Design for Changeability

Abstract

Numerous markets are characterized by increasing individualization and high dynamics. A company’s ability to quickly adjust its production system to future needs and conditions with minimum effort is a key competitive factor. Especially in high-wage countries, two conflicts increasingly complicate the design of production systems: the conflict between scale and scope on the one hand and the conflict between a high planning orientation and maximizing value-added activities on the other hand. For future production systems in high-wage countries, effective means are needed to minimize the gaps resulting from this poly-lemma. This contribution introduces a measurable target system to assess the degree of target achievement with regard to these criteria. Based on this target measurement system, a new approach that introduces object-oriented-design to production systems is presented. The central element of object-oriented design of production systems is the definition of objects, e.g. product functions, with homogeneous change drivers, which are consistently handled from product planning up to process design. Both product and process design are driven by interfaces between the defined objects and their inter-dependencies. The findings show that a consistent application of objectoriented design to production systems will significantly increase the flexibility in implementing product changes, minimize engineering change and process planning efforts and support process synchronization to achieve economies of scale more efficiently. Two case studies illustrate the implementation and impact of this approach.