Configuration of a Customized Product

The chapter discusses problems of the product configuration process and application of chosen methods to represent the knowledge related to this process. One of the most important issues in product life-cycle management is to identify customer needs and combine them with product’s technical and trade characteristics. The main tasks related to product configuration are focused on identifying the most suitable product to a particular customer, product decomposition, and estimating product characteristics. In the presented approach, identification of customer needs was discussed, and a product decomposition method was presented. The quality function deployment (QFD) method was suggested to be applied as a product and production process data integration tool, where engineering characteristics of a product are combined with its trade characteristics

Participatory decision-support model in the context of building structural design embedding BIM with QFD

The design and optimisation of building structures is a complex undertaking that requires the effective collaboration of various stakeholders and involves technical and non-technical expertise. The paper investigated an integrated decision-support framework using Quality Function Deployment (QFD) in structural design optimisation. The aim of the study was to develop and test a systematic participatory model that utilises Building Information Modelling (BIM)-enabled technologies for data collection and group decision-making theory. The uncertainties associated with the decision-makers’ preferences were computed using Evidential Reasoning (ER) algorithms in the QFD house of quality. An actual decision scenario was used to test the proposed framework and investigate its capabilities in the context of reinforced concrete buildings. The study demonstrated how the proposed QFD model could effectively enhance decision-making by managing the diversity of stakeholders’ preferences via design integration, enhanced communication and shared domain knowledge

Product Innovation Design Based on Deep Learning and Kansei Engineering

Creative product design is becoming critical to the success of many enterprises. However, the conventional product innovation process is hindered by two major challenges: the difficulty to capture users’ preferences and the lack of intuitive approaches to visually inspire the designer, which is especially true in fashion design and form design of many other types of products. In this paper, we propose to combine Kansei engineering and the deep learning for product innovation (KENPI) framework, which can transfer color, pattern, etc. of a style image in real time to a product’s shape automatically. To capture user preferences, we combine Kansei engineering with back-propagation neural networks to establish a mapping model between product properties and styles. To address the inspiration issue in product innovation, the convolutional neural network-based neural style transfer is adopted to reconstruct and merge color and pattern features of the style image, which are then migrated to the target product. The generated new product image can not only preserve the shape of the target product but also have the features of the style image. The Kansei analysis shows that the semantics of the new product have been enhanced on the basis of the target product, which means that the new product design can better meet the needs of users. Finally, implementation of this proposed method is demonstrated in detail through a case study of female coat design

