You are on page 1of 25

ET 3005.Assigirnert L DesignCaseStudy.

50%
You areto devisea solutionvia a productdesignto theproblemofbulk wastecreated
by plastic1,2 and3 litre milk bottles.Theideais to shredor granulate
thematerialso
thati1canbe lransponed
in a morccompactstateandavailablefor easier
rcprccesslng.
Theproductshouldfit thescenarioofajunior schoolthatis promotingrecycling,
on cunentlyavailablesolutions,
v/1. Undertakeproductandproccssresearch
producea briefreportandlist ofthe presenlsolutionscapability,costand
supplysource.
From
this rccommend
thebestexistingsolutionwith costs.(10%)
/
y'2. Analysethecomponent
partsandproducean analysisandlist ofthe key parts
you wouldneedin designingyourown machine.
Compilea panslist with supplierdetailsfor themaincomponents
ofyour
(15%)
desisn.
/
ur. Createa 3D CAD modelof yoursolutionwith a pansIist,someitemsmaybe
representational.
butthc uscofsupplierbasedCAI) modclswouldbe an
advantage.
Designa safeandsecuresurroundIbr yourmachine.(55%)
4. Explainhow yourmachincwill t'unctionandthekey rcasons
for this
(10%)
methodology.
5, Writea briefreporton theroleofPDM andhow i1couldcnhance
thedesign
proccssyou haveundertaken.
(10%)
Ilandin week8. 15rh.
November
2007
(2000word equivalent)
M,llasonSept07.

L5

E--\e1-cA{->

lkrffit

+b

ci333>

2120\

C.t-rc,...l
d . r'er'sorr-pt

' co r--',

^
*"
;il'lT';;
' Y:-;'; ^i:-;:::l
TIa n'+"t' lc^<l' w'u"'

is

ofr'

'

I'ote"t"JL

t411nar c

ftck

uF lboL

ET 3005-Assienmfd 2. DFM atrdCAD softwarE50olo


1 RescdrhtbeuscofCAD h plasticinjectionooulding ard writ I rport(approx
1000words)otrCAD applicdioosrela&dro rherool designandiajecri<innduiiing
slmrlation.
Hig iSht0|e|'Dft3ont imFovdsoftwarehrvc givnorr traditiomlnthodsof
designandmrnufrctrre ft( tooling.30olo
2. hsign atclphodcbaseuoit wilh inlcgralbuttotrsandspakrwith a rEstposition
fq tlc handset.
TbeFoduct slroddbedligrd for plssticitrjecrimnoulding.20%
3. Folow thehrodstcxrmpletuiorid h Solidvor*sthm usa similarproccaswith
you. ownphondsen(mrh bodyaotqponcdoaly) to producthmouldtool
d$igq savethfuasEpsrt flc andan STL fle.

softwcctoproduce
amachining
simulation
ryT ltr SIL qr qr-gh theDenford
whichshould
bedcoomfirred
o tr,t.Eason
rnArccpacopyofrheCN- fle
cL:ctonically.25olo

4. CorductI mouldflow sirnulrtiono yorr dcsigtr(ruin bodycompondt


ody) aDd.
producrebyflrt grqhic outp|fl l5olo
5.DircussandcoquDdon goodDFM ftai|rcs ofyour phonebasein tennr of
iqioctionnoulding. l0olo

Relsvaftrcfcrrncitgshouldbeeyidcnt.
Hsd in wcet 13.
M.Esson
Scpt07.

66$.tr tz " z ut + I A P P
r\1'PQrc'r,'0"'," $

(o *p.x er

A,J'J

e n lrrr{ r, _

\ \\rc.1\ov1 *c.,\),,_r.r .

__(J
,t
f i !'.rnrv11;r:
1)4v4! ay'a,c,,ts

i"

t ,tiac.(rcn

',.',/lt:J

/t.'
,
r, - ,<r &
l_,t\'i. rt ' ^tn-

r)nJnvrt.,.L

a'

PYorvtt

d.a !r^*

f-

iti"'t'*' r-'"\J;

rn

<:?,.-.,1
A fPtr,ot,:ons o{ Co-Futer *JJ
6(4.+\ZaZL5+a')-J
f ldsti> ftg t tz
;"y,
i;-l *ii,
.-=*-=--/
"t

Ploati" p-*t

,nlerttoa

-.6tct".-4

d.*i;

dor i"3*i." *".,"uY.


6d(.(tzJrau '-'r

[fmplen'lenting

'lmplement
wherc?"
Figure
I isol,r

the tsest

'"',1*Tffi:ll'fi""j:il"ii

FfaCtiCgS

practices
engineering
on concurent

Lgaqln

Of
g

Conrpanies

a-nda high-levelview of fie major

phsesoi product
development.

*J:JJJ:*;il:J:l#"*fi;

thatoccwbe$veen
orphysicalproducts
The btueprht for a winning design thoseactivitiesThedomahofvirtual
rnayseemobvious:Assmbletheplay-product developmentor \?D (the
iswheredigitaldefsdtions
e!s;agreeoDthepoduct's capabilities shadedbox)
io win customeracceptafte;focuson of a productand its ploductionand
processes
arcdeveloped
productionandmairtenance maintenance
schedule,
Although the term'toncurnt
doit ltith CAD/CAM.Howcosts:and
engineering"givestheimpressionthat
ever,it is far ftom thatsimple.
In this section,we reflecton ihe everyfhi4 happensat the sarnetime '
key findiDgsftom theEeJtPrdcr'ceJ during productdevelopmentthis is
n C4rlC4,41andillusu'ateEDS' ap- not alwaysthecase.
proschtoimplernentingbestpractices. Sornetaskswithina development
phasedo occu in pa$Iel, for example.produclionplanningand!oo1-

. - --.-

'

E Product
DeVeiOpfnent
.PfOOeSS OVefVieW

ingdevelopmenr
duringrtreproducphase,
tion development
MoreenF
phasis
isplaced
ontheearlyparticipo--

Berorewederveinrotheimprementa*#TH:X|j:*T"fft::
cuatoMER,a tionissues,let'sconsidertheqr:estioo:ftont phases:Foduct conceptor de[vTEiE8T8...

Flgure
1.
ProductDevelopment
ProcessModel

l/PD
Virtual ProductDevlobrnenia I

The
validation.
velopment
andconcept
to
aequfemenas
useof goodcustomer
focustheirworkis mandatory'
Wlat doeshappenwith concurrcnt engineedngis betteraud faster
decision-makiDg
througtlthecommurucationand trainingof teammembelsandtheirfocusonmaking"witrningdecisions."
This is, at thecore,a
processfor shadngtechricllclowledgeamongthemembenof the developmentteam.Teaft membe$exchansewhatthevknowabouttheca_
pabilitiesofhtemalfacoryprocesses,
supplier
makrialsbehrvequiprneDr.
ior or assemblviechnioue:i.
The end
resuls arecomDressed
cvclesfor the
rnainacaivities,
as show! in the diagfin,andhigherqualitydefinitionsof
the Droductand ks Dmduction,nd

andtechnology.
Theconcepts
ofa viitual product
and\?D or VirtualProductDevelop
mntprovidesolutionsto fastto market, productquality and production

Basic Principles for


Product Development
Teams

Understanding
theprocesses
usedby
leam
a
tluoughthevadousphases
of a
prcductdevelopment
projectprovides
the basisfor improvements
in cycle
I Focus:
time.Concurentengineeringis
ddven
by decision-making
amongtheteam's
Organizations
memben.
Unde$fanding
how good
and Processes
decisionsale madeby the tearnCentralto any discussionof vifiual regardingform,function,naterialsor
productsaadtheconcurrent
engineer- fiDishof apartorasserDbly-isesseDingEamsthatdevelopthemalepeoPle
tial to improvingthe productivityof
andhowtheyworklogedEr'
Through_ teamsandthe enterprise.
out tbjs section,you will seethe emTrainingin bestpractices
andteam
phasiso[how Peoplework abovethe protocolsstimulatesthe gro$th ,nd
tecbnologiestley use This is as it
accept4nce
of reamsin a productdeshouldbe.PeterMadcs
foundmughly velopmentproject.Teambuildingis
equal emphasison peopleard PIo- essential
to creatingateam-based
culsupport
processes.
Today'sview of Droductdevel_ cessescomparedtotechnologywithinture, Company mamgementmust
adopta new leadership
role to mate
opEerthigl ightstleinterdependence thecornpanieshestudied'
pe$nanent
thecultural
charyes
if funcamongthe tfueekey elemenls!o!cd
tionalbafiersbetween
teammembers
earlier:people(andcultule),processes
arcto beremoved.
Wepromotethe
Demingprinciple
of "plan{o-check-act"as a key !o
helpieamswork togther,betterard
faster.Continuousimprovemensof
theirwo* flow ard how theyapply
tecbnologyarethebasesfor competi!ivegainsin cycletirnea.1dthequaliry
ofthedesigns,
tieproductionprocesses
andtepairor maintenance
Focedures
for theproductsunderdevelopment.

