By: Neetu Chadha

Product DesignConcerned with form and function of a

product. It refers to the arrangement of elements or

parts that collectively form a product.Form design involves the determination of

what a product would look like(shape and appearance), what it will be made of(product structure) and how it will be made(process design).

Functional design deals with what function the product will perform and how it performs.

Different designsProduct design: Form and Functional designProcess design: concerned with the overall

sequence of operations required to achieve the design specification of the product.

Production design: concept of designing products from the point of view of producibility.

Translate customer wants and needs into product and service requirements

Refine existing products and servicesDevelop new products and servicesFormulate quality goalsFormulate cost targetsConstruct and test prototypesDocument specifications

Product or Service Design Activities

Reasons for Product or Service Design

Economic

Social and demographic

Political, liability, or legal

Competitive

Technological

Objectives of Product and Service Design

Main focusCustomer satisfaction

Secondary focusFunction of product/serviceCost/profitQualityAppearanceEase of production/assemblyEase of maintenance/service

Factors influencing design strategyCustomer requirementConvenience of the userTrade off between function and formTypes of materials usedWork methods and equipmentsCost/Price ratioProduct qualityProcess capabilityEffect on existing productsPackaging

Major factors in design strategyCostQualityTime-to-marketCustomer satisfactionCompetitive advantage

Product and Service DesignProduct and Service Design

Product and service design – or redesign – should be closely tied to an organization’s strategy

Characteristics of Good Product designFunction or performanceAppearance or aestheticsReliabilityMaintainabilityAvailabilityProducibilitySimplificationStandardisationSpecificationSafety

Approaches to product designDesigning for the customerDesigning for Manufacture and Assembly (DFMA)Designing for ease of production (for producibility or

manufacturability)Designing for QualityDesigning for ErgonomicsDesigning for environmental protectionDesigning for recyclingDesigning of disassembly (DFD)Designing for mass customisationOther issues (Computer aided design and Value

engineering)

Designing for customerQuality Function Deployment(QFD): An

approach to product design by which the voice of the customer is incorporated .

House of Quality: A matrix showing the relationship between the customer’s requirements and the technical characteristics of the product.

Designing for Manufacture and Assembly (DFMA)Concurrent engineering is the bringing

together of engineering design and manufacturing personnel early in the design phase.

Design for Manufacturing: is used to indicate the designing of products that are compatible with an organisation’s capability.

Design for Assembly: focuses on reducing the number of parts in a product or on assembly methods and sequence that will be employed.

Designing for ease of production (for producibility or manufacturability)

Specification: Detailed description of material, part and physical measures.

Standardisation: Design activity that reduces variety among group of products or parts.

Simplification: elimination of complex features

Designing for QualityQuality of Design: refers to the quality

specifications (appearance, life, safety, maintenance) incorporated in the design.

Quality of Conformance: is the degree to which the product actually conforms to design specification.

Three aspects Robust Design: Design that results in products

or services that can function over a broad range of conditions

Designing for production: Two aspects Modular Design: is a form of standardization in which

component parts are subdivided into modules that are easily replaced or interchanged.

Designing for automation: three issues (a) wasteful or unnecessary processes should not be automated. (b) simplify the design before automation. (c ) process may be simplified to such an extent that automation may not be needed.

Designing for reliablity: The ability of a product, part, or system to perform its intended function under a prescribed set of conditions

Designing for Ergonomics

Ergonomics applies knowledge of human capabilities and limitations to the design of products and processes.

Designing for environmental protection

Green designs: Designing products which are environmental friendly.

Universal design: An attempt is made to design products that are easily operable by disabled persons.

Recycling: recovering materials for future use

Recycling reasonsCost savingsEnvironment concernsEnvironment regulations

RecyclingRecycling

Designing for mass customisation

Strategy of designing standardised products but incorporating some degree of customisation in the final product.

Two tacticsDelayed differentiation: postponing completion

until customer preferences are known. Modular design

Modular Design

Modular design is a form of standardization in which component parts are subdivided into modules that are easily replaced or interchanged. It allows:

easier diagnosis and remedy of failures easier repair and replacement

simplification of manufacturing and assembly

Computer-Aided DesignComputer-Aided Design (CAD) is product

design using computer graphics.increases productivity of designers, 3 to 10

timescreates a database for manufacturing

information on product specificationsprovides possibility of engineering and cost

analysis on proposed designs

Value Engineering

Concerned with the improvement of design and specifications at various stages.

Benefits:Cost reductionLess complex productsUse of standard componentsImprovement in functions of the productBetter job design and job safetyBetter maintainability and serviceabilityRobust design

LegalProduct liabilityUniform commercial code

EthicalReleasing products with defects

EnvironmentalEPA

Legal, Ethical, and Environmental Issues

Regulations & Legal Considerations

Product Liability - A manufacturer is liable for any injuries or damages caused by a faulty product.

Uniform Commercial Code - Products carry an implication of merchantability and fitness.

Designers Adhere to GuidelinesProduce designs that are consistant with

the goals of the companyGive customers the value they expectMake health and safety a primary concernConsider potential harm to the

environment

Other Issues in Product and Service Design

Product/service life cyclesHow much standardizationProduct/service reliabilityRange of operating conditions

Life Cycles of Products or Services

Time

Introduction

Growth

Maturity

Saturation

Decline

Demand

StandardizationStandardization

Extent to which there is an absence of variety in a product, service or process

Standardized products are immediately available to customers

Advantages of StandardizationFewer parts to deal with in inventory &

manufacturing

Design costs are generally lower

Reduced training costs and time

More routine purchasing, handling, and inspection procedures

Advantages of Standardization (Cont’d)

Orders fillable from inventory

Opportunities for long production runs and automation

Need for fewer parts justifies increased expenditures on perfecting designs and improving quality control procedures.

Disadvantages of Standardization

Designs may be frozen with too many imperfections remaining.

High cost of design changes increases resistance to improvements.

Decreased variety results in less consumer appeal.

ReliabilityReliability: The ability of a product, part, or

system to perform its intended function under a prescribed set of conditions

Failure: Situation in which a product, part, or system does not perform as intended

Normal operating conditions: The set of conditions under which an item’s reliability is specified

Improving ReliabilityImproving Reliability

• Component design

• Production/assembly techniques

• Testing

• Redundancy/backup

• Preventive maintenance procedures

• User education

• System design

Phases in Product Development Process

1. Idea generation2. Feasibility analysis3. Product specifications4. Process specifications5. Prototype development6. Design review7. Market test8. Product introduction9. Follow-up evaluation

Idea Generation

Ideas Competitor based

Supply chain based

Research based

Reverse Engineering

Reverse engineering is thedismantling and inspecting of a competitor’s product to discover product improvements.

Research & Development (R&D)Organized efforts to increase scientific

knowledge or product innovation & may involve:Basic Research advances knowledge about a

subject without near-term expectations of commercial applications.

Applied Research achieves commercial applications.

Development converts results of applied research into commercial applications.

ManufacturabilityManufacturability is the ease of

fabrication and/or assembly which is important for:

Cost

Productivity

Quality

Designing for ManufacturingBeyond the overall objective to achieve customer satisfaction while making a reasonable profit is:

Design for Manufacturing(DFM)

The designers’ consideration of the organization’s manufacturing capabilities when designing a product.

The more general term design for operations encompasses services as well as manufacturing

Design for manufacturing (DFM)Design for assembly (DFA)Design for recycling (DFR)RemanufacturingDesign for disassembly (DFD)Robust design

Product design