Thermal Management: Design ventilation, heat sinks, thermal paths
• Assembly Design: Design snap fits, screws, alignment features
• Sealing: Design gaskets, O-rings, IP rating compliance
• Cost: $10K-$40K for complete enclosure design

Thermal Management:

• Thermal Analysis: Simulate temperatures, identify hot spots
• Heat Sink Design: Design custom heat sinks, optimize fin geometry
• Airflow Design: Design ventilation, fan placement, air paths
• Thermal Interface: Select thermal pads, paste, gap fillers
• Testing: Measure temperatures, validate thermal design
• Cost: $5K-$20K for thermal design and analysis

Mechanical Analysis:

• Structural Analysis: FEA for stress, deflection, safety factor
• Vibration Analysis: Modal analysis, vibration resistance
• Drop Test: Simulate drop impact, design for shock resistance
• Environmental: Temperature cycling, humidity, salt spray
• Compliance: Design for UL, CE, FCC, IP rating requirements
• Cost: $5K-$20K for comprehensive analysis

Manufacturing Support:

• DFM Review: Optimize design for manufacturing, reduce cost
• Tooling Design: Design injection mold tools, die-cast tools
• Prototype: 3D printing, CNC machining, rapid prototyping
• Production: Support production ramp, quality issues
• Documentation: Create drawings, specifications, assembly instructions
• Cost: $3K-$15K for manufacturing support

Mechanical Design Process

Phase 1 - Requirements (Week 1-2):

• Requirements Gathering: Understand functionality, size, environment, cost
• PCB Review: Review PCB size, connectors, mounting, thermal
• Concept Development: Create design concepts, sketches
• Material Selection: Choose materials, manufacturing processes
• Deliverable: Requirements document, concept sketches

Phase 2 - Detailed Design (Week 2-6):

• CAD Modeling: Create 3D CAD model of enclosure
• PCB Integration: Design PCB mounting, connectors, cable routing
• Thermal Design: Design cooling solution, ventilation
• Assembly Design: Design assembly method, fasteners, alignment
• Deliverable: 3D CAD model, assembly drawings

Phase 3 - Analysis (Week 6-8):

• Thermal Analysis: Simulate temperatures, optimize cooling
• Structural Analysis: FEA for stress, deflection
• Drop Test: Simulate drop impact, optimize structure
• Design Optimization: Optimize based on analysis results
• Deliverable: Analysis reports, optimized design

Phase 4 - Prototyping (Week 8-12):

• Prototype Fabrication: 3D print or CNC machine prototypes
• Assembly: Assemble prototype with PCB, components
• Testing: Test fit, function, thermal, mechanical
• Design Refinement: Fix issues, optimize design
• Deliverable: Working prototype, test report

Phase 5 - Production (Week 12-16):

• DFM Optimization: Optimize for manufacturing, reduce cost
• Tooling Design: Design injection mold or die-cast tooling
• Documentation: Create manufacturing drawings, specifications
• Production Support: Support tooling, first article, ramp
• Deliverable: Production-ready design, documentation

Enclosure Types

Plastic Enclosures:

• Injection Molded: High volume (10K+ units), low unit cost ($2-$10)
• 3D Printed: Low volume (1-1000 units), higher cost ($20-$200)
• Vacuum Formed: Medium volume (100-10K), moderate cost ($10-$50)
• Materials: ABS, PC, PC/ABS, nylon, TPU
• Finishes: Texture, paint, printing, labels

Metal Enclosures:

• Sheet Metal: Bent and welded, good EMI shielding ($20-$100)
• Die Cast: Aluminum or zinc, complex shapes ($30-$150)
• Machined: CNC machined, high precision ($100-$500)
• Extruded: Aluminum extrusions, simple shapes ($15-$60)
• Finishes: Anodize, powder coat, paint, plating

Hybrid Enclosures:

• Plastic + Metal: Plastic housing with metal frame or shield
• Over-Molding: Rubber or TPU over-molded on plastic
• Insert Molding: Metal inserts molded into plastic
• Best For: Combining benefits of multiple materials