10d Virtual ProductDeveloDment

lationsor infomation searches


. integratethe hdividual into the

POINTS OF INTEFEST

Focus:Organizations and Processes

5 Focus:Enabling
Techno!ogies
Withouteffectiveuseoftechflology,it
wou.ldbeimpossibleto crealemanyof
theploductsavailabletoday.
For instance,new pagersfrom
Motorolacouldnotbeproducedwithout aulomatedassemblylines. The
cyclesevideDtin
shon developmeDt
this organizationarcenabledby srategicuseofECAD/ECAE andCAD/
intun, are
CAM tEc,bn-o,logi9r,
Th.e-sg,
suppgrtgd!y focusedB&D inqgits
integatedcirowncoletechnologies:
processing.
cuits andsignal
Morcover,with the help of technology,Apple ComputersimultaleouslyirEoducedsi1newMacinlosh
computers,all aheadof schedule,includirg the successfi.PowerBook.
in
EDs playeda role h this success,
additionto Unigraphicsbei.ogtheprifiIary CAD/CAM tool. Our imaging,
dalamanagement
andnetwork technologiesallowedApple to distribute
up-to-the-minuteproduct documentationwoildwideto makeit happen.

Technologyfor
lndividuals
Irdividualmembers
of pmductdevelperfornfwotasksrthose
opmen!teara
thatarc specficto their pofessional
discipline,suchas a tool designeror
andthosetldt arepartof
saessanalyst,
the teafl's worlq suchas desigr reviewsor Eade-offstudies.

Sharodviow

processes
of theteamarldtheen,
terprise
. build the techdcal and Fojecr
ski s of d]eiDdividual
.be available,on demard, anywheretheildividual wo.ks
prcvidedetails
Thefollowingsections
on how the individual'swo*ing
environmentis establishedand
supported.

Technology lor Teams


Coordination and communication
amongteammemtersimprovefrom
thesEategicselectio!andapplication
of technologies.

Holt Vlew

Flgure2. CommunicailonsNetworkltlodel
The working envfonment ptovidedfor anindividualmustsatisfJthe
followhg criteria:
. containallthetoolsanddataneeded
to conducttechnicalandadminis. minimizenon-value-added
tasks,
suchasdataconve$ionsor tlans-

Communication
is enlancedin a
numbei of ways,the most obvious
being fhe useof nework to pemit
'\/irtual collocation"of tearn members.Sharingcomputingsessions,
or
computetconferencing,
permitsteam
membersto shareUnigraphicssessionsfor interactive
designreviewsor

Virtual Product Developmenif,

11

for day{o-dayevaluations
of prcduct
designsor manufacturing
opemtions.
Severalconferencingtools are
availabletoday.While someareploprietaryto a specificapplicationor
softwarevendor,thetoolswe recommendandimplementto suppo.t"virtual rneetings"tbrcughconfercncing
arebasedon two basicmles:(1) they
shouldbe buried in the computing
ini:asftcturearrd(2)d1eyshouldwork
thmughextensions!o existingopen

12I Virtual Product DeveloDrnent

computitgst4dards,suchasx-windows.Adhercnceto thesetwo principlespelmits the sharingof nearly


ady applicationsession-graphics,
office, CAD/CAM or full motion
video-using standardnetworkswith
enoughbardwidthto supportthe additionalcommunications
overhead.
Coordi@tingrcquestsfor desigl
changes
ftom suppliemis anexcellent
useforCADconferencing.
Otherteam
activitieswhercanX-Windows-com-

pliant softwaretool is used,suchas


repon Feparation or prccessplanning,arccandidates
for conferencing
via a networkconnectionanda conferencetool for good ',X-clients.,'
Beyondthis, a telephone---otvideo
conferenceequipmentfor larger
Sroups-worl(swell. Thebenefitsaie
time and travelcost savingsand the
corectioDof erofi by fiquentcommlnicationsamongthe team.
A proJectmanagementsystem
complemenhproductdata management and wotk flow manageDent.
Tbistiestheteain'sworkintothelarger
setof activitiesthat makeup thefull
pmductdevelopriEntprojecl In this
way,drcteam'sefforu arctightlyhir
withinthetotalscopeaodschedule
of
a productdevelopment
project.
Coordinationof team acdvities
canbeaulorEated
tlrough aworkflow
maDagemedttool.
suchasystemmonitorstheactivitiesoftheteam,basedon
the team'sown definitio! of its processesandeachmerlbr's responsibilities. It providesa rnechanismto
remind hdividuals on a project of
their currenttasksas it s,nchronizes
teamactivities.
Thebenefibof a workflow rnanagement system are two-fold:
shortenedcycle tims to complete
activities, which are comprisedof
tasks,by reducitg down-time for
decision-making,CAD modeis,
analysis
resultsandsoforth,andhigher
quality through the eiimination of
designerrorsby enforcedentof the
rcalus own ptocesses.
Complementing
productdala

maiagementand a work flow Inansysrcm,


agerrs aprojecimanagemenr
This tiestie team'sfunctionsinto a
largersetof activitiesthat comprise
theful] productdevelopment
Foject.
Thebenefitsarebeftercoordinationof
the tead's activitieswithin the total
of aproductdevelscopeandschedule
opmentProject.
Most prcjec! nanagementsystemsoffer costtrackingmodulesthat
againstcost
evaluatetcamperfornance
Thisenablesanorganiandschedule.
zationto developbetterguidelinesfor
future projectsard to idendry and
i$prove taskswherecostsarecleady
out of lift.

Team Synchronization
Through Technology

Flgure3.
Model
Tean/Sync

Technology for the


Enterprise
Thevirtualcoryorationis thebestcurrcnt exampleof anenterpnsethatex_
iststhough anddirecdybenefitsthe
mostftomtechlology.Whethelyou're

Virtual Product DeveloDmentI 13

developinga neivproductwidl teams


ard grcupsaooss the globeor just
wantto sharcdatawith yoursuppliers
or a keycustomer,therearctwo considerations:
(1)howto usete.hnology
to integraledre management
of the
busircssand(2) how to implementa
networkingsEategy
thatpullstogether
theenterpdse.
As wift theteamviewoftechDology,the orchestationof all players'
activitiesin the enteryriseis a key
concefi. Likewise, co(ununication
amongall playersin tle largerpicture
now includes factories, supplie$,

Standards
ar.eessential
for theconnecdecidingform andfunctionwith
tivity to integratethe businessfuncan emphasison doing what's
tionsthatdeate,useordisfibutethese
bestfor thecustomernotwhaCs
data Theyincludebothstandards
for
convenientfor enginering."
thedataandstandards
for thetransac2.) ''Theuseof integatedsolid
tionsbehreenbusinessfunctions.
and sudacemodelhg to allow
hoduct development
teamscrebettercommurdcations
between
atedataolvarioustJ.pes,
for example,
functions."
CAD/CAM models;NC, CMM and
3.) "CAD/CAM for nt shape
rcbot prcgrams;bills of material;
marufacturingprocesses."
schedules;
andtech:oicaldocuments.
Let'sexamineeachmorecloseiy,
Foranyolganizationto integmtesev- bearingh mird tlnr theyaddrcssthe
eral or all businessfunctionsto de- issuesof !ople, thei pmcesses
and
velopandFoducea product,it must thetechlologiestheyuse,
firstdetermine
howinformationisrep-

icCiirirdirg,salis:iveryondith6 i6 - rcsented-forexample,
paf6, iira!:

in drevaluechaia.
netictape,bits and b]1es-rnd then
Let's examjnethe enterpdse's determinehow it is coFmudcatdto
tecbnologneedsfrom thevierpoint
ohers,This is a major task.Simply
of datathat are distibuted ftom the installinga Detworkandurgingengito o&er !e!fs ard suppliers
to shareCA_Ddata
Foductdevelopmeltprocegs
poifis in the enfelprise.Key comec- anda bill of mablial isn't enough.
tioff forwell-executedresponsivepro- Thebenefitsof integrationat he
ductior".aldlogistics.are
these:
e erpriselevelboildownio improved
. rnatlriat plalrlilg dataOiIs of
rcsponsivenessalld accountability
matelialandproductstuctures)
amongthebusiness
functions,which
. procurement
data(supplierceniarefocusedon gettinga newpmduct
fication requircments,puchase
into tIrc handsof the end user.This
odeNforprolotypes,
andsofolth)
tIanslates!o eadjerproductionand
. costandscheduledataGi-direcrcalizationof custometrevenues!o
tionalflow)
recoupthealevelopment
investrnent.
. trchdcalpublications
(operations
andrepal manuals,sewicebulleI Form and
tins andothers)
.Foduction pla$ing dara(fabriFunction: Creating
cation and assemblyplans,ina Winning Design
procedures,
specdon
test plans,
ConsultantPeterMarks sunmedup
packagingplans)
pmcticesfor product
thebest-in-class
. regulatorydata(producttestdata,
form and function designwith rhe
standarddrawilgs)
followingthrcepoints:
. elecEonicmail
l.) "A disciplinedprocssfor

l4 qVirtual Product DeveloDmenr

Flgure4.