Profitability estimation of new product development project

Tuotekehitys on tärkeässä roolissa menestyvän yrityksen liiketoimintastrategiassa. Tuotekehitys ei kuitenkaan voi olla itsetarkoitus, vaan tuotekehityshankkeiden ja niiden tulosten tulee olla kannattavia, eli tuotekehityshankkeisiin asetettujen panosten tulee tuottaa yritykselle voittoa tulevassa liiketoimessa. Ennen tuotekehitysprojektin aloittamista tuleekin tarkoin pohtia ja määritellä tuotekehityksen tavoitteet, tuloksena syntyvän tuotoksen tuottama arvo koko arvoketjussa (yritykselle, asiakkaille, jne.) sekä tuotteen sopivuus ja vaikutukset yrityksen liiketoimintastrategiaan. Tutkimuksen tavoitteena on nostaa kohdeyrityksen tuotekehityksen kannattavuutta laatimalla menettelytapa tuotekehityssalkun systemaattiseen hallintaan ja tuotekehitysprojektien priorisointiin. Tavoitteena on siis etsiä tuotekehityksen käyttöön työkalut, joilla projektien kannattavuutta ja prioriteettia voidaan tarkastella suhteessa muihin tuotekehitysprojekteihin sekä menetelmä tuotekehityssalkun hallintaan. Toteutettavien tuotekehitysprojektien laajuus vaihtelee usean vuoden kestävistä hankkeista pieniin tuoteparannuksiin. Tutkimus ottaa kantaa myös erilaajuisten tuotekehitysprojektien läpiviemiseen kohdeyrityksen tuotekehitysprosessissa. Tavoitteena on tutkia, miten tuotekehitysprosessia voisi mukauttaa eri laajuisille projekteille paremmin soveltuvaksi, jotta pienissä projekteissa tuotekehitysprosessi ei muodostuisi turhan raskaaksi, mutta toisaalta haastavimmissa projekteissa projekti tullaan analysoimaan riittävällä laajuudella. Tutkimus on toimintatutkimus, jossa hyödynnetään tunnettujen tuotekehityksen tutkijoiden, kuten Robert G. Cooperin, Scott J. Edgettin ja Colin Mynottin tuottamaa tutkimustietoa ja kirjallisuutta. Tutkimuksen tuloksena esitetään menetelmäsuositukset strategisen tuotekehityssalkun hallintaan ja tuotekartan rakentamiseksi. Lisäksi työssä esitetään menetelmäsuositus projektien priorisoimiseksi ja eri laajuisten tuotekehitysprojektien hallinnaksi tuotekehitysprosessissa. Tutkimuksen rinnalla yritykselle luodaan työkalu tuotekehitysprojektien riskien hallintaan projektin eri vaiheissa, jolla pyritään varmistamaan projektin tuloksellinen onnistuminen. Tutkimus pyrkii vastaamaan kysymykseen, miten tuotekehitys voi tuottaa suurimman arvon kohdeyritykselle. Diplomityö tulee toimimaan tuotekehityksen käsikirjana kohdeyrityksessä

Tradução das Necessidades dos Clientes e Geração de Concepções – Integração da Teoria da Solução Inventiva de Problemas - TRIZ e do Desdobramento da Função Qualidade – QFD.

Desenvolver produtos representa para as empresas aumentar sua vantagem competitiva. Porém, essa não é uma tarefa fácil, sendo muito elevada a taxa de fracasso de produtos lançados no mercado. Uma questão importante a qual deve-se atentar é a definição do produto, nas primeiras fases de desenvolvimento, pois o fracasso ou sucesso no mercado pode ser determinado pela forma como esse produto é definido. Um método chave para levantar requisitos de acordo com as necessidades dos clientes durante o desenvolvimento é o Desdobramento da Função Qualidade - QFD. Porém, há algumas dificuldades metodológicas na sua elaboração, o que prejudica seu uso nas empresas. Por outro lado, a Teoria da Solução Inventiva de Problemas - TRIZ - auxilia na geração de concepções, a partir de requisitos pré-definidos, chamados Parâmetros de Engenharia. Sendo assim, esta dissertação tem como objetivo analisar as contribuições da Teoria da Solução Inventiva de Problemas - TRIZ - no processo de tradução das necessidades dos clientes em requisitos de projetos no contexto do Desdobramento da Função Qualidade - QFD - e seu posterior subsidio na geração de concepções. Para tanto foi conduzida uma pesquisa-ação com três ciclos utilizando o ambiente de ensino e casos reais. Foram verificadas as dificuldades do QFD e contribuições da TRIZ no trabalho, além de comparados resultados gerados com a utilização somente do QFD e com sua integração com a TRIZ. Com base nos resultados obtidos, pôde-se constatar que a TRIZ auxilia de fato na tradução de necessidades dos clientes em requisitos de projeto, além de desenvolver a criatividade para a geração de concepções inovadoras

Supply Chain Risk Management of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) in Australia

This research examines the supply chain risk management of Australia’s Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) supply chain. The study develops a risk management methodology based on quality function deployment and 0-1 multiobjective optimization model. The research reveals 33 LNG supply chain risks and 30 risk management strategies (RMSs) for Australian LNG supply chain. Optimal sets of RMSs are found using the methodology which would be beneficial for the LNG risk managers in a limited resources scenario