Manufacturing processes — IGCSE Design & Technology (0445) questions by topic
Expect manufacturing processes questions to move between naming tools and processes, describing the purpose of a datum face, and full design tasks such as a flat-packed bird-nesting product or a cake display unit built around given dimensions. Sketch, draw, evaluate, suggest and outline are the leading command words, with evaluate wanting a justified judgement rather than a simple description.
Marks span an unusually wide 1 to 50 across 64 real questions from 2023 to 2025 papers, this syllabus's largest range. Because design tasks are marked on originality and justification as much as technical accuracy, submitting full sketch-and-note responses for instant marking shows quickly whether an idea has been developed with enough detail or merely repeats information already given in the question.
What examiners look for
- A recurring criticism is candidates repeating points already given in the question, such as needing to be portable or floor-standing, and giving generic points such as nice that could apply to almost any product.
- Examiners also flag candidates naming generic materials such as plastic or wood instead of the correct process, and omitting the correct names of tools and equipment.
- Strong answers showed screw clamping mechanisms, tube-in-tube designs locked with a spring-loaded button, folding hinged parts or pegs slotting into holes, all with clear sketches and notes.
- Reports praise responses that evaluated durability, communication of information, ease of setting up and reliability of a mechanism, then chose one idea and justified the choice.
- According to the reports, the best answers used orthographic drawings, freehand sketches, exploded 3D sketches and material lists, with colour showing material and finish.
May–June 2025, Paper 11
Bottles of water are often provided in fast food outlets at theme parks. A typical water bottle is approximately 250 mm tall with a diameter of approximately 70 mm (shown in a…
Answer this question and get it marked →Height restrictions are often applied to theme park rides for safety reasons. (An illustration shows people queuing in front of a large roller coaster.) Design a height…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 12
Sports coaches use equipment when they are coaching young players. The equipment shown is a set of tennis training equipment: a tennis racket (500 mm long x 250 mm) with a handle…
Answer this question and get it marked →New sporting products are often promoted by being placed on a point-of-sale display. Design a flat-packed point-of-sale display for a new 'Apex volleyball' (Ø210 mm). The…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 31
Fig. 3.1 shows strips of hardwood glued and clamped together to make a chopping board. (a) Name the type of cramps used.
Answer this question and get it marked →Fig. 5.1 shows a basic design for a letter rack made from 4 mm thick acrylic. (a) Draw a former that could be used when bending the acrylic to the shape of the letter rack.
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 33
Fig. 3.1 shows strips of hardwood glued and clamped together to make a chopping board. Name the type of cramps used.
Answer this question and get it marked →Fig. 4.1 shows two tools, A and B, being used on the end of a round metal rod. Tool A is a thin pointed marking tool held against the rod end; tool B is a centring tool resting on…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 51
A2 The sailing club requires some self-adhesive stickers with the logo on. The sticker design (a triangular sticker 55 x 50 containing the boat logo) is shown. The stickers will…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 53
The sailing club requires self-adhesive stickers with the logo on. The stickers will be made from self-adhesive vinyl in quantities of 500. Name a suitable method of printing the…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 11
Small household pets sometimes need to be transported. Design a device for transporting a small household pet. The device should allow the pet to remain safe while being…
Answer this question and get it marked →Some pet animals enjoy playing with toys. Design a package that will hold and display a toy for a pet animal. The package must allow the toy to be visible and enable it to be hung…
Answer this question and get it marked →Sometimes household pets must be left alone when the owners are away, but still need to be fed. Design a device that will automatically dispense a set portion of dry pet food at…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 12
Cakes are often displayed in a shop window to attract people to buy them. Each cake is Ø60 x 80 high. Design a unit to display cakes. The display unit must have three different…
Answer this question and get it marked →A shop sells individual items of food and drink for a packed lunch. The three lunch items shown are sandwiches (100 x 100 x 20), an apple (Ø60) and a carton of juice (40 x 60 x…
Answer this question and get it marked →A café wishes to serve slices of cake in different thicknesses: small 8 mm thick, medium 12 mm thick, large 16 mm thick. Design a handheld device that can be adjusted to cut…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 13
In small workshops, it is often difficult to store hand tools and small components to make them easily accessible. Design a wall-mounted storage unit that can hold a variety of…
Answer this question and get it marked →Customers like to hold and operate new tools in a shop before buying. A pair of combination pliers is shown (190 long, 55 and 140 across the jaws/handles, 35 wide at the head and…
Answer this question and get it marked →Materials need to be held securely on a work bench when cutting and shaping. Design a bench-mounted device that can be used to temporarily hold materials down on a flat surface.…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 31
Table 2.1 shows three types of drill bit. Complete Table 2.1 by adding the number from the list below to show the correct use for each drill bit. 1 used to drill smooth-sided,…
Answer this question and get it marked →Fig. 10.1 shows a variety of food containers made of plastic and manufactured by the vacuum forming process. One benefit of using this process is that the containers can be…
Answer this question and get it marked →(a) Fig. 11.2 shows the front of the case with the windows marked out, ready to be cut out. Use sketches and notes to show how one window (40 x 20) could be cut out by hand. Name…
Answer this question and get it marked →(a)(i) Name a suitable manufactured board for the tray.