Disciplined Processes
The first factoris understanding
dle
workto beperformedanddeveloping
disciplinewithi! rhe organizarion's
day-to-dayactivitiesto accomplish
it.
Successfi
]l teaftingtoaccomplishcoDcunent engineedngdoesn'toccur

withoutsomereengineering
of developmentactivitiesto stea.'dinetask-s
and measureresults.A fu1l prcduct
life cycleview is neededto focusthe
reengineering
to ddvethe benefitsto
theproductandcustomers.
Thismeans
'toncept to production,""cradle to
g?ve," 'tustomer to cashcycle," or
whateveryou chooseto call it.
For efficiency, some staddards
mustbe in placewithin the ploduct
development
process!o makeit easier
for teammembefl !o wo* togefier
and communicatetheir collective
decisionsabout product form aDd
function.
of techniques
' Standardization
project
particularly
withh a
a large
one,ruDthegamutfromleamneetirE
Fotocol to tle modelingandshadng
of CAD/CAM Foduct desig! data.
Realistically,no organizationwill arrive at a single,univeFally adopted
processfor productdevelopment.
ways be good
reasons!o adapt
d eve lo p m e n t
processes
to suP
pon specialcircumstances.
But
a prcductdevelopment team
must have the
basic skills and
disciplineto focus on valueaddedwo* and
to usethetoolsal
handmosteffectively to achieve
p er fotm an ce ,

qualiry,costandscheduletargets.
Two techniqueswe rccommend
Io oul clientsdlathelpstandardize
the
non-CAD/CAMaspects
of thedevel(l)
opmertcycleare qualirytunction
deployment(QFD) and (2) Focess
modelingof which severaltypesare
applicable.
techQFDprovidesan ana.lysis
niquedu! pemits the team!o effectively captug, assessand use customer preferenceard competitive
tueasules
dmughoutitsdecision-makprocesses.
ing
hocess reengineering
depends
onalanguage!o exprcsscutlent stateandfutureprocesses,
generalizedas the AS-IS and TO-BE (o!
"COULD-BE) srates,Simple data
flow diagraE$work well. More sophisricatedmodeling tools such as
IDEF or STRADISareuscdby systemslnalystr.A process
management
iool
prograrEmed
softwarE canbe
to
monitorand-{egulate
teamfunctions

from IDEFor similarprocessmodels.

CAD/CAM as a Language
The secondkey factorcentenon the
useof CAD/CAMdataasacornmunicationmediumwithin a prcductdevelopmeDtteam,to andftom suppte$, and thrcughoutt-hercst of the
enterprise.Dataana.lysis
andmodeling areneededto definewhatdataare
critica-lto productdefilition. Again,
thenotionof thefulI productlife cycle
figures prominently.Figue 5 maps
the integrationof Foject direction,
work flows, \?D technologiesand
dataagainstthefour highlevel stages
of aprcductlife cycld concept,development,productionandsupport.
The informationthatcanbe createdandslfied arnongteammemben
6nd thrcughoutthe enterprise-bodl
real anq vifiu9l-jl very large,and
successbjlges on the way the data

CAlo. Conpuer-Ald6d
l.dBt alD.6lon
CAo = Compul.r.ABld
cAE Comput9.Aldd
CAM Compdgr-Aided
CAPFr complt6FAided
Prcc6$ PLannlno
ClM. C@pu6r Int6sr;ied
MRP= Maiedal of Manuta.lu ns
Fosouc6 PlMning

Product Life Cyct6


Figure5. ProductLite CycleIntegratlonModel

Virtual ProductDeveloDmentI 15

elements
andconfolling archiEcnrre
are established
and implemented.
Moving into more robust ussfor
CAD/C4M technologyis just partof
the solutionto inter- and intra-team
communications,

Plug the Holes in


Communication
Careshouldbeexercised
whenestabIishinghow datawill be used.htegmtingail the stlkeholdersin thedevelopmentprocessis tie objective.
Be preparcdto plug gapsill the
inf6irirationflow wh6n they appear.
. Introducinga palamefic or dimension'&ivenCAD tool to createblueprintsfor tooldesigaers
or suppliersis
the',!rongapproach.
Wlat arethetool
dcsigners
goingtodowith
orsuppJiers
ablueprint?
Recreaiedledata?Thisis
awasteoftirneandenergy.Evengood
solidsmodeling.systemsthat don't
integrateto NC prograrnJning,
finite
elementanalysiso! soft inspection
toolsthrcugha sharcddatamodelare
a deadend.
Multiple,ht xfacednlodelingand
applicationsystemsdo not work as
well as the integated suiteof tools.
The lossof accuracyandcycle time
tbmughE?nslations,
not to rnention
drclossof contol of thedata,creates
moreproblemsandwork to be martaged.mile this may soundtdvia_I,
givendDsophistication
ofmanyCAD/
CAM usercompanies,
we encounter
just this t!?e of situationthrou8hour
companies
bothlargeandsmall.And
weseethissuFoptimizedapprcachto

15 E Virtual Product DeveloDment

the use of CAD/CAM recinology


adopted
byfunctionallyfocusedorganizations,eveno{es that ale on their
secondor thjrd generationof CAD/
CAM investment.It is easierthan
breakingdowl thewallstocross-functionalconrmunication*wbich,
in fact,
iswhatCAD/CAMdataisdesigned
to
accomplish.
Th,

.^n-r

Master Modeli Complete


Digital Product Def inition
Onetechnique
wetrainourcustomerc
touseisthesolids-based
mastermodel
andits output,the"bui1d-to-package"
(BTP). Simply stated,the master
model,lBTP
is a computer-based
de-

-!-

scopeof inJonnation
that is ahvaysqeated
duringpoduct developmentbecomesevidentwhenyou exaninetherequircments
of
lhe full producr life
cycle, Regardlessof
"concurency," the
gm\rthofdatafollowsa
sedalprocess:product
Flgur6. MasterModel6nd BTPS
requirementsgenerate
prelirninarydesignlayoutsandanaly- scriptionof all infolmationnededto
ses;lay-olltsgeoeratedefail designs; buildandmaintainoneend-itempart,
detaileddesigr,sgenerateprcduction assemblyor finished prcduct The
plansandanalysismodelslandsoon. mastrermodel provides the digital
A high degreeof goduct design mockups,detailedlayout6,assembly
datarcuseis ruandatory
to achievethe modelsandbill of material,andpre
kindsof designcycle time and sup- vides the foundationfor all CAD/
plier lead-timereductionsneededfor
CAtr4/CAEdataexchangewirhin a
today'sshorlerdevelopmentproject teamalldto tlle restof theeoterprise.
cycles.Datastandardization
Think of the BTP as a Fojecr
andhow
it is createdand managedwithin a folder containingCAD/CAM models, Focessplans,inspectionplans,
concudedt
englneeriigteampays
divibill-of-materialdata,analysismodels
dendstbmughoutthe product'sIife
cycle-not just duringdevelopment. andresults,andcostmodels-generSupplie$,parftenandmanufacture$ ally, whateveryou needto releasea
sharedleinifonnation
andbenefihof a designfor in-housepfoducdon.
consistent,completeand robustdeThe BTP hasa companion,the
scriptionof tie productusingCAD/ buy'to-package.
As its narneimplies,
the buy{o-packageis usedfor purCAM tecnnology.

