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Revolutionising New Product Development:

A Blueprint for Success in the Global Automotive Industry

Paul T. Kidd

1997, ISBN 1-85334-653-5


Contents

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
 
CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW-NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT IN A GLOBAL INDUSTRY
Introduction
Organising new product development in a global company
Globalisation at Ford
Globalisation at Honda
An evaluation of the approaches
The three major themes
The emerging post-mass-production economy
Global markets
The degrees of customer focus
Competing on innovation
Exploiting the strategic value of time
Capabilities to deal with market turbulence
The diversity of the global marketplace
The legacy of the mass-production paradigm
Interpreting signals from the business environment
Paradigm shift
The global/local enterprise
Defining a global company
Resolving paradoxes
The global/local enterprise
Information technology as an enabler of the global/local enterprise
The DAVINCI Virtual Corporation
Globalisation and the small enterprise
Global flexible specialisation
A road map to the global/local enterprise
Implementing the basics
Increasing customer focus and enhancing innovation
Mastering technical and organisational change
Developing product data exchange proficiency
Enhancing communications and knowledge-sharing
Enabling global/local car design capability
Supporting early visualisation of design proposals
Creating a rapid physical modelling and prototyping capability
Moving beyond the past
CHAPTER 2: TRANSFORMING THE BACK-END OF THE NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
Summary
Introduction
Major issues
The importance of transforming the back-end of new product development
Design lead times
Product quality
Development productivity
Cost reduction
The importance of achieving rapid change
Enabling rapid change
Enablers
Deployment
Further information
Creating a world-class new product development process
Essential elements of successful new product development
Overlapping and intensive communications between stages
Organisation
Project co-ordination
Decision-making
Supplier integration
Plant employee involvement
Specific methods and tools used in transforming new product development
Competitive benchmarking
Identification and elimination of non-value-added activities
Cross-functional teams
Design for manufacture
Design for assembly
Design for maintenance
Design failure mode and effect analysis
Process focus
Quality function deployment
Design to target cost
CHAPTER 3: TRANSFORMING THE FRONT-END OF THE NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
Summary
Introduction
Major issues
Improving customer focus
Co-creating with customers
Expeditionary marketing
Co-creating a vision for the future
Customers' customers concepts
Customising
Enhancing innovation
Innovation based on customer-focused product generations
Synchronised customer-driven product and technology components planning
Vehicle modularisation
Technology foresight and flow management
Partnerships and joint ventures
Creativity and innovation tools
Innovation enhancement at Mercedes-Benz
The idea centre
The innovation calendar
Integrated concept circles
Managing risks
Prioritising and progressing high-risk elements
Identifying and eliminating inappropriate concepts
CHAPTER 4: A TECHNOLOGY IMPLEMENTATION ROAD MAP
Summary
Introduction
Common implementation mistakes
Typical implementation deficiencies
Typical causes of deficiencies
Business benefits of mastering implementation
Guidance on implementation
Desirable elements of a method
Passive implementation
Consultancy-centred implementation
Subcontracting-based implementation
Company-centred implementation
Preferred approach
An implementation road map
A staged approach
Stage 1-define the technology project and its context
Stage 2-analyse the technology
Stage 3-organisational design
Stage 4-establish an action plan
Analysing the technology
Job and organisational design
CHAPTER 5: THE STANDARD FOR EXCHANGING PRODUCT MODEL DATA
Summary
Introduction
The importance of international standards
Traditional focus
Strategic focus
International standards as an enabler
International standards and change responsiveness
Applications in the automotive industry
General Motors
Mercedes-Benz
Volvo
Implementation issues
When to implement
Linking to wider strategic objectives
Organisational change
Collaboration with customers, partners and suppliers
Migration
New technology projects
Specialised support
Further information
Application protocol AP214: Core Data for Automotive Mechanical Design
Other information technology standards
Vendor attitudes
Implementation support
CHAPTER 6: COMPUTER-SUPPORTED COLLABORATIVE WORKING
Summary
Introduction
The importance of computer-supported collaborative working technologies
Relevance to automobile companies and suppliers
Direct applications in the new product development process
Creating synergies
Relevance to smaller firms
Supporting internal communications
Supporting collaborations with other small companies
Implementation issues
An organisational technology
Potential causes of failure and problems
