Eduqas GCSE Design and Technology key terms

A treatment that uses chemicals to change a fabric’s properties.

Cooking woodchips with chemicals to remove lignin and separate the fibres.

A soft, fluffy novelty yarn with short fibres projecting from a central core.

A diagram using standard component symbols and connections to show how an electrical circuit is arranged.

An approach that reduces waste and pollution by keeping products and materials in use and supporting the regeneration of natural systems.

A hole large enough for a screw or bolt to pass through without its thread engaging with the material.

The person or organisation commissioning a design, whose requirements help shape the brief and specification.

A mechanism that stores energy in a wound spring and releases it through gears to produce movement.

A cellular plastic whose gas-filled spaces are enclosed by polymer walls, limiting the passage of air and liquids through the cells.

Computer numerical control: control of a machine's movements and operations using programmed numerical instructions.

Shaping solid metal without deliberately heating it first, for example by folding sheet metal.

Working with other people to understand a problem, generate ideas and improve solutions through shared knowledge and feedback.

Negotiation between employers and workers’ representatives, usually trade unions, over pay and working conditions.

The division of artwork into separate images for the inks used to print it, commonly cyan, magenta, yellow and black.

A circuit that compares two input voltages and changes its output state according to which voltage is greater.

An individual part used in a product or system, such as a bolt, button or LED.

A material made by combining distinct materials, such as reinforcing fibres held within a plastic resin.

A material made by combining two or more constituent materials to obtain useful properties.

Capable of biodegrading under specified composting conditions within a specified period, without leaving harmful residues.

A transmission with successive stages, including two components fixed to an intermediate shaft so that they rotate together.

A pushing action that tends to squash or shorten a material.

A manufacturing process in which polymer placed in a heated mould cavity is compressed by a closing plug using a hydraulic press.

The ability of a material to resist being squeezed or crushed.

The use of computer software to create and develop a design or drawing.

The use of computer-controlled equipment to carry out manufacturing operations.

The use of computer-controlled machinery to manufacture products or components.

The control of a machine’s movements and operations using programmed numerical instructions.