chasedparts,toolsor assemblies.
LTplemenrarion
of lhesetechrwo things:[l) comniquesrequires
[itment to widespreadadoptronof a
singleCAD/CAM slandcrdand lcommiEnentto standlrdsfor model_
solids
feaure-based
ing lechnjques.
manage
nol 2-D v/ireframe...dala
information
exchanges
of
ment...and
amongteammemb$,to and ftom
partdercompanies
andwith suppliers
Thesearc no! optional Pars of the
is impaircd
soludon.CornrnuDjcation
eachspeaktheirown
if teammembers
language.
whrt arethebenefiEwhenimplementedtogether?Tbe mastermodel
putstle disciplirc in dreProductdesign and analysisprocessto consistendydescribeaproducl andtheBTP
process
derBndsthatall mem'
release
teamcon'
cross-functional
be$ ofthe
tibute andconcuron lhe {inal outpul
_- _ - _beforgasuppliet ol in-housemarlu_ facn:ringbeginsprocessinga work
order.Agrin. communicationamong
teammembersandacrosstheorgaoi'
zxdon is lhe objecdve CAD/CAM
becomes(parto0 thelanguage.

partmanufacnt. PanmdA$ombLV
ing. Standards
Models
for modeling
cutte$, fil1etsor
.Analrsis
Fesulls
dndModeLs
md Maklns
Packasiis
'Finishins,
blends
are
.Manuiidufins
rsmsnb
Pro(esSequ
neededfor costeffective CAD/
Buy-To"Package
Figure7. Bulld-To-Package,
CAM usefolnet
shapedesigns.
prctoD?ing-to createroughPattems, Fullyconstrained
3-Dpanmetricmodfor example-thepafi modelmustbe elirg systensdo not providetheabilaccuratein every detail, and the ity !o tweak geometryto meet the
modelingprocessesassociatedwith goduct's requirementswithout unils creatronandmodificationmustbe duesEessonthemodelingsystemand
flexible,
enduser.
that'ivork
Themodelingprocesses
The only completesolutionis a
dllo?es
for 2-D layoutswili not supportthe modelingsystemtllatprovides
feaof
3-D
net
sirape
wirefrarne
and
solid,
oftaditional
hig! fidelity needs

The lmportance of Nel


Shape
Why the emphasison net shapePart
designand(anufactudng?This *tnd
and flnal factorrevealsfhe truth for
successfuluse of CAD/CAM
tecbnology.
As dre fabricaiionof Partsand
tools becomesmore automaled
ihroughNC miling, EDM or raPid

Virtual Product DovelopmentE 17

! Meeting Fast
to Market and
Cost Objectives
Time-based
competitionis,by now,a
familiar concept.Removingtimedelaysarldcostsfromcriticalpathactivities is the basisfor continuousimProdlct
Fovementin manufactudng.
developmentis no differenl We'll
look closer at the opportunitiesfor
timesavirgsreportedin theBerlPrdcticesin CAD/CAMstndy.Tllenwe')l
address
thebiggestbottleneckofallthefansition to production.

Partnerand Supplir
lntegration

hrre,variational,palameticand lebasedmodelingmodesoo a single


datamodel.
As the DesignInsightstudyrevea.led,
benefilscomefrom the sl/'lergyandsavingsofbringingtool and
moldmarufacturers
on-boardaspart
process
ofthedevelopmnt
toconldbuteandusethenustergeometric
modelsof tleFoductdevelopmentproject.
Ourintema.l
studiesrevealthattooling
accounts
for thelfigest slnglecostof
a product developmentprocess,
rougt y 30percentto 35percentof the
total.

r8E Virtual ProductDevelooment

Doesthis have a trearingon a


hea\,TequipmeDt
manufacture/
s design,evenifa substntialportionofits
detlil partsareflame-cutsteelplate?
Thealsweris,uDquestionably,
"Yes."
plateorsheetmaterial
Evenfabricated
pafls are cardidatesfor autornation
ttuoughrobotictsimmingor forming
usingdies.Thestableandrobustdata
needsofthe netshapemanufacturing
processappliesequally to the cutbend-weldmanufactrre/sprccess.

In dealingwith paroer companies


or
suppliers,the useof commonCAD/
CAM datais onlyeffectjveifthepnctice is managedas part of a product
project.It camotbeleft
develbpmeflt
to chance.As the study pointsout,
someonemustown theprocess.
In our view, this canbebestaccomplishedwith our help-we create
supplierCAD/CAMsuppodprograr.ns
for cuslome$who wantto maximize
thebenefitsofearly supplierinvolvement during product development.
Technologiesand processes
aremiglated to the supplierbaseas standardsfor drereiationship,whichbenefitsboth the supplierandthemanufacfurer.Ladtimefor toolingorpurchasedparts and their costsere reducedin thisway.This is a keycomponentofsevera.l
custome$'programs
with tlir cenifiedsupplieN.

The Past ls Prologue to


the Future
Anltime we hearof a competitortelling prospectsnot to worry aboutthe
rraintedanceandreuseof earliergenerationCAD/CAM daa, we cdnge.
While manywouldIiketo castoff the
past,the baseof CAD models,even
2-D andblueprints,is a legacyof inthat
ventioDafld problem-solving
theinbllectualpropertyof
aepiesents
Cataloguingand
that rnanufacturer.
oflegary
datafor reuseby
conversion
a newsystemarekeysto timeandcost
reductioDwhenpractical.
For somefunufacturem,rs ttre
studypointsout,histodcaldesigninformationmustbe rnaintainedfor a
includingreglrlavadetyof reasons,
tions,complexity,costor Me spanof
the product.Aerospace,bansPorta-

dictaleindividuand\,vorkprocesses
alizedtrainingturdsupportprograrls.
Evenif thetechnologyis tutorial,
the applicationof tle techmlogyro
tean's protheproductdevelopment
cesses
is notself{eaching.Tlainingin
the properandstandardized
or sanctionedtecbniques
of a sofMaretoolto
help createa Foduct designor a descdptionof a produclionprocessis
essential.
lt mustbeplarneddghtalong
with techrclogyselectiondurirg probeforethetecbnolcessreengineeriDg
is
implemented.
ogy

then]
systemsandfully paramelerize
for rapid edililg into new featurebasedsolidmodeldesig . This flexibility protectsour custonel'sinvestmentin legacydatawhile openingit
up to newuses,AIld that savestime
andmoneyin criticalpatl taskssuch
astie redesigrof existingtoolingor
machinesto prcducea new or modrfredpartor assembly.

Training for Higher

nce
Perforrna

toolsin place,
Puttingstate-of-the-art
or Feparinglegacydatafor reuse,is
only half dle batde.The productdeteall needsto leamhowto
velopment
effectivelyusethem,whichcatrbe atr
lt is amazing
evenbiggercha.llenge.
howlitdeattentionis given!o Eaining

.. 'The $'I]e Of faining USedat Ong


,
-i.. -- . me. Same
company w1jl not oelver
"
results at another. Company culfilre and
diCtate indiVidUaliZed
'vvgrk prOCeSSeS

How CAD/CAM
Fastsr
Communicatgs
As we'vc discussedin detail in the
pEcedingsection,CAD/CAM technologyprovidesanothernedium for
witlin adevelopment
communication
teamor to the rest of the enterprise.
Thatwas'ddhcussionofscience-ft

. .math
of.the
descripdon
ofa.product.

prosrams."
support
nainins
and

tioo, defense,medicaland "big machine"manufactuenall havefhis in


common.
Orc reasonUnigraphicsV10 has
an automatedparametdccoostrairt
to provialecusmanagementsystemis
tomerswith the capabilityto import
IGESfilesormodelsftom otherCAD

Now let's focuson the interpretive

\alueofcAD/cAMrechnorogy.
Hisry realisric
imases
orprodorindividualparts
uc6,subassemblies

:*tf:':trtrffi,:ffi;i

waretooi.Thereaesevemlhomwhrch
a$dongoingsuppofiiltheuseofeven to choose;however,is this of value
simpledesi8ltoolsor of technologies otherthaDfor "Eetty picflres"?
teams
The answe! is, 'Yes, withoul
within aproductdevelopme$t
question."
workdayprocesses
But laitring cannotbe takenat
Among the earliestpioneefi in
Thettpe ofEainingusedat
theuseofCAD/CAMald solidsmodfacevalue.
manufacturer
rconecompanywillnotdeliverthesame elilg, an aerospace
quoted
portedto us thatsupplierc
15
rcsultsat another.Comparycultue

