Mechanical Engineering & Product Design
FUEL’s mechanical team designs the physical side of the products we build, including enclosures, mechanisms, structures, and instrument hardware, in 3D CAD, proves them out with FEA and CFD and in-house prototyping, and carries them through to low-volume production. We design the mechanical alongside our own electrical and software teams under one design-control process, so the housing, the mechanism, and the electronics are engineered for each other rather than integrated after the fact. Most work runs in batches of 5 to 100 units, from a napkin-sketch idea to a validated, production-ready device.
What we design
Enclosures, mechanisms & structures
We design the physical hardware a product needs, from the outer enclosure to the moving parts inside it, engineered around the electronics and firmware they house.
- Instrument housings and enclosures, and industrial design
- Precision mechanisms, linkages, and motion design
- Structural and load-bearing design
- Sheet-metal chassis, brackets, and panels
- Wearable and handheld device housings
- Rugged field and industrial hardware, engineered for vibration, shock, and thermal extremes
Analysis, thermal & fluidics
We prove designs out in analysis before we commit to hardware, and we handle the thermal and fluid systems that decide whether an instrument performs.
- Structural and thermal FEA and CFD in SimScale
- Thermal management: cooling, heatsinking, and thermal analysis
- Fluid, pneumatic, and hydraulic systems, including pumps, valves, and flow paths
- Reagent-handling and fluidic assemblies for scientific and diagnostic instruments
- Tolerance stack-up analysis, sealing, and ingress protection to IP ratings
Prototyping to production
We do not stop at a drawing package. We build, validate, and deliver real production batches, then support the device in the field.
- Rapid prototyping and 3D printing (FDM and resin) in-house
- Full manufacturing drawing packages, BOMs, and DFM and DFA
- Jigs, fixtures, and test rigs
- Material selection and design for manufacture
- Low-volume production, typically 5 to 100 units
Machined and injection-molded parts are designed in-house and fabricated through vetted vendors; FUEL does not run an in-house machine shop.
Tools, standards & methods
We design in Onshape for 3D CAD and detailed design and analyze in SimScale for structural and thermal FEA and CFD. Prototyping is in-house on FDM and resin 3D printers, and we screen designs in our own environmental and thermal chambers and on mechanical load and drop test rigs before anything goes to an outside lab. All mechanical design runs under our in-house ISO 9001 / ISO 13485 design-control process.
We design to the standards each job requires, and pre-screen environmental performance in-house. These are design targets and in-house screens, not certifications:
- Drawings and tolerancing: ASME Y14.5 for GD&T and ISO 2768 for general tolerances, with dimensioned, toleranced drawings and tolerance stack-up on every job
- Environmental and rugged: IEC 60068 and MIL-STD-810 profiles, pre-screened in our own chambers, with full qualification at outside labs
- Sealing and ingress: IP ratings
- Analysis and DFM methods: structural and thermal FEA, CFD, tolerance stack-up, and DFM and DFA
- Quality: all mechanical design runs under a quality management system pursuing dual ISO 9001 / ISO 13485 certification, currently at the pre-audit stage
Where it fits in our process
A generic CAD shop models a part to a specification and hands back a drawing package. FUEL designs the mechanical around our own electronics and firmware under one ISO 9001 / ISO 13485-grade design-control process, ruggedizes it for real field and industrial use, and carries it through to validated production batches, so you get a device that is built, tested, and ready to ship, not just drawn. Before handoff we run mechanical load and drop testing, environmental and thermal chamber screening, fit-and-function checks on printed prototypes, and functional validation alongside the electrical and software teams. See how we work for the full path from concept to production.
Frequently asked questions
Can you design the enclosure and mechanics around our electronics?
Yes. Mechanical is co-designed with our in-house electrical and firmware teams, so the housing and mechanism fit the boards, connectors, and thermal load.
Do you build production units or just deliver CAD?
We take it to production. Typical batches are 5 to 100 units, designed for manufacture and built through our vendor network, with larger volumes assessed per project.
Can you make it survive the field or an industrial site?
Yes. We design for vibration, shock, and thermal extremes and pre-screen in our own environmental chambers before full qualification at an outside lab.
Do you run FEA and CFD before committing to hardware?
Yes. Structural and thermal FEA and CFD in SimScale are part of the design, not an afterthought.
Do you have an in-house machine shop?
We design machined and molded parts in-house and fabricate them through vetted vendors. Rapid prototyping with FDM and resin printing and mechanical and environmental testing are in-house.
Is your mechanical work done under a quality system?
Yes. All mechanical design runs under our ISO 9001 / ISO 13485 design-control process, which is currently in the pre-audit stage of certification, even on non-medical projects.