Product Design and Process Selection

Chapter 3: Product Design and Process Selection

Answers to Assigned Discussion Questions in Textbook

• Define product design and explain its relationship to business strategy.

 

Product design is the process of determining all the features and characteristics of a product or service.  The design of the product or service must match the business strategy in order for the company to be successful.  For example, if we create a product with numerous features, it would probably be more expensive to produce.  This would not help us if our goal is to provide a low cost product.

• What are the differences between product and service design?

 

Recall that the key differences between manufacturing and service is the fact that manufacturing creates a tangible product, while services typically do not, and that services involve the customer.  Service design is more complicated because we must not only design the service itself, but also the entire service concept.    

• Explain the meanings of benchmarking and reverse engineering.

 

Benchmarking involves the usage of information gathered from world class companies in order to improve your company’s performance.  Reverse engineering is the study of an actual product by disassembling it to determine how it was created. 

• Explain the meaning of design for manufacture (DFM) and give some examples.

 

DFM is a set of guidelines for ensuring that a product is easy to produce profitably.  DFM involves reducing the number of parts in a product and the use of common and interchangeable parts.  

• Describe the stages of the product life cycle.  What are the demand characteristics at each stage?

 

The four stages of the product life cycle are introduction, growth, maturity and decline.  Introduction is the stage where the product is introduced to the market and starts to sell.  The demand is slowly growing in this stage.  Growth is the stage where demand takes off.  Maturity is the stage when the demand has peaked and started to level off.  The last stage of decline occurs when another product replaces the current product.  During this stage, demand declines.

• Explain the term concurrent engineering.  Why is it important?

 

Concurrent engineering is a team-based approach to product design.  The team of people from different areas works concurrently on the design.  It is important because this ensures that we don’t have problems taking the product from engineering to production since production can help ensure an easy transition if they are involved in the design, thus making the product easier to manufacture.  The old approach of separate departments working with the design at different times was costly and inefficient.  Concurrent engineering has resulted in a shorter development time with better quality.

• Identify the two general types of operations.  What are their characteristics?

 

The two general types of processes are intermittent operations and continuous operations.  Intermittent operations produce a variety of products in smaller quantities.  Since a variety of products are produced, a variety of flows through the process exist.  Intermittent operations tend to be labor intensive.  Continuous operations produce few products in larger quantities.  Resources are organized into a line flow in continuous operations.  Since we are producing few products in large quantities, we can and do invest a lot of money in equipment.

• What is meant by the term vertical integration?  What types of companies are more likely to become vertically integrated?

 

Vertical integration refers to the number of supply chain decisions that are made within a company.  For example, a company that manufactures wood furniture could also own the land that supplies the trees that are then cut down and processed by the plant.  This is an example of backward integration.  For forward integration, the same company would then sell directly to the final customer who uses the furniture instead of selling to a retailer.  Companies that are more likely to become vertically integrated are ones who have the capital available to do so.  Vertical integration is more effective for continuous operations in which the number of input materials is small.  Fine (1998) points out that successful companies move back and forth between being vertically integrated and not in order to remain competitive over longer periods of time. 

• What is a process flowchart and what is it used for?

 

A process flowchart is a diagram that shows all of the process steps for producing a product or service.  It is useful in analyzing the process flows in order to make improvements.  For example, we can identify potential problem areas and decide how to prevent the problem from occurring.   

• Give some examples of automation.  How has automation changed the production process?

 

Automation is the use of machines that can perform work without assistance from a human worker.  Examples of automation are automated material handling, computer-aided design (CAD), flexible manufacturing systems (FMS), robotics and computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM).  Automation has enabled production to be more consistent in terms of quality and to efficiently produce larger volumes of product.

• Discuss the benefits of computer-aided design (CAD).

 

The benefits of CAD are increased speed and flexibility in the design process, improved ability to share designs since they are electronic files, and the ability to easily archive designs and compare designs.

• What is meant by the term service package?

Service package refers to the group of features that comprise the service.  The three elements of the service package are the physical goods, benefits related to the senses, such as taste and smell, and psychological benefits. 

• Name three service companies and describe their service package.

