Research Initiatives
Distributed Object-based
Modeling Environment (DOME)
Leader: David Wallace
Computer systems that model new products can be overwhelmingly complex. The design of an automobile door, for example, can require the coordinated efforts of dozens (if not hundreds) of designers, engineers, and suppliers, each working simultaneously in distant locations and on radically different platforms. Project DOME integrates these efforts in a user-friendly Web-based environment that allows all developers to join in the modeling process at the same time. They can do this (1) without intermediary assistance from computer programmers, (2) without departing from their preferred set of product development tools, and (3) without losing control of proprietary information.
Information Flow Modeling (IFM)
Leader: Daniel Whitney
This initiative explores visual representations of the PD process—models that help product developers and managers understand the multifaceted systems they work within. We present information flows as task models, design parameter models, organizational models, or combinations of these. We simulate these models dynamically and obtain statistical predictions of time and cost. By distilling intricate PD systems into their essential components, we can provide maps through domains of increasing complexity.
Platform Architectures (PA)
Leader: Olivier de Weck
How does an organization define a successful product family? Our response to this key question is a rigorous theory of platform architecture. We seek to (1) match customer needs with function, (2) match function with technology, (3) transform technology into a set of integrated design modules, and (4) screen and optimize these modules against a set of design principles.
System Dynamics (ID)
Leader: Nelson Repenning
Many organizations attempt to improve their PD process, only to face struggle and failure. Even though people within the organization may agree that new tools and methods are better than existing ones, a large percentage of attempts at process improvement fail. Thus, ID initiative seeks to understand (1) the dynamics of PD process improvement, and (2) the design of sustainable improvement programs.
Virtual Customer (VC)
Leader: John Hauser
Advances in on-line data collection allow product developers to engineer systems at virtually the same time that they gather customer input. Now developers can dramatically cut the lag time between product deployment and customer response (one market research company conducts over one million interviews per year on the Internet).
PD Enabling Factors
Leader:
Warren Seering
Identifying factors that impact an organization’s crucial outputs. We have isolated 140 factors that enable successful product development. Each factor impacts organizational performance to a different degree.
Parameter Design
Leader: Daniel Frey
Devising robust strategies for experimentation. This research establishes guidelines for the selection of experimental strategies in the parameter design of engineering systems.
