Operations Management

Chapter- 3

Product Design: Definition and Activities

Designing new products (Product development speed, or new product introduction) and getting
them to market quickly is the challenge facing manufacturers in industries Customers are ever
demanding new and better products Product design and process selection in terms of
manufacturing refers to how manufactured products are designed and how the process to produce
them in organization Three major functions are involved in product design and process Selection
activities.

Marketing: Marketing has the responsibility for suggesting ideas for new products and for
providing product specification for existing product line
Product development: Product Development has the responsibility for moving the technical
concept for the product to its final design
Manufacturing: Manufacturing has the responsibility for selecting and lor configuring the
processes by which the product is to be manufactured.

Marketing Product Development Manufacturing

The Product Design Process (Survey Based Model Four phases)

In today's world, companies often outsource major functions rather than support these functions
in-house. Companies that specialize in manufacturing products for other companies have become
very successful.
Phase 1: Concept development:
i. Product architecture
ii. ii. Conceptual design
iii. in. Target market
Phase 2: Product planning:
i. Market building
ii. Small scale testing
iii. Investment Financial
Phase 3: Product/ Process Engineering:
i. Detailed design of product and tools and equipment
 ii. Building/ testing prototypes
Phase 4 Pilot Production / Ramp-up:
i. Volume production prove out
ii. Factory start-up
iii. Volume increases to commercial targets

The Product Development Process

Product development process represents the basic sequence of steps or activities that a firm
employs to conceive, design and bring a product to market. Many of these tasks involve intellectual
rather than physical activities. Some firms define and follow a precise & detailed development
process. Why others may not even be able to describe their processes.
The General Product Development Process:
Six phases are shown, including the tasks & responsibilities of the key functions of the
organization for each phase.
Phase 0: Planning
Phase 1: Concept development
Phase 2: System-level design
Phase 3: Design detail
Phase 4: Testing & refinement
Phase 5: Production ramp-up

Phase 0; Planning: The planning activity is often referred to as “phase zero” since it precedes
with project approval & launch of the actual product development process. This phase begins with
corporate strategy and includes assessment of technology developments and market objectives.
The output of planning phase is the project mission statement.
Phase 1; Concept Development: In this phase the needs of the target market are identified,
alternative product concepts are generated & evaluated, & one or concepts are selected for further
development & testing.
Phase 2; System-level design: The System-level design includes the definition of the product
architecture & the decomposition of the product into subsystems & components.

Phase 3; Design detail: This phase includes the complete specification of the geometry, materials
& tolerances of all unique parts in the product and the identification off all standard parts to be
purchased from suppliers. The output of this phase is the drawings of each part & its production
tooling.
Phase 4; Testing & Refinement: The testing & refinement phase involves the construction &
evaluation of multiple production versions of the product.
Phase 5; Production ramp-up: In the production ramp-up phase, the product is made using the
intended production system. The purpose of the ramp-up is to train the workforce and to work out
any remaining problems in the production processes.

Designing for the Customer

Before we detail the how and whys of designing and producing products, it is useful to reflect on
the issue of product design form the user’s standpoint.
Approaches:
Industrial Design: Designing for aesthetics and for the user is generally termed industrial design.
Quality function deployment: QFD uses inter functional teams from marketing, design,
engineering, and manufacturing, it is a means to translating customer requirements into appropriate
technical requirements for each stage of products or service development.
House of Quality: Customer requirements information forms the basis for a matrix called the
house of quality.
Value Analysis/ Value Engineering: This approach is to simply products & process in order to
achieve equivalent or better performance at a lower cost while maintaining all functional
requirements defined by the customers.

Process Selection:
Process selection refers to the strategic decision of selecting which kind of production processes
to have in the plant. It is the selection of input, operations, work flows & methods used to produce
goods & services. Process management deals with how to produce a product or service.
Process management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, techniques & system to define,
visualize, measure, control, report & improve processes with the goal to meet customer
requirements profitability.

