Hello! Welcome to the sixth lesson in our project finalization module.
In the last session, you did the critical work of synthesizing your entire Project 1 journey into a "dot-dash" outline. That outline is the logical backbone of your project's story, capturing the problem, your key decisions, the analyses that justified them, and the final resolution.
Today, you will learn how to create a complete design review presentation for the linear motion system project. We will take the story you've scripted and turn it into a professional visual presentation. This is the primary way engineers communicate their work to get buy-in from management, collaborate with other teams, and document a design's readiness for the next phase, such as production. For your portfolio, a crisp design review presentation is a powerful asset that demonstrates not only your technical skills but also your ability to communicate them effectively.
1. The Purpose and Structure of a Design Review
In industry, a design review is a formal milestone or "gate" in the product development process. It's a meeting where you present your design to a group of peers, managers, and other stakeholders to demonstrate that it meets requirements, is well-analyzed, and is ready to proceed.
The goal isn't just to show off your CAD model; it's to present a compelling argument, backed by evidence, that your design is the right solution. The checklist below gives you a sense of the rigor involved in a real-world production release review. Your presentation is the vehicle for addressing these points.
This Design Review Checklist shows the breadth of topics a final review covers, from performance and FEA to manufacturing and documentation. Your presentation is a summary of these key verification activities.
To build a convincing case, your presentation needs a clear, logical structure. While formats can vary, a standard engineering design review presentation generally follows this flow:
- Title Slide: Project name, your name, date, and review type (e.g., "Final Design Review").
- Agenda: A brief outline of the topics you'll cover.
- Project Background & Requirements (The "Situation"): What problem were you tasked with solving? What were the critical performance targets?
- Proposed Design Solution: A high-level overview of your final design.
- Key Decisions & Analysis (The "Complication" & "Resolution"): The core of your presentation. This is where you walk through your process and justify your design choices with data from:
- Component Sizing & Selection
- Structural Analysis (FEA)
- Risk Assessment (FMEA)
- Final Design Summary: A snapshot of the complete system, including an exploded view and a preliminary Bill of Materials (BOM).
- Conclusion & Recommendations: A summary of your achievements and any proposed next steps.
- Q&A: A slide to invite questions.
This structure directly maps to the report outlines suggested in university design courses and professional practice. The document below, from a senior design course, provides a detailed outline for technical reports and presentations that mirrors this professional standard.
And - ME 195 A/B Mechanical Engineering Senior Design ...
This course manual from San José State University's senior design program provides a standard outline for an engineering presentation. We'll use this as a reference for structuring our design review.
Scan through the following sections to see how our proposed structure aligns with formal engineering communication practices: Read section 7.3 'Information on Writing Project Reports' (starts on page 7-3). Notice the list of components, from 'Introduction' to 'Analysis' and 'Conclusions'. Your presentation is essentially a visual version of this report. Then, look at section 7.6 'Developing a Presentation Outline' (starts on page 7-6). The suggested headings like 'Introduction', 'Goals and Objectives', 'Analysis', and 'Results' are exactly what we will be building.
2. Translating Your "Dot-Dash" Outline to Slides
In the previous lesson, you learned about the "dot-dash" method and the concepts of horizontal and vertical flow from the "Storytelling in PowerPoint" video. Now, we put it into practice. Your outline is the script, and the presentation is the stage.
- Horizontal Flow: The sequence of your "dots" creates the main narrative. Each dot should become the title of one or more slides. These titles, read in order, should tell the complete story of your project.
- Vertical Flow: The "dashes" under each dot provide the evidence. These become the content of your slides—the bullet points, images, charts, and data that prove the claim made in the slide's title.
Let's see how this works with the example outline from our last lesson:
| Dot-Dash Outline Element | Presentation Slide(s) |
|---|---|
| Dot 1: The project goal was to design a robust linear motion system for a specified load and speed. - Dash: Axial load > 200 N - Dash: Max speed > 150 mm/s - Dash: FoS > 2.0 |
Slide Title: Project Goal: Design a Linear Motion System for a Desktop CNC Body: • A concise problem statement. • A bulleted list of key requirements (Load, Speed, FoS, etc.). |
| Dot 3: Structural components were designed in OnShape and validated using FEA. - Dash: Initial bracket FoS was 1.5. - Dash: Redesigned with ribs. - Dash: Final FoS is 3.5. |
Slide Title: Motor Bracket Redesigned to Meet 2.0 Factor of Safety Requirement Body: • Side-by-side images of the initial and redesigned bracket. • An FEA plot of the initial design showing high stress (FoS = 1.5). • An FEA plot of the final design showing reduced stress (FoS = 3.5). • Use the SCR story here: Situation (Requirement FoS > 2.0), Complication (Initial design failed with FoS=1.5), Resolution (Ribs added, validation shows FoS=3.5). |
| Dot 4: A risk assessment (FMEA) was conducted to identify and mitigate potential failures. - Dash: Contamination was a high-risk failure mode. - Dash: Mitigation: Add bellows cover. |
Slide Title: FMEA Identified Contamination Risk; Mitigated with Protective Cover Body: • A simplified table showing the FMEA entry for the contamination risk. • Include columns for Failure Mode, Effect, Cause, and a simplified before/after Risk Priority Number (RPN). • An image or sketch showing the bellows cover concept. |
The key is to use strong visuals. Your audience wants to see the evidence. Use screenshots of your CAD models, FEA results, and relevant tables or charts.