 

Let’s look at the three service companies of McDonald’s, Border’s bookstore and Disney theme parks.  At McDonald’s, the physical goods are the food, as well as the functional seating, along with the play area for children.  The sensual benefits are the consistent taste of the food and the sound of happy children.  The psychological benefits are quick food and a more relaxing time for parents since kids can occupy themselves with the Happy Meal and/or play area.  At Border’s, the physical goods are the books, café items and places to read and/or chat.  The sensual benefits are the smell of the café items and the sight of interesting things to read.  The psychological benefits are the comfort and status of the experience.  At Disney, the physical goods are the rides, shows, restaurants, gift shops, etc.  The sensual benefits are the sight of cartoon characters, sounds of the experience, and feel of the rides.  The psychological benefits are fun and learning. 

• Give examples of services that have a good match between customer expectations and service delivery.  Give examples of services that do not have a good match.

Good matches:

• FedEx:  Federal Express is very good at delivering undamaged packages on time, which is what the customers expect.  They also provide a tracking procedure so that customers can determine where their package is in transit.  
• Amazon.com: I have ordered many books from amazon.com.  The prices have been good.  The correct items were delivered accurately and quickly.  They also send e-mail notification when the order has been shipped.

Poor matches:

• Some office supply stores: As the number of home businesses has increased, some office supply stores  are not effective at meeting the needs of businesses where someone is not always at the office during daytime work hours.  When delivering items, they tell the customer that the items will arrive sometime that day between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.  This is a nuisance for some customers since they have to make sure someone is there to accept the shipment.
• Some moving companies: I have had numerous bad experiences with various moving companies.  Customers of movers expect the items to be delivered on time in a non-damaged condition.  During each of my last three moves, some items were damaged.  My last movers arrived two days late.  In addition, customers expect that it should not be difficult for the movers to fix or reimburse the damaged items.  In my last two moves, it was difficult to do so.  I either kept getting a busy signal when trying to file a complaint by phone or left several messages concerning a complaint where my call was not returned. 

Chapter 3: Product Design and Process Selection

Overview

 

This chapter explains the definition, strategic impact and steps of product design.  It discusses the use of break-even analysis to decide which product(s) to produce.  This chapter also describes the different types of production processes and explains the steps used in process design and selection.  It presents the process flowchart and the impact of technological advancements on process design.  Finally, the issues in designing service operations are discussed.

Answers to Discussion Questions in Textbook

• Define product design and explain its relationship to business strategy.

 

Product design is the process of determining all the features and characteristics of a product or service.  The design of the product or service must match the business strategy in order for the company to be successful.  For example, if we create a product with numerous features, it would probably be more expensive to produce.  This would not help us if our goal is to provide a low cost product.

• What are the differences between product and service design?

 

Recall that the key differences between manufacturing and service is the fact that manufacturing creates a tangible product, while services typically do not, and that services involve the customer.  Service design is more complicated because we must not only design the service itself, but also the entire service concept.    

• Explain the meanings of benchmarking and reverse engineering.

 

Benchmarking involves the usage of information gathered from world class companies in order to improve your company’s performance.  Reverse engineering is the study of an actual product by disassembling it to determine how it was created. 

• Explain the meaning of design for manufacture (DFM) and give some examples.

 

DFM is a set of guidelines for ensuring that a product is easy to produce profitably.  DFM involves reducing the number of parts in a product and the use of common and interchangeable parts.  

• Describe the stages of the product life cycle.  What are the demand characteristics at each stage?

 

The four stages of the product life cycle are introduction, growth, maturity and decline.  Introduction is the stage where the product is introduced to the market and starts to sell.  The demand is slowly growing in this stage.  Growth is the stage where demand takes off.  Maturity is the stage when the demand has peaked and started to level off.  The last stage of decline occurs when another product replaces the current product.  During this stage, demand declines.

• Explain the term concurrent engineering.  Why is it important?

 

Concurrent engineering is a team-based approach to product design.  The team of people from different areas works concurrently on the design.  It is important because this ensures that we don’t have problems taking the product from engineering to production since production can help ensure an easy transition if they are involved in the design, thus making the product easier to manufacture.  The old approach of separate departments working with the design at different times was costly and inefficient.  Concurrent engineering has resulted in a shorter development time with better quality.