Types of Process:
At the most basic level, the types of processes can be categorized as follows:
1. Conversion process
2. Fabrication process
3. Assembly process
4. Testing process
Conversion process: Examples are changing iron ore into steel sheets, or making all the ingredients
listed on the toothpaste into toothpaste.
Fabrication process: Examples are changing raw materials into some specific form [for example,
making sheet metal into a car fender or forming gold into a crown for a tooth.
Assembly process: Examples are assembling a fender to a car, putting toothpaste tube into a box,
or fastening a dental crown in somebody’s mouth.
Testing Process: This is not strictly speaking, a fundamental process, but it is so widely mentioned
as a stand-alone major activity that is included here for completeness.
Process flow Structure:
The manager has five process types, which form a continuum, to choose form:
1. Project Process: Project Process is a process characterized by a high degree of job
customization, the large scope of each project, and the release of substantial resources once
a project is completed. Examples of project process are building a shopping center.
2. Job Process: Job Process is a process with the flexibility needed to produce a variety of
products or services in significant qualities.
3. Batch Process: Batch process is a process that differs from the job process with respect to
volume, variety, and quality.
4. Line Process: Line process is a process that lies between the batch & continuous processes
on the continuum, volumes are high, and products and services are standardized, which
allows resources to be organized around a product or service.
5. Continuous Process: Continuous process is the extreme end of high volume, standardized
production with rigid the flows.

Major Process Decisions:

Process Choice: Process Choice determines whether resources are organized around products or
processes.
Vertical Integration: Vertical Integration is the degree to which a firm's own production system
and service facility handles the entire supply chain.
Resource Flexibility: Resource Flexibility is the ease with which employees and equipment can
handle a wide variety of products, output levels duties and functions.
Customer Involvement: Customer Involvement reflects the ways in which customers become
system or part of the process and the extent of their participation.
Capital Intensity: Capital Intensity is the mix of equipment and human skilis in a process the
greater the relative cost of equipment, the greater is the capital intensity

Vertical Integration:
• Backward Integration: Backward Integration refers to movement upstream towards
sources of raw materials and parts
 • Forward Integration: Forward integration means that the firm acquires more channels of
distribution

Raw materials

(Eggs, flour, sugar) Backward

Integration

King In-house Processes

Soopers

Forward
Integration
Customers

(Grocery stores)

Advantages of Vertical Integration:

• Improve market share
• Saving through lower cost of production
• Better quality of finished products and timely
• Exploit core competencies
• Control over crucial processes
• Allows task specialization and efficiency

Designing for the Customer

Before we detail the how and whys of designing and producing products, it is useful to reflect on
the issue of product design form the user’s standpoint.
Approaches:
Industrial Design: Designing for aesthetics and for the user is generally termed industrial design.
Quality function deployment: QFD uses inter functional teams from marketing, design,
engineering, and manufacturing, it is a means to translating customer requirements into appropriate
technical requirements for each stage of products or service development.
House of Quality: Customer requirements information forms the basis for a matrix called the
house of quality.
Value Analysis/ Value Engineering: This approach is to simply products & process in order to
achieve equivalent or better performance at a lower cost while maintaining all functional
requirements defined by the customers.
Outsourcing: Allotting work to suppliers and distributors to provide needed services and materials
and to perform those processes that the organization does not perform itself. The advantages
outsourcing is
• Better quality and low cost
• More supplier options
• Higher variety can be offered

Resource Flexibility:
•
Flexible workforce: Flexible workforce is a workforce whose members are capable of
doing many tasks, either at their own workstations or they move from one work stations
to another.
• Flexible equipment: When products & services have a short life cycle & a high degree
of customization, low volumes mean that process manager should select flexible, general
purpose equipment.
Customer Involvement:
• Self Service: Self Service is the process decision of many retailers, particularly when price
is a competitive priority.
• Product Selection: Product Selection is a business that competes on customization allows
customers to come up with their own product specifications or even become involved in
designing the product.
• Time & Location: Customers, at time, desire service at a specific time & location.