The impact of CAD/CAM on industry:

Changes in production methods.

Global manufacturing.

Employment issues.

The trend from manual CNC programming to the use of software programs
that generate CNC codes from drawings. (Students are not required to generate ISO programs.)

The use of software applications that process production data and control a network of different machines from a central system.

to create and modify designs and layouts, e.g printed circuit board layout

for 2D/3D modelling and prototyping

to construct accurate drawings

to create complex products

to create virtual products

to create total design concepts, including use of multi-media.

Common input devices such as the mouse, stylus, tracker-ball, graphics tablet, digital camera, scanner, 3D scanner.

Common output devices such as printers, XY plotters, plotter-cutters and CNC
machines.

The use of commonly-used CNC machines, die lathes, milling machines, punches, drilling machines, knitting machines and looms, cutting machines, printing, sewing and embroidery machines, pressing equipment, printers, plotter-cutters, engravers.

The use of CAM when producing products for short or long runs in varying quantities, die one-off, batch production, high-volume/continuous production.

Advantages/disadvantages of CAM relating to time, costs, waste management, standardisation and reliability.