• Identify the two general types of operations.  What are their characteristics?

 

The two general types of processes are intermittent operations and continuous operations.  Intermittent operations produce a variety of products in smaller quantities.  Since a variety of products are produced, a variety of flows through the process exist.  Intermittent operations tend to be labor intensive.  Continuous operations produce few products in larger quantities.  Resources are organized into a line flow in continuous operations.  Since we are producing few products in large quantities, we can and do invest a lot of money in equipment.

• What is meant by the term vertical integration?  What types of companies are more likely to become vertically integrated?

 

Vertical integration refers to the number of supply chain decisions that are made within a company.  For example, a company that manufactures wood furniture could also own the land that supplies the trees that are then cut down and processed by the plant.  This is an example of backward integration.  For forward integration, the same company would then sell directly to the final customer who uses the furniture instead of selling to a retailer.  Companies that are more likely to become vertically integrated are ones who have the capital available to do so.  Vertical integration is more effective for continuous operations in which the number of input materials is small.  Fine (1998) points out that successful companies move back and forth between being vertically integrated and not in order to remain competitive over longer periods of time. 

• What is a process flowchart and what is it used for?

 

A process flowchart is a diagram that shows all of the process steps for producing a product or service.  It is useful in analyzing the process flows in order to make improvements.  For example, we can identify potential problem areas and decide how to prevent the problem from occurring.   

• Give some examples of automation.  How has automation changed the production process?

 

Automation is the use of machines that can perform work without assistance from a human worker.  Examples of automation are automated material handling, computer-aided design (CAD), flexible manufacturing systems (FMS), robotics and computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM).  Automation has enabled production to be more consistent in terms of quality and to efficiently produce larger volumes of product.

• Discuss the benefits of computer-aided design (CAD).

 

The benefits of CAD are increased speed and flexibility in the design process, improved ability to share designs since they are electronic files, and the ability to easily archive designs and compare designs.

• What is meant by the term service package?

 

Service package refers to the group of features that comprise the service.  The three elements of the service package are the physical goods, benefits related to the senses, such as taste and smell, and psychological benefits. 

• Name three service companies and describe their service package.

 

Let’s look at the three service companies of McDonald’s, Border’s bookstore and Disney theme parks.  At McDonald’s, the physical goods are the food, as well as the functional seating, along with the play area for children.  The sensual benefits are the consistent taste of the food and the sound of happy children.  The psychological benefits are quick food and a more relaxing time for parents since kids can occupy themselves with the Happy Meal and/or play area.  At Border’s, the physical goods are the books, café items and places to read and/or chat.  The sensual benefits are the smell of the café items and the sight of interesting things to read.  The psychological benefits are the comfort and status of the experience.  At Disney, the physical goods are the rides, shows, restaurants, gift shops, etc.  The sensual benefits are the sight of cartoon characters, sounds of the experience, and feel of the rides.  The psychological benefits are fun and learning. 

• Give examples of services that have a good match between customer expectations and service delivery.  Give examples of services that do not have a good match.

Good matches:

• FedEx:  Federal Express is very good at delivering undamaged packages on time, which is what the customers expect.  They also provide a tracking procedure so that customers can determine where their package is in transit.  
• Amazon.com: I have ordered many books from amazon.com.  The prices have been good.  The correct items were delivered accurately and quickly.  They also send e-mail notification when the order has been shipped.

Poor matches:

• Some office supply stores: As the number of home businesses has increased, some office supply stores  are not effective at meeting the needs of businesses where someone is not always at the office during daytime work hours.  When delivering items, they tell the customer that the items will arrive sometime that day between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.  This is a nuisance for some customers since they have to make sure someone is there to accept the shipment.
• Some moving companies: I have had numerous bad experiences with various moving companies.  Customers of movers expect the items to be delivered on time in a non-damaged condition.  During each of my last three moves, some items were damaged.  My last movers arrived two days late.  In addition, customers expect that it should not be difficult for the movers to fix or reimburse the damaged items.  In my last two moves, it was difficult to do so.  I either kept getting a busy signal when trying to file a complaint by phone or left several messages concerning a complaint where my call was not returned. 