Test your understanding!
Imagine one of your "dots" is: "A ball screw was chosen over a lead screw for superior efficiency." What "dashes" (visuals and data) would you put in the slide body to support this claim?
Show answer
The slide body could include:
- A simple comparison table showing key specs for both options (e.g., Efficiency, Cost, Backlash).
- A chart illustrating the trade-off (e.g., Ball Screw: higher efficiency, higher cost; Lead Screw: lower efficiency, lower cost).
- A concluding statement: "The higher efficiency of the ball screw (92% vs. ~40%) allows for a smaller, less expensive motor, offsetting the initial component cost."
- Images of a typical ball screw and lead screw to visually differentiate them.
3. Your Task: Build Your Design Review Presentation
Now it's time to build your presentation. Using a tool like Google Slides or PowerPoint, create a presentation for your linear motion system project. Aim for about 10-15 slides.
Follow the structure we've outlined and use your "dot-dash" summary from the previous lesson as your script.
Here is a slide-by-slide guide to help you:
- Slide 1: Title Slide
- Project 1: Linear Motion System Design
- Final Design Review
- Your Name, Date
- Slide 2: Agenda
- List the main sections you'll cover.
- Slide 3: Project Background & Requirements
- State the main goal. List the 3-5 most critical requirements you defined in Module 3.
- Slide 4: Final Design Overview
- Include a high-quality isometric rendering of your complete OnShape assembly. This is the "hero shot" of your solution.
- Slides 5-6: Component Selection
- Justify your choice of lead screw/ball screw and guide rails. Use a comparison table or bullet points with key data (load capacity, efficiency, etc.).
- Slides 7-9: Structural Design & Validation (FEA)
- This is your FEA story. Use at least two slides:
- The Problem: Show the initial bracket design and the FEA plot highlighting the high stress or low FoS.
- The Solution: Show the redesigned bracket and the new FEA plot confirming it meets the FoS requirement.
- This is your FEA story. Use at least two slides:
- Slide 10: Risk Assessment (FMEA)
- Present your highest-risk failure mode. Use a simple table format. The example image below shows a clean way to present FMEA data.
*This slide is a good template for summarizing your FMEA findings. You can adapt this format to show your key failure mode and mitigation strategy.*
- Slide 11: Final Assembly & BOM
- Show an exploded view of your assembly from OnShape.
- Include a simplified Bill of Materials table with major purchased parts and their estimated costs.
- Slide 12: Conclusion
- Summarize your key achievements. State clearly that the design meets all major requirements.
- Briefly mention next steps (e.g., "Ready for detailed drawings and tolerance analysis").
- Slide 13: Q&A
- A simple slide with "Questions?" or "Thank You".
This task will bring together all the work you've done on Project 1 into a single, professional deliverable.
Conclusion
Congratulations on reaching this milestone! You have now learned how to translate a complex engineering design project into a structured, persuasive presentation. This is a vital skill that bridges the gap between doing the work and communicating its value.
Key Takeaways:
- A design review presentation is a formal engineering deliverable used to prove a design meets its requirements.
- A standard presentation structure (Intro, Solution, Analysis, Conclusion) provides a clear and logical narrative.
- Your "dot-dash" outline is the script that maps directly to your slides, ensuring a strong horizontal and vertical flow.
- Visuals are essential: use CAD renderings, FEA plots, and clear tables to "show" your evidence, not just "tell" it.
Preview of the Next Lesson:
You've now created the core assets for your first portfolio piece: the CAD model, the analysis files (FEA, FMEA), and a summary presentation. In our next lesson, we will focus on packaging these elements effectively as you learn to curate project deliverables (CAD, drawings, presentation) for portfolio inclusion.