Virtual ProductDevelopmenlE'19

Percentlower prices for newly designedparts when a computer-renderedpictue of thepartwasincluded


in theq otepackage.Lessambiguiry
aboutthedesignis thereason.
Today'sphoto realisticimage
tools permit evaluationof the aesthetica$ectsof aCAD{esi$edproductbycustomers,
executives
andtearr
membeNwell beforeany chipshave
bncutonthefust tool or die.Cosdy
changes
to partsor toolsareavoided.
Someof the resistanceto the useof
CADoTCAID(industisldesig) tools
_ bythenon-elgircer,artisticalytcained

productdesignerhasbeenovercome
throughthe converyence
of 3-D art
andCADsoftwaresysterns.
But the.e
isoneconditiontoachievetimereduction \{ithin the developmeot
process
whenusinga CA.IDsystem:Thedafa
rt qeatesmustbeusableby dreCAD/
CAM systemasthebasisforpackaging desip andtoolhg.
Iaading CAID systemssupporr
thisrequircment.
PurelyCAD,based,
"concepualdesign" systemsrcally
aren'twhattlrcyproclaim!o be.Only
fteeform,3-D surfacingCAID systemsshouldbereJerred
to asconcep-

tual desigrsystems.
Rapidprotorrping
(Rp)tecbnolo_
gies*and therearemany,eachwith a
different strength_prcvialearother
tangeofoptions.Themostobviousis
themanufacnne
of physicalpa..tsfor
.louch"evaluations
ofform orfit wifi
otherparts.
SomeRp systemscreatelowstrengthplasticparts,or waxpattems,
to allow prototl?esto be castfiom
metals.New systems
dueshortlywill
permitlow-cost,deskop production
of molds.
__ . T9 !"1p..9irr cusromersdecide
whichRPsystemmeetstheirappiicationlequtments,we provideeducationa.lconsultingandsemina$featuringin-house
EDSandGeneralMotors
\Bxpedence
in all cofijrnerciallyavailablesystems.
As \re reviewedin fie
previoussection,thisis dredomainof
'het shape"partdevelopment.
All the
'
- modelingac.u.racy
andflexibility issuesdiscussed
tlere alsoapplyto Rp.
Within machjhetole&nce,,,youget
out whatyouput in.,'

Transition to Production
Did youeverEiponthetbrestrcldof a
cloorway,evenafteryou knewit was
therc?Manufacturers
experiencethis
asweil. It's lonwn as "fallitg down
duringthe transition"to the production of a new or modified product.
This is oneof thetime andcosttraps
not takense.iouslyenoughby some
nlmlufactule$.

Theacidtestfor a rnanufactursr
of how effectivea concurentengi-

20 EVirtual Product DeveloDment

needrgprocessreally wasoccun as
to full-rateprotheproductis released
duction.IJ productsare orderedlrto
Foduction\tith known designProblems, or if productionand maintehavenot beenvalinalce prccesses
isn't
dated,thenFoduct development
finished. All product deveiopmeDt
teameffortsshouldbefocusedon the
evenflEltransitionof theirworkintoa
productthat is producedwithoutftrltherchanges.
ProductprotoqTesandtestcycles
arcstill neededwith concurrenten81neeringard CAD/CAM technologY,
Tecbnologyenablersshouldeasethis
validationsiep.Simulationof Product
function can be performeddrough
alr,lydigitd mockupsandkinematics
sis.Simulationof assembly,ilsPeccar be
don andfabricationprocesses
verificatio4
using
NC
accomplished
inspertion,factoryopcrationsandro_
boticsritnulationsoftiwarer', - - Thel(eysto success
ir theransi_
(1)
the
tion are to validsle desigrand
beforeProloq?es
itsrelatedprocesses
arcbuilt, anddrco(2) to testandcorrect tbe prolotypesbefore releasilg
theproductto thefactory.

mustbeprotectedfrom "ercsion"due
downsizingorcalamity,
toretircments,
omcasualsnooping,
ard safeguardedft
unlawful disclosure or outright
esPronage.
tends
Withoutit, theorganizalion
to forgetornotre-leamwhatit already
knows,in the larger sense,aboutits
Withit,thecompetitioncould
business.

arebasing
In somecases,orrrcustomers
wholefamiliesof newp(oductson design
knowledgeretainedfor useil KBE sysvia Unigraphics
temsandarticulated
applications.
modelsandassociated

savemillions of dolla$ in tesearch


is a
Thisknowledge
anddevelopment.
y usedin
fomidabletoolwheiprope
stategrcways.
canbeassimPle
A reuseapproach
drawasputtingoldergenerationCAD
hgs on-lineto referenceengileelirlg
docunentatiooin the currenisystem
usiog a catalogueand translato$
(we've coveEdthis in a preceding
I Retrsable
section.)Or,it canbeafamily ofpans
program,written aroutd the desiga
We'11
reviewsomep(ovenapproaches practicesof the company.
Ar aliemative,aIIdhighiy effecto capture and re-use legacY
is to deateandmaintive, approach
and"tribalhowledge"engineering
best
thein-houseknow-howthatrepresents tain designand manufacfiring
and training
the total knowledge about the practiceshandbooks
productsand classes,
company'sprocesses,
As notedby PeterM!*s, compa_
own bestpmctices.This knowledge

Engineering

niesat theforefrontof reusableengineeringhaveformalizedprogramsto


makeit happen.Thisis veryimpottaDt
to the successof aIIy reusableengineednginitiative.Equa-llyimportant,
it is a meansto capnre and useihe
klowledge. We'll exaroineseveFl
waysour leadingcustomerstakeon
the challengeof reusethroughsoftrsarerools.

KBEDesignBy Fiule3:An
ApproachThatWorks
Morethana few of oul cnstome$are
engineering
usi$g hrowledge-based
(KBE) toolssuchas ICAD to create
"designby nies" andexpertsystems
They
for trueengineeirgautomation.
areexaminingthe expertloowledge
aireadyin placein theirorganizations
and addingempidcallclowledgeio
the next generationof product
developmentsupportsystemsusng
formalized KBE methods.Shofier
designcycletimeson mission-critical
elements
oftheproductarcthebenefit.
Other customerspre-engioeef
completgfanilies of endproductsus_
ing IGE toolsandUnigraphicsand

VirtualProduct Developmentf, 21

thenoeate"smaflcatalogues"
forfi eld
engineers
to usewith thebcustomers
to createhighlycustomized
products.
Thisallowsthefieldengineer
to qeate
a quotefor a customFoduct, with
high confidence
that the engineering
behhd it works, and then coDflrm
pdceard deliverywirh thehomeoffice within hoursof therequeslThe
quoteprocessandthe basicdesigns
arelinkedby thesamefurctionaldesigll,assembly
aDdconfiguationrules,
a real Foductiviry breaktlroughfor
"engineered
sales"scenados.
KBE softwaletools accomplish
rw-oobjecriveswhen uied welt: (1)
The lhowlcdge captureprocessfocuseson competitiveedgeor highdsk designissuel,and(2) theknowledgerEuseprocessshorienscritical
pothdesigntaslathrcug} design-byrulesapplicalions.lnsomecases,our
customers
are basingwholefamilies
products
ofnew
o! designknowledg
retainedfor usein KBE systemsand
articulatedviaUnigraphics
modelsand
associated
apptcations.We call this
'lenerativemodelitg," Ou! customerscallit "missioncritical."
Wlut kild of designtasks are
candidates
forKBE?Usageisdive$e.
Applicationsrud the gamutof autG
matedgeomefydeationfor specific
detailsof a paft to the designand
documeDtation
of completeproduct
familieswell beyond"just pafis."
KBEtoolsareidealfor repeatable
designprocsses
wherethegoveming
decisionyariablesatemorecomplex
dnn packagingor shapedefinition,
thercbymakingtheoutcomeverydif,
feEntftom caseto case.