Answers to Textbook Case – Biddy’s Bakery

• Explain the challenge faced by Elizabeth in meeting her capacity needs.  What should she have considered before moving into a larger facility?

 

The challenge is that Elizabeth’s constraint is in the market.  She needs to find ways to deal with this constraint.  She should have gained an understanding of what caused the growth before considering the move to make sure that it was possible to continue growth in the same manner.

• What is wrong with the proposal made by the team of business students?  Why?

 

The proposal made by the team of business students does not match the operations decisions to the corporate strategy and core competencies of the bakery.  A mismatch will increase the possibility of failure.

• What type of operation does Biddy’s Bakery currently have in place?  What type of operation is needed to meet the proposal made by the team of business students?  Explain the differences between these two operations.

 

Biddy’s Bakery currently has an intermittent operation in place.  To meet the students’ proposal, Biddy’s Bakery would have to start using a continuous operation.  Continuous operations use a capital intensive process with a line flow, while intermittent operations use a labor intensive process with a variety of flows.   

• Elizabeth senses that the business would be different if she accepts the proposal, but does not know how and why.  Explain how it would be different.

 

The business would be different for several reasons.  To be effective, the bakery would have to use more equipment in order to efficiently and effectively produce in large volumes.  The worker skills would not be important anymore.  The degree of flexibility would be low.

• What would you advise Elizabeth?

 

I advise Elizabeth to not adopt the proposal suggested by the team of students for several reasons.  First, the proposal does not match the corporate strategy of Biddy’s Bakery.  Second, the proposed changes are in conflict with the competencies of the bakery.  The issue that needs to be addressed is the excess capacity. Since there is excess capacity, the constraint is in the market.  TOC supports the use of the Thinking Processes (TP) to determine how to better meet customer needs in order to increase demand.  (Please see the TOC Tips from chapter 2 of this manual for more information on the TP.)

Answers to Textbook Case – Creative Care Animal Clinic (B)

1. Identify the operations management problems that Dr. Barr is having at the clinic.

Dr, Barr is experiencing several operations problems due to a change in what customers are requesting compared to the services the clinic was designed to offer.  The increase in specialized services and the addition of grooming requires a different layout. Not only have the space requirements changed but some non-contact services are being performed in contact areas. Customers are requesting a mix of services but the clinic has not thought about service “packages”. Finally, the staff is not trained for the new service mix.

2.   How would you define the “service bundle” currently being offered? How is this different from the initial purpose of the clinic?

Customers are now requesting a bundle of grooming, examining, and sometimes minor surgical services. The business was originally designed to offer examining and surgical services. Not only do the new demands require additional services but also customers see these as a package. The clinic needs to offer the demanded bundle more seamlessly.

3.   Identify the high-contact and low-contact segments of the operation. How should each be managed?

The high contact segments include reception and customer waiting. The low contact segments are examining, surgery, and grooming. However, grooming is currently being performed in a high contact area. High contact segments must be performed while the customer is present and in contact. Low contact segments can be performed while the customer is not there, and do not need customer contact. In fact, as the grooming operations demonstrate, customer contact with low contact segments can decrease performance.

4.   What should Dr. Barr have done differently to avoid the problems she is currently experiencing? What should she do now?

Dr. Barr should have studied the impact of a change in the mix of services offered before she started accepting a significantly different mix. Now she needs to either reject business that is outside of her original plans (probably not what she wants to do) or redesign the clinic to better handle the current mix. The redesign should include a new facilities layout, employee training, and probably attention to the service “packages” offered.

Interactive Learning

The student web site for this chapter includes PowerPoint chapter review, Selected Solutions, a Company Tour, and web links.  The Kaizen Consulting, Inc. question number 18 addresses the decision of which machine to purchase. 

The extend simulation software (on the student CD) includes simulations of pizza manufacturing and movement between departments in a hospital, along with a Monte Carlo simulation of the probability of success of a new product launch.  Students will need to install the software on the computer.  In addition, they will need to make a change in Excel before opening the simulation program.  Specifically, they will need to go into the macro section of the tools menu to change the security to medium in order to allow the simulation to run macros.  

The student CD includes an Excel template and solution to problem 3.2