Study Hub

Study Guides

This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.

Back to Study HubBrowse Year 8 Design and technology Guides

Year 8 - Design and technology

Selecting materials for manufacture

Material testing

Unit Summary

This unit will develop pupils' knowledge of the physical and working properties of materials. They will compare material properties through testing, with a focus on metals. The environmental and social impact of materials will also be introduced.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to explain how a range of factors affect the selection of materials for manufacture.

Key Notes

  • Materials for manufacture are chosen based on performance, cost, and sustainability.
  • Physical and working properties like strength, flexibility, and durability determine how well a material performs.
  • Manufacturers must balance trade-offs between performance, cost, and sustainability when selecting materials.
  • In a school workshop, cost is often the most critical factor when selecting materials.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • performance: how well a material does its job and meets the needs of the product
  • cost: the price of buying, processing and using a material
  • sustainability: a product or material that has minimal environmental impact through its reuse or replenishment
  • properties: the characteristics of a material (like hardness, weight, or conductivity) that determine how it looks, feels and behaves when used

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • The cheapest material is always the best choice.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain the lesson in two key points.

Materials for manufacture are chosen based on performance, cost, and sustainability. Physical and working properties like strength, flexibility, and durability determine how well a material performs.

2. What does this key word mean in this lesson? 'performance'

how well a material does its job and meets the needs of the product.

3. Correct this common mistake.

Mistake: The cheapest material is always the best choice. Correction: Material selection involves balancing multiple factors, such as strength, durability, weight, sustainability, and ease of manufacturing; in addition to cost.

More Lessons In This Unit

Browse all guides in the Year 8 Design and technology guide library.