22ElVirtualPyoductDevetoprnent

How is this approachdifferent


from using a panmetricmodelerto
deatea familyofpansdesign?Material, conJiguration,assemblymethods, finishing and standardfabicationtoolseiections
canbeadded,
which
rcally setthistechnologyapartfrom a
pllteiy dimension-drivengeomefy
creation.This is the dornainof engineeringjudgmentard decision-making thatpar,ametric
designtoolscannot captw.By htegaringIGE tools
throughaplafolm suchasUnigraph-

rcs,iterative"design-analysis-rede_
sigt" loopscan be shonenedif not
entirclyeliminated.
Parametricdesignsyste&sdon,t
excel at "family of products"sihrationsfor thefollowingason:To cleate a basemodel,it would haveto
contail everypossiblegeome!.icfeatl]le and .eiatedconstraint,thereby
makingit too cosdyto maintainover
the life of the productfamily. The
complexityand editingcostswouid
kiu it.

program.Deciwithinauserlanglage
We rccommendLBE tools for
govems
which apdesigntask The sion complexiry
complex le-based
ktowledgebasesale easlerto maul- proactrrc use.
tainoverthelife oftheproductandcan
be reusedfor otheiproductfamilies
Thecostof startup,includingtraimg
in KBE methodsandknowledgebase
mayappearhigher,but
maintenance,
froEItleassembled
thepaybackcomes
knowledgeaIId accessafforded the
rest of the organizationon following
Projects.
Lastly,KBE toolsmakeexcelle
if setupas"designadviso$."
teachers
Thisis onewaythattheknowledgeof
enginee$can be
older,exprieDced
wi*l theyounger
preserved
andsharEd
membersof tie productdevelopment
team,

OtherApproaches
suchas
Cana CADuserlanguage,
(GRaphics
InterCRIP
Unigraphics
I i!uage),Peractine.hogiimfriry
Yes,butfor
functiotr?
formthesame
simplerdesig!t!sl(s.Forexarnple,the
writer sirrtedhis CAD/CAM career
a6 a desigpengineer,$iting FORTRANandGRIProutircsto automate
repetitive designprocesses-which
werebasedonbestengileelhg practicesfor tool andfDduredesignfor our
application.
ButthereisaFacticallimit to this
approach.Programmalntenance
of a lqlowlcatchesup to theexpense
edgebasewhen the designproblem
becomesmodelatelycompiex.Thefe
is nohardandfastguideoDhowmany
rules can be efficiently contahed

funclionaliryneededwithin thePDM
solution.
to PDM
Selectionofan approach
is generallydrivenby thefollowilg:
. projectsizeandduntion

projectwith a
'A l0-person,firlly collocated
two-weekdeadlinelooksvastlyffierent in
thana multi-year
termsof PDM requirements
pro$amwith teamsin five locadevelopment
tions,100certifiedsuppliersandtbreeglobally
partners."
manufacturing
dispersed

. team and enterpriseprocessrequircments


. productcharacteristics:
complexity andlife expectBncy
. whedibrtle projectwil mdnaBe
files or productsttucnne
Manage[Entoi iofon'natioi in ttre
. needforreengineerdprcductdata
envircnment$
ploductdeveloprnent
distributio!andvaultingprocesses
sucha lalge subjectthat it could be
. reuseof legacydesigl informai! apape!all !o itseu.For ou!
covered
tion
purposes,
wewill reviewwhalexperi. legacyirvestrnentin designinence has taught EDS Unigraphics
formatiod, its format(s) and
about productdata management
location(s)
(PDN{)solutionsand how !o detel. blendingof severaldataq?es:
mineyourneeds.
pubCAD/CAlvl,bils ofmaterial,
Individual,team and enterpdse
processplans,
standards,
Lcations,
areeachdifferentissuesTotal
PDN4S
rcgrlafield seflice,govemnrent
sizeard sophistication
organizational
tion, andsoon
dictatethearchtectueofthesolutlon
Let's examirchow thesesissues
How product develoPment is
affect PDM solution selectionand
of
conductedand the charactedstics
productdevelopetproductivity-inthe pmduct,intemalteammembe$,
dividuals,tearnsard theenteryrise.
suppliersand pafiners dictate the

I Data
Managernent:
OneSizeDoes
Not Fit All .

Virtual ProductDevelopmentI 23

PDM soluriodslpssesdisfibutionof
informationandreliability of all conA lGperson,fully collocatedFoject
nectionsbetween
sitesandtearDs,
The
withatwo-weekdeadlirclooksvasdy dwationof thedevelopment
prcgam
differentin tems of PDM rcquirc- demands
stabilityandlongevityof all
mentsthana multi-yerdevelopment areasof drcPDM solutionidatabase
Fogramwith teaDtsin five locatioDs, eDgircs,sedetsandnetworks.
100 certifiedsuppliersand rhree
globally dispersedmaDufactudng
pafiErs.
Teamand Enterprise
ProcessRgquiroments
Ihe srnallprojectteamrlay only
needsuppoltfortop{owrdesi$and
As shownin Figureg, tle high_level
CAD/CAM datarelease.Its collabo- view of a pDM
solutioDvariesderadveworking.elvironmenr
is largdy
pendingupon your pe$peative.A
provKeoDycollocabonlrcgadlessof
aam,comprised
ofitrdividuals,needs
the life expeclancyof the producl
noioilymaccesdariandmanipulate
vely simPledata marugementwill
desi$r andproductstrdcturebutalso
slunce.
0ccooadinate
the statusof theirwork
Thelargeprogram,on he other with others,
usingdesi$ andprocess
.
ha.ud,alsodcpendso! PDM !o plodata.
vide-paJtof the comnunicationard
Theeotcl'prisepDMvjew,which
synchrodzationDeldedfor success. is
similarto the company_wide
view
The arshitectulcof the lalgc team's
of atr MRp o! accountilg system,
Proiect Size and Duration

soresses
overallcoordinationanddis_
h'ibutionof inforoation. This is also
whereloDglife histodcal design
recordslogicallyreside.

Produqt Characteristics:
Complexity and Lifa
Expectanay
Early iqplemenron of 3-D CAD/
CAM in aercspace
took two different
approaches
!omodelirganddatarlanagemcnt.
Oneschoolof thoughtemll_
latcd&etaditionalengineering
d!awingprdcticeofLssemblies
andpartson
the samedmix;iiig;This co;plcared
the relcasprocessto maiufacftrlirlg
ir dunyirlstlnces.Theotherapproach
createdwhat are known a6 ..monodetail"models,whereassembly
modelswerecreatedfiomE Dypartmodels. Asscmblymodethg developed
ftom themoncdetailconceptThisis
probablythc.mostwidely
implernented
approachto rhodeling complex
PIOdUCtS.

lntgFcompsnycoordination
Historicaldsignrecords
Distributsdstafor productlon
andproductmaint6nenc
Coordination
of dosignprocsss
with pertnrsandsuppli6rs
Internalcheck-out
and release
MastsrmodlendBTPmansgemont
Univ6rsaldetaaccss,
productstructurernanagement
and "dsignin context"

Figu.e8. High.LevelPDMReqllrements

24tr Virtual Product Devolopment

Successfulmanagenrentof the
dataassociaEdwith complexproducts re{uircs two things: (1) dronodetailmodelillgand(2) designusi[g
asserhblymanagementtechniques,
suchas prcduct strocturc-based
de_
sign,Thesetchniquesprovideseveralbeneflts.
First,bill of materialdatafor use
in MRP systemsis readilygenerated
and can be importedas neededto
supportredesignplojects.Second,
associativitybetweenindividualmodels andsub-modelscan be managed
across
severaleDdassemblies
andstill
support"designin conrext."Third,rhe

long projectand makesdrembefier


CAD/CAi!I users. The flexibilitv
gained through product structur-e
edilhg pemritsrapidchangesto bills
of materiel for NIRP systems as
products are updxted.

Willthe Proiect Manage


Files or Product
Structure?
We lookedat someof lhc benefiisof
nrono-detdldcsignandproductstructurcs.but is therea bereUtto an approich that usesonly file manage'
is b say,d0esnot manrgc
No doubt, file manrge'
assemblics?
ment is simpler.Acluelly, thercis u
ment,tl

r(te fi)rboti in mostPDM solutions'l'he point llt which CAD/CAIVI


datrshouldbetrertcdas"mcrelytlles"
is when thc associatidrbelwcenthc
CAD/CAlvl nodels,md intcrnirlentities.to othermodclsorxpplicalionsis
This occurswhen
no longer needed:rchived modelsareretainedonly for
Iorinslrnce,asreusablcor
ael-erence,
standardp rs. Thercffc otherkinds
oIdrta thatwouldblrmanrgedl|sfiles
as pa of the total productdevelopment envirofirenL:technicaldocllmcntation. processplims or lcrt files,
fbr exmple.

sizesof individuelmodelscar1bekept
small,thercbyimprovingCAD/CAM
systempedonnfirce.Lastly, archive/
restorprocedrresarcimproved.
Thesebenefitsapplywell toProd
When
uctswithasLolllifeexpectanqJ.
suchas
apptedto longlileproducis,
big machincs,aircraftor hmsporta
tion equipnent.the benelilscom-

pound.\\4ry is this?
Highly complex, long-life
productsLrndfgo chimgesover tlme,
The use ol mono detail design
pncticesmakesitcasief tu rellselegacy
design data in new designs. Thc
discip!ft imposedbytop-dow'lldesign
rcchniquesimproles the efticiency of
a development leam working on a

