At OVIK our engineering skills come with a proven track record; our core vehicle range being testament to our knowledge of specialist vehicle design and manufacture.

We take customers' requirements forward into manufacture by first developing the concept through concept visualisation techniques. Once we have a clear idea of what it is we're trying to achieve we then have two very clear and distinct ways forward. Full CAD design prior to prototyping or 'rapid prototyping'.

RAPID PROTOTYPING

For low volume projects which require a rapid turn-around, especially those which are not overly complex, we will often forge ahead with rapid prototyping.  This a key OVIK capability - and one that really sets us apart from our competitors. Modern convention has it that everything must be CAD designed in the first instance.  Not so. Of course, there are many benefits to CAD design as part of the holistic design, prototyping and production process, but it also has some distinct drawbacks; principally that it can be a time-consuming process. 

In the event that we have to move rapidly, OVIK is expert at pulling together a team of end-user representatives, OVIK designers, engineers and fabricators and literaly building the vehicle from the ground up, in our workshops. Over the years we have found that often, the best way to take a vehicle concept forward is to apply 'old school' engineering judgement along with end-user input to get the prototype just right.  CAD, though brilliant in many respects, is no substitute to sitting in a driver's seat on an empty chassis rail, holding a steering wheel and working out the necessary ergonomics, proportions and dimensions of the vehicle design as it's built around the driver and crew. Sound old fashioned? Maybe - but it works and sometimes it's the ONLY way to move ahead at the necessary pace. 

If it looks right and feels right, chances are - it probably IS right!

Once the vehicle basics - such as proportions, ergonomics, aesthetics and functionality etc are established in a rapid prototype, our CAD designers then effectively 'reverse engineer' the prototype into a CAD design.  CAD engineers work in conjunction with production engineers to make sure that the prototype, produced on the shop floor by hand, can be productionised and reproduced, many times over and to a consistent standard.  This may all sound complex - but in reality this can be a very rapid process indeed; hence the term 'rapid prototyping'. 

CASE STUDY - The PANGOLIN Armoured Public Order Vehicle (for the Police Service of Northern Ireland) is a product of rapid prototyping. Within ten days of receiving the contract OVIK had produced a fully working prototype - which was retrospectively drawn as the design was refined and eventually productionised to deliver sixty identical vehicles. From concept to prototyping to testing to production and delivery of sixty vehicles in five months.

Following Initial Sketches and Renders - First Off CAD Designs  Start to Take Shape