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 32
Fig. 4.1 shows two different types of caliper, A and B, measuring the diameters of round bars. (a) Name the type of caliper labelled B.
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 33
Fig. 1.1 shows a small table. The tabletop could be made from plywood or chipboard. Give two advantages of using plywood rather than chipboard for the tabletop.
Answer this question and get it marked →Fig. 2.1 shows an incomplete drawing of two pieces of metal being riveted together (hammer head and rivet shown). (a) Name the type of hammer used to rivet the two pieces of metal…
Answer this question and get it marked →Fig. 8.1 shows a stage in a process to shape thermoplastic sheet (heated thermoplastic sheet held by a clamp and clamping ring, with compressed air applied). (a) Name the process…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 11
Growing different vegetables or herbs can be difficult for people with limited space. Design a device to allow someone to grow vegetables or herbs within a limited space. The…
Answer this question and get it marked →Encouraging children to eat more healthy foods is important for their health and wellbeing. Design a shop display to encourage children to eat more vegetables. The shop display is…
Answer this question and get it marked →Peeling vegetables can be difficult for people with limited strength and mobility in their hands. Design a device for people who have limited strength and mobility in their hands…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 13
Customers often buy products to attract different birds to nest safely in their garden. Design a product for nesting birds. The design must be suitable for different sized birds,…
Answer this question and get it marked →A bird conservation group wishes to introduce a range of greetings cards to sell in shops. Design a greetings card based on the theme of birds. To generate interest, the card must…
Answer this question and get it marked →A shop sells a range of bird seed to customers. Design an automated device that allows customers to fill paper bags with bird seed. Each time the device is used, the design must…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 31
Fig. 6.1 shows a split pattern made of wood. The split pattern will be used to make an aluminium handle for a hacksaw. Name the process that will be used to make the hacksaw…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 32
Fig. 10.1 shows two hardwood stools, A and B. Stool A has been fabricated and stool B has been made by steam bending. Explain why stool B would be cheaper to mass produce than…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 33
Fig. 6.1 shows a split pattern made of wood. The split pattern will be used to make an aluminium handle for a hacksaw. Name the process that will be used to make the hacksaw…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 11
People enjoy cooking food on an open fire when at the beach. Design a device that will allow an open fire to be contained and cooked on safely when at the beach. The device should…
Answer this question and get it marked →When people visit a beach they can leave litter, which can be harmful to wildlife and the environment. Design a display board that informs visitors to a beach about the problems…
Answer this question and get it marked →Having protection from the wind on a beach is important to avoid sand blowing into your eyes or wind chill. Design a device for use on a beach that will protect you from the wind.…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 12
Many people collect and display model cars. The model car shown is 80 mm long, 35 mm wide and 20 mm high. Design a display unit for six model cars that are similar in size to the…
Answer this question and get it marked →Manufacturers make and sell replica ancient coins to collectors. Each coin is 40 mm in diameter and 4 mm thick. Design a package for three replica ancient coins that are similar…
Answer this question and get it marked →Different-sized glass marbles are collected and used for games. Small marbles are 16 mm diameter, medium 24 mm and large 32 mm. Design a container that will hold 20 of each size…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 13
Cycling is popular for exercise and for commuting to work. Storing a bicycle in an apartment can be difficult. Design a storage solution that allows a bicycle to be mounted off…
Answer this question and get it marked →Bike trip computers are widely available for sale in shops. Design a freestanding point-of-sale display for a bike trip computer. The display must allow customers to interact with…
Answer this question and get it marked →Bicycles cannot be stored upright when left unattended without a support. Design a device that allows a bicycle to be stored upright when left unattended in open spaces. (a) List…
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 31
Fig. 4.1 shows a hardwood block with a line measured and marked out 100 mm from the datum face. Describe the purpose of the datum face.
