Obviously, this can represent a potential loss of millions of dollars. Reduced Design Flexibility. When a product must be reworked, goodwill is lost, regardless of whether the fault lies with the manufacturer, the tool builder, the molder, or some other processor. As a result, the chances of the same team of players working again on future projects is significantly diminished. Arguably, the best way is to prototype the design before the tool is ordered.
Critics maintain that prototyping only delays getting a product to market.
However, the time and cost of correcting a faulty design far outweighs the time and cost of the prototyping process. New rapid prototyping methods introduced in the last few years have provided a means of creating prototypes faster than was previously possible, to the point where prototyping can often proceed concurrently with tooling acquisition. The first few weeks of ordering a new tool typically involve specifying the steel and preliminary configuration before any machining of cavity or core surfaces takes place. Rapid prototyping methods can now be used to complete the prototyping process during this period, so that any design errors found can be corrected without rework costs and without delaying the development process. There are currently nine rapid prototyping methods commercially available in the United States.