IT-driven applications
Ignoring the impact of technology on users
Understanding users and work processes
Underestimating the technical requirements
Users unconvinced of benefits
Inability to manage transformational changes
Mistrust and functional mind-sets
Maintaining hierarchical control
Case study: Rover Group-application of computer-supported collaborative working to early design
Further information
Distribution
Operating modes
Group types
Generic application categories
Off-the-shelf software packages
Offline collaboration software
Online applications-sharing software
Desktop video-conferencing and whiteboards
CHAPTER 7: KNOWLEDGE-BASED SYSTEMS
Summary
Introduction
Importance of the technology
Transforming concept development and product planning
Knowledge-based systems as an enabler for globalisation
Knowledge-based systems as an enabler for time and cost reductions
Knowledge-based systems as an enabler for agility
Implementation issues
Potential causes of failure
Addressing accountability
Design automation and standardisation
Using the technology to resolve organisational problems
Overestimating the capabilities of the technology
Link to a wider knowledge management strategy
Case study: Lotus Engineering-application of knowledge-based systems to design concept development
Further information
CHAPTER 8: VIRTUAL REALITY SYSTEMS
Summary
Introduction
The importance of virtual reality technologies
Benefits
Cost and lead time reductions
Sales and marketing support
Support for globalisation
Implementation issues
Hardware costs
Development of internal knowhow
Organisational changes
Interfacing between CAD and virtual reality systems
Over-modelling
Health and safety
Case study: Delphi Automotive Systems-application of virtual reality to early cockpit design
The technology
Applications outside the automotive industry
Training applications
Architectural and building applications
Sales and marketing applications
Engineering design applications
Applications in the automotive industry
Mercedes-Benz
Rover Group
Ford Motor Company
Chrysler
CHAPTER 9: RAPID MODELLING, PROTOTYPING, TOOLING AND MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGIES
Summary
Introduction
The importance of rapid modelling, prototyping, tooling and manufacturing
Implementation issues
Machine purchase issues
Capital costs
Using bureau services
Choosing the right process
Technological issues
Availability of three-dimensional CAD systems
Information technology standards
Organisational issues
Choosing a location
Organisational changes
Moving beyond physical models and prototypes
Case study: Webster Mouldings-application of laminated object manufacturing in rapid prototyping and manufacturing
Technology, machinery and application
Rapid prototyping technologies
Stereolithography
Multi-jet modelling
Selective laser sintering
Fused deposition modelling
Solid ground curing
Laminated object modelling
Machinery
Application to rapid prototyping, tooling and manufacture
Investment casting
Sand casting
Silicone vacuum moulding
Spray metal tooling
CHAPTER 10: THE FUTURE GENERATION AUTOMOTIVE ENTERPRISE
Summary
Introduction
Issues for the 21st century
Customer expectations
Increasing change, uncertainty and unpredictability
The potential for global environmental collapse
Enterprise and product paradigms
New manufacturing enterprise paradigms
Mass customisation
The reality of customisation in the late 1990s
The Rover Group
Morton International
Denso Corporation
Customisation in the 21st century
The three-day car
The reconfigurable automobile
Vision or fantasy
Opel's concept car-the Maxx
Agile manufacturing
Defining agility
Agility in the new product development process
The problems
Some emerging solutions
A way forward-defining a new product paradigm
Solutions
Managed consumption
Stages of development
A new corporate architecture
APPENDIX 1: SOURCES OF FURTHER INFORMATION
New product development
Organisations
Membership-based associations
Other organisations
Useful references
Standard for exchanging product model data
Organisations
Membership-based associations
Other organisations
Useful references
Computer-supported collaborative working
Organisations
Teamsolutions
InSoft
Spectragraphics
Lotus
Useful reference
Knowledge-based systems
Virtual reality
Organisations
EDS Virtual Reality Centres
Division
Silicon Graphics Computer Systems
Rapid modelling, prototyping, tooling and manufacturing
Membership-based associations
Vendors
Stereolithography and multi-jet modelling
Selective laser sintering
Laminated object manufacturing
Fused deposition modelling
Solid ground curing
Stereolithography and selective laser sintering
APPENDIX 2: RESEARCH SOURCES
Major reports and books
Research reports
Articles
Automotive Production
Business Horizons
Academy of Management Journal
Business Week
Challenge
Harvard Business Review
International Review of Applied Economics
IEEE Engineering Management Review
Journal of General Management
Long-range Planning
Sloan Management Review
Other reference sources consulted
Company sources
Interviews
LIST OF FIGURES
 

Copyright © 2000, Cheshire Henbury, Created by Paul T. Kidd, Revised July 2000
http://www.CheshireHenbury.com

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