ReengineeredProduct
Data Distribution and
Vaultlrlg Processes
Producl data rcleaseJnd control prcceduresare a high priorii) in any pro
cessreengineeringprojcct lbcusedon
product delelopmcnl.The benelils

Virtual Product Developmedq 25

comeftom improveddatalntegnry;
strearnlinedmodel
check-inandcheckout; updating,reYiev and approval;
andreleaseptocesses.
The counterpointto rcengineering theseprocessesis that llaining
mustbeprovidedto all productdevelophent teamsto ensurethey know
how to effectivelyusedrcir product
ilatarnanagement
system"

Legacy Design
Informationi Reu9e,
Format and Location
In aneadiersectioD,we reviewedtle
issuesrelatedto legacyproductirJormation.A PDM solutionmustmanage any legacy inJormationthat is
identifiedasnecessary
for fte product
team's
use.
This infordevelopment
maiioncanbelocatedin a widerange
of arcaswidrin dr entcrprise.
Determinirgtherightwaytofin4 catalogue
and,if needed,
convertit io a standad
datra
fomat is all partof tle pla dng
processfor PDM implementation.

Blending of Several Types

ot Data
Productdeveiopmentinformationis
madeup of manypossibledatat!?es.
BesidesCAD/CAM, thereare cost,
documentation,prccessplans and
Foject notes-just to list a few. A
onlyCAD/
PDMsolutionthatmanages
not
effective.
information
is
CAM

26 EVirtual Product Development

lISpecial
Considerationsfor
Long-Life,Gomplex
Products

thatarcso unlikeconsumerproducts
or elecfonicsir the natue of what
they crealeas opposedto ttre complexitiesof theirproductdevelopmen!

Wewouldberemissif we did notpay


spccialheedto thecircumstances
and
rcquirements
business
of manufacturerswhoseproducts
containmanythousandsof partswith decades-long
servicelife expectancies.
Aercspace,
defense,automotive,ffadsportation,
heavy equipmen! big machinesthesearelabelsfor industrysegments

WIat specialconsidemlionsdo
poseonourconceptof
theseindustries
a virtual product development
envircnment?

PrcCeSSeS.

Standardsand
Interoperability
Theforemostrequircment
ofcomplex

isrobuslstable simplycosttoomuch,andconve$ion
productmanufachrers
mere some of legacydat measuredrn tens of
forinfomration,
standards
of activeor recendyactive
car tolentepedodict ans- thousands
companies
ladonsbetweendissirnilarCAD sys- parr modelsis staggering.Stability
of datastandffdsare
temsusingIGES,DXF ordirccttmns_ and robustness
laiors,thecomplexproductmallufac- absolutelynecessaryfor successful
turelsliterallylive or diebasedonthe partnelships,as well as to supPo(
toproductsin theyear2020
upgrades
massiveamountsof infomalion
h 1990.
movedwithin aDdbetweenthehinter- that weredesigned
to andftom suPplinalorganizations,
ers,andto andftomkeycustomen.To
of an aircnft
quotea rcpresentative
engine manufacturer,"Translators
don't addvalue."
Synchronizationof data forms
usingSTEPis dledreamof theaerospsceanddefeNeprimds,aulomotive
andsuppliersto eithei
manufactuers,
Robust
industry-many supportbotb.
descriPlions and
product
'Teamedtoday,gonetomonow"
intqoperability of dissimilarCAD/
CAM and analysissystenNare the might beonewayto expressthesituationwitd! compadesthatcan'tp!e_
goalsofiDdustryfuldedwo*atPDES
dle 'tr'ttua.l dict whotleir teamitgpaftIersmighl
Iic. To thesecompanies,
enterplrse"will not occuruntil sta4_ be on 6e next military aiJcaft conSTEParcwidelyadopted tracto! a newcodunercialhelicopter'
dardssuchas
appea!to be "shot_
Thercasonis clfir onceYouun_ Thesesometimes
cycles gun mafiiages"ftom an information
thenatureofbusmess
derstand
defenseandauto_ systemsor CAD/CAM penpective
in lalgeaerospace,
Thefirs! courseof actionin these
withj.n
ParheNhips
motivecompanies.
is to acioPta comlnon
a$angements
and amongtheseindustriesare increasingdaily, wiih thefallout in the designsystemfo( the principlecontracton andtop-tiersuppliers!1&ile
technicalcommunitybeingthe rn nthis approachworks,it causesaddiagementdirective:"Make oul CAD/
tional stesson supplierswho ca$ot
CAM systemtdk to tleiis."
thesizeoftheinvest- afford a new higlFe d systemThis
Considering
rcflectsbackto theprines,whoincur
mentsin tectnologyandlegacyinforto providedifferadditionaloverhead
mation,adoptingaparEter'ssystemjustfied
for
entCAD/CAMdatafomutsto suPPlY
uDlessil is financially
reasons-is out of the ques- thet vendorswith designinformaconb:act
andretrain- tion. Eventually, the need for
tion,Softwarcconversion
teams intemperabilitybetweendifferent
hg of fie prcductdevelopment

CAD/CAM systernsbecomesan istoandftomhighsue-the translations


endto low-endsystemsarecosdy,tie
processis burdensome,
anddt common systemrnay sefvethecomplele
needsof none of the pafiners.Mission-criticaldesignsoftwa..eoutside
or
theconmonsystemis still needed,
the commonsystemseriouslylags

of complexprod'The foremostrequircment
is robust,stablestandards
uctmanufacturers
the
. .Tothesecompanies,
for information.
'virtualenterprise'
will not occuruntil standmdssuchasS'[EParev/idelyadopted."
other technology.Standards,once
again,are the solution.The lack of
tlem is theproblefl!

Big Virtual Vs. Littte


Virtutal
OuI conceptof "viitual colloca[on"
takeson a diferent meaningin the
contextof developingcomplexmachines.On snall projects,the useof
andtheabilityto
sharedCAD sessions
tmnsferdatasetsin a commonCAD
systemseemfivial comparedto the
challengesfaciiglargerorganizations.
Due to the larger installedbaseof
workstations,networks and mainftames,eachpartner'scomputingarchitectueFobablydiffersh detail.
Sharingar X-Windowssession
ruming
thatdepends
onahoslsession

Virtual Product Developmnt 6 27

on a particularvendor'sworkstation
alsohingesontheircorlorationofall
the X.11 standard
"intrinsics"elsewherctomakeitwo.t.Intercperability
betlveen
unitsof a 'lirtual company"
demandsattentionto the tecbnical
detlils of computingpladorms,networkprotocolsaodbandwidth,
e-mail
and
systems,
softwareavailability secunty systems,

definitionof a Foduct;regulationsor
contracts
maystill stipulatepape.bluepdnts or 2-D digital dra$/ingsas the
"mastet''productdefinition.
Even thoughat least five U.S.
airftammanufacnrers
Oaledonfusthand kaowledge)are pursuing 100
percentdigitaly defined aircraft or
helicopters,
drawingswill continueto
be extlactedand colfinunicatedas
partof theproductdefinitionor con-

ogy throughpilot projectsareproven


waysto developthetechnicalbasisfor
processchairge.Businessissuesmust
be addressed
andmay alterexpectations for mpid dispenalwithin any
oneof thesecompanies.

