Edexcel GCSE Design and Technology key terms

Making a rigid model frame by joining thin softwood or balsa strips with triangular card pieces glued over the joints.

A structure made from connected members that form a supporting framework.

A drawing made without technical drawing equipment such as rulers or set squares, used to communicate an idea quickly.

A traditional finishing technique that builds up thin applications of shellac using a cloth pad to produce a highly polished surface.

A seam sewn in two stages so that the raw edges are enclosed within a narrow fabric fold.

The number of times a particular value, category or group occurs in a dataset.

Frequency divided by class width; it gives the bar height in a histogram when intervals have different widths.

A table showing each category, value or class interval alongside the number of observations it contains.

The Forest Stewardship Council, an organisation whose certification identifies timber from responsibly managed sources.

The pivot about which a lever turns.

Controlled felting of wool fabric using moisture, warmth and agitation, causing shrinkage and a denser, thicker structure.

The purpose of a product: what it is designed to do.

How readily a material melts when heated.

Joining textile layers using heat, either to activate an adhesive or to soften compatible synthetic surfaces so they unite.

Applying a protective zinc coating to iron or steel to reduce rusting.

Drawing fabric together along a line of stitching to reduce its width and create small folds.

The number of stitches and rows in a measured area of knitted or crocheted fabric. It is used to check whether the finished fabric will match a pattern's dimensions.

A toothed wheel that meshes with another toothed component to transmit movement and force.

For a simple gear pair, the number of teeth on the driven gear divided by the number on the driver gear.

The outer resin layer of a GRP product, used to provide a smooth surface and often containing pigment.

The transfer of genes between breeding populations, for example when pollen from a genetically engineered tree fertilises a compatible wild tree.

A device that converts energy transferred by rotation into electrical energy.

Deliberately altering an organism’s genetic material to give it desired characteristics, such as faster growth or resistance to disease.

The place or region from which a material originally comes. For timber, this means where the tree grew.

A textile used mainly in civil engineering at or below ground level for functions such as support, drainage and separation.

Abrasive-coated paper used to smooth and refine a surface; commonly called sandpaper.

A composite consisting of glass fibres held together in a polymer resin matrix.

The long-term rise in average global temperature, driven by increased concentrations of greenhouse gases.

A triangular fabric panel inserted into a seam or opening to add fullness and flare.