This book is innovative in that it applies the concepts of concurrent engineering to composite materials. According to Report 338 of the US Institute for Defense Analyses (1988), concurrent engineering is the “systematic approach to the integrated design of products and their related processes including manufacture and support.” Composite materials are a current and ever-growing area.
In this book, Sapuan emphasizes the importance of considering the manufacturing aspects in the early stages of product design and development. The book presents details of concurrent engineering for composite development, including the conceptual design of composite materials, materials selection, and design for sustainability. The first chapters describe the background for concurrent engineering, design for sustainability, conceptual design for composites (including several models for design), and materials selection using composites. In sequence, composite materials are defined, and their applications are listed for some industries along with their manufacturing methods. Polymer matrix composites (PMCs) are emphasized, especially natural biodegradable matrices and fibers. One example is poly(lactic acid) reinforced with natural fibers, such as hemp, sisal, or kenaf. The author addresses specific processes for PMCs, such as injection molding, transfer molding, hand lay-up, compression molding, and pultrusion. Nanocomposites are briefly mentioned. The concurrent engineering of composites is presented with some case studies.
The chapters “Conceptual Design in Concurrent Engineering for Composites” and “Materials Selection for Composites: Concurrent Engineering Perspective” are the richest ones, providing undergraduate engineering students an easy and stimulating guide for designing with composite materials. The use of concurrent engineering tools for the development of natural fiber composites is emphasized, and several examples are given, mainly those developed in Malaysia. Also included are highlights for computer-based methods, such as the digital logic method, weighted property method, quality function deployment, and the use of materials databases (Ashby’s charts, knowledge-based systems, rule-based systems, and the Exsys Corvid system). The book concludes with design for sustainability, giving the use of natural fibers for composites and the socioeconomic consequences of this approach as an example.
Each chapter presents an up-to-date list of references, several of them from Malaysian institutes or universities. Figures and tables are well-designed and presented, but colored figures are absent and would have been useful.
The book is rich in examples of concurrent engineering application for the development and trends for composite materials. What differentiates this book from others on composites is that examples are provided for the development and design of automotive, aerospace, marine, and aircraft components, most of them using natural fiber composites. This book is recommended for undergraduate students or beginning graduate students. As a professor of composite materials, I think that this book could be used as a complementary reference for undergraduate and graduate courses, such as in composite materials, materials selection, and design and manufacturing disciplines.
Reviewer: Adriano Michael Bernardin is a professor in the Materials Science and Engineering Graduate Program, University of the Extreme South of Santa Catarina, Brazil.