E Breaking
Down Barriers

"TruebelieveN"in hepowerofCAD/
CAMinpmductdevelopmearcftustratedby tle barien to widespread
adoptionof sharcdproducr
dara.These
canbe encountercd
within their own
companyor at a supplier'sengineering office,
WIat a.rethe barrie$?How can
theybeovercofiE?
We've observedseveral,all
equallydifficult.Theremaybeothers,
butthesearetheonesmostfrequently
Any
-encounleled. candoomtheconstructionof avirtualproductdevelopmentenviro llent:
. maoagemelltindifference and
cultllle
tract
paircd
documeDtation.
This
witlr
.
Ths Path to th6 Future ls
Iackofrcsources
tie cha.nging
configurationsand the
Long
. poordesignpractices
2S to sGyeal sewicelives of.r-he
. no visiblebenefits
Anotherphenomenon
ofdreseindusproductscompound
thecomplexiryof
The main causeof thesebaniersis
triesis leDgthydevelopment
timelines
thei Foduct modelingard product lackof awareness
of thebusiness
bencoupledwith requirements
for techdaiamanagement
requEements.
efii ttratflowsftomcreatingandusing
nologicallyoutdaredengineering
Muchof whatwe observein fast sharcd
delivembles.
Rapidadoptionof new
Foduct data throughoutthe
moving, "leapfrog" companies(to enterpdse.
genmodelingoranalyicaltecturiques
borow atelmftomtheDesignInsight
To overcome
dresebalriers,demfiIst
in
the
mission-critie$lly occu$
snrdy)is not practical,or achievable, onstration
ofthebenefitscoupledwith
cal arcasof prcductdesign,suchas
within theselargecompalisunless
theeducationofdecisionrnal<ers
and
aiicraftshapedefinitionforGdarevamandated
fiom thetop of theorgani- end
lsers
must
becompleted.
sion.But it may takeyea$ for dlese
zation.Practicaldemonst-ations
ofnew
to adoptanddesameorganizations
productdevelopmenttechniquesor
ploy 3-D solidsmodelsasthemaster
applicationsof CAD/CAM technol,
23 g Virtual ProduatDeveloprnent

For example,developa master


modelapprcachusilg a shared,feaTheeasiest
1!ay to makethepoht thal nre-basedsolid modelthat includes
canbeimproved CAD,CAE andCAM dataanddrives
productdevelopment
andtoolsis to lmite elementanalysisand NC palt
usingbettertechniques
Describethebforeand
experimentand sharethe rcsults.Pi_ programming.
andidentifywhercthe
lots arecontrolledandmooitorcdac- afterprocesses
tivitieJ should(or can) be measued savingscorneftom and wherethey
will berealized.And getthemessage
The applicationof pilot ptojecti out.Don'tbecontentwith onepilotasaleamingPrc- usepilot Fojects as trainingaid! for
mustbeapproached
cesslnot a salesprocess.use a mall. theotherteamsor for suppliers.
ageablepart of a project tllat helps
in concretetems, whatwill
describe,
whenthewholeprcd- Executive Education
beaccomplished
teamadoptsa new The rasonswe've heard fits&and
uct.alevelopment

Pilot Proiects

Practice.

ftom e{ecutiveswho don't seeaben-

efit iI} CAD/CAMtechnologybeyond


"giving engineerswhat they wa!t"
generallyrcsultfiom a lack of understandingof the stategic benefitsthat
will help them meet their business
objectives.We reviewedthe concept
of agiliryin manufactudngin tle intsoductionto this paper.That is the
ofthemessage,
essence
Executiveeducationis neededto
focuson theseissuesdudng the annual businessandrcsourceor capital
plaming process.While the costsof
syster$ fluctuateas rcgularlyas the
change,thejustfication proseasons
cessdoesnot,Executiveswhowantto
jusufy an integaied suite of CAD/
CAM, PDM,networkingandprocess
nunagementiools bY achievingan
ROI in a given year basedon cost
savings,surk cost and dePreciation
point.Justiflcationmust
arcmissingthe
in
be basedsolelyon improvements

- teamanaiiiterpailpoitciiinanci
r a
- tiriie-ardqualiry-dliven
market.
Fa-

milializing $em wfth the technologies,the usesand the bnefiti to the


businessjs thefi$t step.
Executivesalso hold the key lo
changingfie cultue withiD a companyin makingit easierto implement
pmcticesand
concurentengineering
thatrcnderthemmost
thetecbnologies
effective.Executives$'ill remembet
demorshatioisof thepowerof crossfunctionalteamsworking synergistlcally on productdesignor manufacnrdngproblears
whentheya.'eableto
interylayof processes
comprehendthe
that makethetean
andtechnologies
productive.Again,pilot Fojects can
helpthis educationprocess.

29
VirtualProductD../elopmentF

POINTS OF INTEREST

ManagingTimeand Spacein Creating


Virtual Teams
r

Understandiog
VirtualTeams:Thethreeaspectsof good

& Comquaerimg
Tirne anclSpaae:
Virtua! Tearns
a!'!d F{ow to
Create T'hern
Today'sgeogaphicallydispersed
yer
linted productdevelopmenttearnsr_re
the logicaistateof evolutionfor con
currenteneineeringpncticcsandcomputing technology.The bestpractices
of leadingcompaniesin datashring
and team integration are reviewed in
earlierscctionsofthisdocument.
Let's
tbcus now on the crealion of virtual
teams.We'vc done it q,itb our cusIomers;you can,1oo.
Thc thrceaspects
ol-goodproduct
dcvclopmenfpoint to the time rd
spacesolutionof virtualteans:
. People: communicdion wihin
the tcam and to the rest of the
entcrylrise
. Piocesiii: ownerstripandunder,
standing of the overall developmentprocess;
disciplinein cary-

to traln lhem.

Team Training
Just as any professionalspofi has
coaches
andstrafegiessotoodoesa
productderlopmenrteamhave its
ownintemrl "guruJ' and"stonetab
lcts."Theonly truly effectiveway to
brjnge\rerYone
in a leamup to speed
onthedey{o-day
useof tcchnology
is

30 E Vinua! Produci Developrnent

rng lt out
.Technology: substitution for
proximitv of face-to,face work
sltualons; caplrres and sbares
design and m.nufacturing intenl
The key io a vifiual rean is good
cornmunication-between peopleand

It isbestto trainateemtogelherbeMeencomputeN.Processdiscipline
evenbetterif trahing in the applicaand use of tecbnologyare lermed by
tion ofits toolsispaltofteambuilding
lhe tearru,
,nd familiadzationasa newprojectis
First, infrasn-ucturemusr be in
launched.
PilotFojectsmakeexcelplace.or nothingelsewill happeD.
By
lent oppor0nitiesfor leamiq andre
fiis, we mean a st nd,lrd setof eng!
inforcement.
neering pfactices and sorlwLarctools,
and stirdard, "open" networks con

nectingparticipants.Voice and data or time differences.Documenthow


aremade.(l.lote:This
networksfor product development teamdecisions
tea.'nsneedto beof a highercapacity is notL\esameasrule by corDmittee:
"a body\r.ithat leastsir(legsandno
duetogaphthanforotherapplicltions
senseof direction.")Isolateand reics frlesandimageuansmissions.
It doesnoipaytoisolateanymem- movebotLleneckin teamprccesses,
theyarcperceivedto be Usethrsopportudlyto ueateprocess
bersbecause
modelsfor work flow management
'bitpatplayers."Supplien,evensrD]l
softwarc.Thisis alsothedght timeto
ones,arckey membe$from the flst
within theprodday.Theobjectiveof a developflent implementstandards
relatedtodata
projectis to createdrc bestFoduct uctdevelopmentproject
dellrition and prove that it can be sharing.
Opportunitiesfor new breakandmaineconomicallymanufactured
tained.Vifiual productdevelopmelt throughsin team productivity in a
environviftualproductdevelopment
rnatesthiseasier.
Second,teamfomation andnur- menlincluddesignreviewsandfolUseof shard
low-updecision-rnaking.
turiry arecriticalactivities.Startsrlal,
isarsumed.f
dataamong
all
disciplines
leam ard drn grow ("PLAN-DG
and
Usingcomputerconferenci.ug
CIIECK-ACT). Outsidecoaches
(residentwith
tecbnologies
who understandproduct develop- applicable
EDS andEDS Unigraphics),groups
ment---itherindependentconsultants,
in differentlocationsconductinteracftom
incgratorslikeEDSorspecialists
within fhecompaoy-will b needed tive designrcviewsusilg sluJedsesftom tiEe to time io srdoohthe staft sions.employcompeativedesign
andapproveandrelealefias-- . - up andinteractionraidrg for teams,_ studies.
Teamdlsciplinewill overcomea ter modeldatato thercst of theorgatilnesavitgs
lot ofproblemsi! tbeheatof battle,so nization.Theserepresent
that will improve
to speakTeaft discipli[e is learned, and experiences
rct inbred.Forsomeperiod,earlyin a coromuricationand empalhywithin
needio be andamongEarDs.
newprcject,teammembers
face-to-face-avirtualteamor[y functionswellafterthefamiliarizadonprocess.Oncetley leamto worktogether,
distancedoesn'tmatte!.We've seen
fiis fusdund.
Thir4 iderti{y arcaswheredayto-dayaclvities arenot definedand
havethe teanrimprovethem Leam
how to applythe toois andmtegrate
leamto
theminto thenewprocesses;
usethetools!o ovelcomegeogmphic

Virtual ProductDevlopmontE 31

You might also like