Modular product development for mass customization

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Coupling system design and project planning: discussion on a bijective link between system and project structures

This article discuss the architecture of an integrated model able to support the coupling between a system design process and a project planning process. The project planning process is in charge of defining, planning and controlling the system design project. A benchmarking analysis carried out with fifteen companies belonging to the world competitiveness cluster, Aerospace Valley, has highlighted a lack of models, processes and tools for aiding the interactions between the two environments. We define the coupling as the establishment of links between entities of the two domains while preserving their original semantic, thus allowing information to be collected. The proposed coupling is recursive. It enables systems to be decomposed into subsystems when designers consider complexity to be too high, and can also decompose projects into sub-projects. The coupling enables systematically links to be drawn between project entities and system entities. In this paper, we discuss the different possibilities of linking system and project structures during the design and the planning processes. Firstly, after presenting the results of the industrial analysis, the different entities are defined and the various coupling modes are discussed

DePlan: a tool for integrated design management

The iterative and information-intensive nature of the design process during detail design phases makes it hard to plan and schedule design work using computer tools for conventional project management. The success of design projects depends on the quality of the available information. Having the right information at the right time is crucial. This paper proposes DePlan as a method for integrated design management, i.e. for planning, scheduling, and controlling design activities during the detail design phase. DePlan integrates two techniques, namely ADePT (Analytical Design Planning Technique) andExtended WorkPlan Last Planner, each involving a software tool.. ADePT implements the dependency structure matrix (DSM) analysis method and helps identify the iterative processes and the planning strategy for managing them. Last Planner is a production management philosophy that focuses on scheduling and controlling design activities. Combined as DePlan, these techniques help planners generate quality plans, i.e., plans that express what is ready for execution by sequencing activities in the right order, identifying informational and resource requirements ahead of design execution, and by scheduling only activities that have met these requirements. This collaborative research has successfully developed the DePlan approach and associated computer software and tested them on a typical office building

Assessment of global sensitivity analysis methods for project scheduling

Product development requires scheduling that considers the interdependence between activities. The definition of the interdependencies and duration of activities, communication times and the level of overlap between activities is needed for project scheduling. However, these parameters have epistemic uncertainties that can affect project scheduling. In this work, different global sensitivity analysis techniques were applied to identify the parameters that had the greatest effect on project scheduling. It was concluded that standardized regression coefficients as well as the Morris and Sobol Jansen methods were the most appropriate. It was also found that global sensitivity analysis can help to focus resources based on the definitions and control the uncertainty of key activities. Furthermore, it was concluded that control of the uncertainty of key activities reduces the uncertainty and duration of projects.Galvez, ED.; Capuz-Rizo, SF. (2016). Assessment of global sensitivity analysis methods for project scheduling. Computers and Industrial Engineering. 93:110-120. doi:10.1016/j.cie.2015.12.010S1101209

The layered dependency structure matrix for managing collaborative design processes

Cataloged from PDF version of article.Effective collaboration and knowledge management are the major contributors of success in the construction industry. Although a huge amount of interdisciplinary knowledge is exchanged in building design processes, there is a lack of tools for representing information flows. Therefore, this paper focuses on the collaboration between architects and structural engineers and introduces an innovative matrix-based tool named “The Layered Dependency Structure Matrix” for modeling and managing the discipline-specific and collaborative design activities. The proposed method is compared with the conventional techniques used in the industry and its application is demonstrated in a beam design example

Building information modelling project decision support framework

Building Information Modelling (BIM) is an information technology [IT] enabled approach to managing design data in the AEC/FM (Architecture, Engineering and Construction/ Facilities Management) industry. BIM enables improved interdisciplinary collaboration across distributed teams, intelligent documentation and information retrieval, greater consistency in building data, better conflict detection and enhanced facilities management. Despite the apparent benefits the adoption of BIM in practice has been slow. Workshops with industry focus groups were conducted to identify the industry needs, concerns and expectations from participants who had implemented BIM or were BIM “ready”. Factors inhibiting BIM adoption include lack of training, low business incentives, perception of lack of rewards, technological concerns, industry fragmentation related to uneven ICT adoption practices, contractual matters and resistance to changing current work practice. Successful BIM usage depends on collective adoption of BIM across the different disciplines and support by the client. The relationship of current work practices to future BIM scenarios was identified as an important strategy as the participants believed that BIM cannot be efficiently used with traditional practices and methods. The key to successful implementation is to explore the extent to which current work practices must change. Currently there is a perception that all work practices and processes must adopt and change for effective usage of BIM. It is acknowledged that new roles and responsibilities are emerging and that different parties will lead BIM on different projects. A contingency based approach to the problem of implementation was taken which relies upon integration of BIM project champion, procurement strategy, team capability analysis, commercial software availability/applicability and phase decision making and event analysis. Organizations need to understand: (a) their own work processes and requirements; (b) the range of BIM applications available in the market and their capabilities (c) the potential benefits of different BIM applications and their roles in different phases of the project lifecycle, and (d) collective supply chain adoption capabilities. A framework is proposed to support organizations selection of BIM usage strategies that meet their project requirements. Case studies are being conducted to develop the framework. The results of the preliminary design management case study is presented for contractor led BIM specific to the design and construct procurement strategy

Developing Expert System for Managing Maintenance Projects

Handling specialities of maintenance projects is a highly challenging task. On the one hand the operations of the maintenance task are fixed, and can be described with a network or process planning methods. On the other hand the sequence of realizing maintenance tasks depend on the risks and reliabilities. Therefore, traditional project and process planning methods are not the most appropriate ones at managing the sequence of maintenance tasks. In this paper a new planning method is introduced, where project constraints can be considered in determining the optimal maintenance project. Tasks which have to be realized can be ranked with our method based on their reliabilities or risks. Estimating reliabilities, theory of stochastic process and expressing of measurement uncertainty are also applied and improved in order to handle decision errors and their consequences. To determine feasible maintenance projects an expert system has been developed to determine which application can be used for diagnostic processes and forecasting the failures

Component-based records: a novel method to record transaction design work

The growing pressures from global competitive markets signal the inevitable challenge for companies to rapidly design and develop new successful products. To continually improve design quality and efficiency, companies must consider how to speed design processes, minimise human-errors, avoid unnecessary iterations, and sustain knowledge embedded in the design process. All of these issues strongly concern one topic: how to make and exploit records of design activities. Using process modelling ideas, this paper introduces a new method called component-based records, in place of traditional design reports. The proposed method records transaction elements of the actual design processes undertaken in a design episode, which aims to continually improve design quality and efficiency, reduce designers’ workload for routine tasks, and sustain competitiveness of companies

Modelling iteration in engineering design

This paper examines design iteration and its modelling in the simulation of New Product Development (NPD) processes. A framework comprising six perspectives of iteration is proposed and it is argued that the importance of each perspective depends upon domain-specific factors. Key challenges of modelling iteration in process simulation frameworks such as the Design Structure Matrix are discussed, and we argue that no single model or framework can fully capture the iterative dynamics of an NPD process. To conclude, we propose that consideration of iteration and its representation could help identify the most appropriate modelling framework for a given process and modelling objective, thereby improving the fidelity of design process simulation models and increasing their utility