Thermal Management Solutions

Passive Cooling:

• Heat Sinks: Extruded, die-cast, or machined aluminum
• Thermal Vias: PCB thermal vias to spread heat
• Thermal Pads: Silicone pads to transfer heat to enclosure
• Ventilation: Natural convection through vents
• Cost: $5-$50 per unit depending on size

Active Cooling:

• Fans: Axial or centrifugal fans, 5V or 12V
• Liquid Cooling: Pumps, radiators, cold plates (high-power)
• Peltier: Thermoelectric cooling (specialized applications)
• Heat Pipes: Transfer heat from hot spot to heat sink
• Cost: $10-$200 per unit depending on solution

Thermal Interface Materials:

• Thermal Paste: 3-8 W/mK, low cost ($0.10-$1)
• Thermal Pads: 1-6 W/mK, easy assembly ($1-$10)
• Phase Change: 4-8 W/mK, good for automation ($2-$15)
• Graphite: 10-25 W/mK, thin, expensive ($10-$50)

Mechanical Design Tools

CAD Software:

• SolidWorks: Our primary tool, industry standard
• Fusion 360: Cloud-based, good for collaboration
• Inventor: Autodesk, good integration with AutoCAD
• Creo: PTC, advanced surfacing and analysis
• FreeCAD: Open-source option

Analysis Software:

• ANSYS: FEA, CFD, thermal, structural analysis
• SolidWorks Simulation: Integrated FEA in SolidWorks
• FloTHERM: Specialized thermal analysis for electronics
• Icepak: ANSYS thermal analysis for electronics
• COMSOL: Multiphysics simulation

Prototyping Methods:

• FDM 3D Printing: Fast, low cost, moderate quality ($50-$500)
• SLA 3D Printing: High detail, smooth finish ($100-$1000)
• SLS 3D Printing: Strong parts, no supports ($200-$2000)
• CNC Machining: Metal or plastic, high precision ($500-$5000)
• Vacuum Casting: Silicone molds, production-like parts ($1000-$5000)

Mechanical Design Packages

Basic Package ($15K-$40K):

• Simple enclosure design (box shape)
• PCB mounting and basic thermal
• 3D printed prototypes (2-3 iterations)
• Manufacturing drawings
• Timeline: 6-10 weeks
• Best For: Simple products, low-volume

Standard Package ($40K-$100K):

• Complete enclosure design (custom shape)
• Thermal and structural analysis
• Multiple prototypes and testing
• DFM optimization
• Tooling design support
• Timeline: 10-16 weeks
• Best For: Most products, medium-volume

Premium Package ($100K-$300K):

• Industrial design and branding
• Advanced enclosure with complex features
• Comprehensive analysis and testing
• Multiple prototype iterations
• Complete tooling design
• Production support and validation
• Timeline: 16-24 weeks
• Best For: Consumer products, high-volume, complex

Design Success Metrics

Our Track Record:

• 300+ Enclosure Designs: Across all industries and applications
• 95%+ First-Tool Success: Tooling works correctly first time
• Zero Thermal Issues: In production for 90%+ of designs
• Average Design Time: 10-16 weeks for standard complexity
• Customer Satisfaction: 4.8/5.0 rating for mechanical design

Quality Metrics:

• Thermal: All components within temperature limits
• Structural: Safety factor >2.0 for all critical features
• Drop Test: Pass 1-meter drop test (typical requirement)
• Manufacturing: High yield, low defect rate

Contact for Mechanical Design:

• Email: [email protected]
• Phone: +1 (408) 555-0370
• Portal: portal.chipfoundryservices.com
• Emergency: +1 (408) 555-0911 (24/7 for production issues)

Chip Foundry Services provides mechanical design and enclosure services to help you design functional, manufacturable, and attractive products — from concept through production with experienced mechanical engineers who understand electronics packaging, thermal management, and design for manufacturing.