Answer this question and get it marked →Fig. 8.1 shows two components, A and B, produced by different manufacturing processes. Component A is made of plastic. Component B is made of metal. Name the manufacturing process…
Answer this question and get it marked →Fig. 10.1 shows a sheet of 4 mm thick hardboard (400 x 300). Use sketches and notes to show how a softwood frame could be joined to the hardboard to make a 'flush' door.
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 32
Fig. 3.1 shows a cross-sectional view of an injection moulding machine (A is labelled Hopper). Complete Table 3.1 by stating the name of the components B, C and D.
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2023, Paper 11
Small children often find it difficult to reach a bathroom sink. Design a freestanding device that will allow a child to safely reach a bathroom sink. The device must be…
Answer this question and get it marked →Children sometimes forget to regularly brush their teeth. Design a product made from lightweight materials that will allow a child to record and display when they have brushed…
Answer this question and get it marked →Limiting the amount of time spent using a shower helps to reduce water usage, which is good for the environment. Design a device that indicates the amount of time spent using a…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2023, Paper 12
A selection of fresh fruit is often displayed in a cafe. Design a countertop storage unit to hold and display fresh fruit. The storage unit must be adjustable so that it can hold…
Answer this question and get it marked →Eating fresh fruit is good for your health. Design a freestanding interactive display that encourages young children to eat fresh fruit. The display must slot together and should…
Answer this question and get it marked →Soft fruit can be squeezed to make a juice drink. The glass shown has a top diameter of 70 mm and a height of 150 mm. Design a device that will squeeze soft fruit to make a juice…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2023, Paper 13
Elderly people and people with disabilities often have difficulty reaching food cans in a wall-mounted kitchen cupboard. Three sizes of food can are shown (75 mm and 108 mm tall,…
Answer this question and get it marked →People who use wheelchairs often use long-reach devices to help them pick up items out of range. The long-reach picker is 800 mm long. Design a package for a long-reach picker…
Answer this question and get it marked →Screw-top jars and bottles can sometimes be difficult to open. The items shown are a bottle (Ø30 mm), a small jar (Ø50 mm) and a large jar (Ø70 mm). Design a device that makes it…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2023, Paper 31
Fig. 2.1 shows a length of wood being planed in two directions, A and B (relative to the grain). (a) State the name of the plane shown in Fig. 2.1.
Answer this question and get it marked →(a) Fig. 13.2 shows a paper template glued onto 4 mm acrylic sheet (cut-out shape 140 x 90). (a)(i) Give two advantages of using a paper template rather than drawing the shape…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2023, Paper 32
Fig. 2.1 shows exploded views of a finger (comb) joint marked out and cut out. Name two different saws that could be used to remove the waste wood.
Answer this question and get it marked →(a) Fig. 13.2 shows the development (net) of the bracket (35 high, arcs at A, bend lines, centres for Ø20 and Ø5 holes, waste). (a)(i) State one advantage of using a chinagraph…
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2023, Paper 33
Fig. 2.1 shows a length of wood being planed in two directions, A and B (relative to the grain). (a) State the name of the plane shown in Fig. 2.1.
Answer this question and get it marked →(a) Fig. 13.2 shows a paper template glued onto 4 mm acrylic sheet (cut-out shape 140 x 90). (a)(i) Give two advantages of using a paper template rather than drawing the shape…
Answer this question and get it marked →