Flexibility In Product Development Research Articles

중국 패스트 패션 기업의 시장지향성, 정보공유, 신제품개발 유연성, 제품 모듈화, 개발성과 간의 구조관계에 관한 연구

This study defines market orientation and strategic information sharing as essential aspects of new product development, and aims to understand how the comprehensive activities of these factors affect the flexibility and performance of new product development. In addition, it aims to address the importance of market orientation and information sharing in rapidly developing and launching new products for companies currently operating in the fashion industry. The results derived from are summarized as follows. First, it proved that market orientation had a statistically significant positive effect on the flexibility of new product development. Second, strategic information sharing had a positive effect on the flexibility of new product development. Third, it was confirmed that the mediating role of product modularization in the 'market orientation→product modularization→new product development flexibility' path was not statistically significant. Fourth, the mediating effect of product modularization in the 'strategic information sharing→product modularization→new product development flexibility' path was statistically significant. It recognized the importance of market orientation and information sharing in the rapid development and launch of new products to companies operating in the Chinese fashion industry, and ultimately provided useful implications for improving new product development performance through modularization of product production.

Product and production design - Rethinking views on flexibility

The recent years have shown that long global supply chains are vulnerable considering volatile markets. As a result, efforts to achieve supply chain resilience are increasing. Achieving resilience requires flexibility, incorporated in product development, which can be implemented by the production system. Flexibility also offers the advantage in the context of sustainability that production facilities remain in use longer than rigid production lines because they can be better retrofitted. Furthermore, volatile markets challenge companies with a higher frequency of changes of requirements and decreasing forecast quality. Accompanied by a decreasing time-to-market and higher complexity of products companies need to increase their overall flexibility. A particular challenge is that routing flexibility is not used in production, for example, because the control effort is too time-consuming and complex. The use of AI and cyber-physical systems provides support to manage the control effort and thus enable flexibility in production. This paper discusses the role of flexibility in product development and production planning. The characteristics of products and production systems are analysed to identify important design aspects for flexibility. Comparing different systems shows for instance that non-linear structures with flexible links offer strategic advantages.

Flawed decision models and flexibility in product development

Flawed decision models and flexibility in product development

Flexibility - Grand Challenge for Product Design and Production: Review and Status

As seen in recent years, the volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous environment has made flexibility in product design and production planning more important than ever. Therefore, companies must be able to quickly respond to the dynamically changing environment. However, research on the flexibility of product design and manufacturing systems has been underway for a long time, only a few studies address their relationship.In this paper, we give an overview of literature related to flexibility and add transparency to the relationship between engineering changes, product development, and production. Based on that, we propose a conceptual framework for co-development to improve the flexibility of product development and production. As part of the framework, we introduce a visualization that reveals the propagation of changes in the product and into the production to create deeper insights for conjoint redesign. To exploit further synergies of product and production, we suggest modularization with focus on strategic module drivers enhancing flexibility. Further support for the comparison of alternative concepts can be provided through digital twin-based simulations of the production system.

Companies performance management: the role of operational flexibility

The article summarizes the arguments on minimizing the uncertainty level caused by numerous unforeseen circumstances due to using operational flexibility to increase companies' efficiency (example of small and medium enterprises in the pharmaceutical sector of Iran). The research aims at investigating the relationship between operational flexibility and a company's performance to examine the impact of environmental uncertainty on these relationships. This study was conducted as quantitative. The deductive method using the synergy of systematization of scientific background on the problem and the empirical proof of the formulated hypotheses became a methodological study tool. The article provides evidence of the economic-mathematical model based on data from small and medium-sized pharmaceutical Iranian companies. The study hypotheses are as follows: 1) operational flexibility has a positive effect on the productivity of the pharmaceutical sector of Iran, represented by small and medium-sized companies; 2) uncertainty determines the relationship between the operational flexibility and efficiency of small and medium-sized pharmaceutical companies in Iran. The model constructed by the authors allowed measuring the relationship between variables using regression analysis and moderation analysis (Hayes model). The total number of companies included in the sample is 113. In turn, 228 managers of these pharmaceutical companies took part in the surveys (Iran example). The empirical analysis results showed that the mix flexibility indicator has practically no effect on companies' efficiency, and the volume flexibility and product development flexibility indicators generally have a positive effect on the performance of companies in the pharmaceutical sector. On the other hand, the environmental uncertainty indicator does not help reduce the relationship between the operational flexibility indicator and companies' performance in the pharmaceutical sector of Iran's economy. The study results could be useful for planning small and medium enterprises' activities in the context of improving their performance.

On the Applicability of Agile Development Methods to Design for Additive Manufacturing

Due to increasing global competition, the demand for more individualization and constantly changing requirements, the importance of time to market and a high degree of flexibility in product development is increasing. New manufacturing technologies as well as improved methodical approaches in product development can be used for this purpose. The additive manufacturing industry has developed strongly in recent years and the possibilities of using this technology for final components are constantly increasing. At the same time, there are many efforts that contribute to identifying and implementing the potential of this manufacturing technology during product development. Other approaches, such as agile product development from software industry, are applied at the organizational level and also try to tackle the aforementioned challenges.This contribution therefore presents an approach using agile product development methods to develop components for additive manufacturing. The potentials of additive manufacturing are specifically used (e.g. tool-free manufacturing) to enable the principles of agile development also for physical products. The Design Pattern Matrix as an opportunistic approach is applied to systematically link the potentials of additive manufacturing with the functions of the product. Therefore, design elements are conducted from additive manufacturing case studies and provided to design engineers during the development. Furthermore, already known methods of design for additive manufacturing are classified into the procedure of the agile framework scrum.

The integrated impact of new product and market flexibilities on operational performance

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate and test the relationship between a company’s strategic flexibility, as evidenced by new product development flexibility and market flexibility, and its operational performance (OP) in Jordanian manufacturing companies.Design/methodology/approachUsing a survey questionnaire, data were collected against two strategic decisions market and new product flexibility (NPF) from 222 middle and senior managers belonging to 116 Jordanian manufacturing firms. Confirmatory factor analysis was employed to investigate the effects of these two strategic decisions on OP.FindingsResults show a significant positive relationship between both NPF and market flexibility and OP. No significant differences between small and medium enterprises and large companies are found, indicating that the model is valid for both sizes. Also, the additional analyses suggest that the proposition that both NPF and market flexibility are important for OP was correct.Research limitations/implicationsOnly two strategic flexibility decisions were considered in this paper, however, researcher could investigate other strategic flexibility decisions on OP.Practical implicationsThe strategic flexibility level, in terms of NPF and market flexibility, that is needed for coping with uncertainty equips managers to handle challenges by enhancing the company’s controlled capacity through a considerable reduction in response time. An improvement in the company’s strategic flexibility enhances its overall performance and competitiveness and this, in turn, has a positive impact on its long-term sustainability.Originality/valueThe paper provides insights into the strategic flexibility decision practices in a Jordanian context. It provides further evidence that both market flexibility and NPF are significant in enhancing OP.

The Management of Flexibility in Product Development The Case of Online Game Industry

The Management of Flexibility in Product Development The Case of Online Game Industry

The value of strategy and flexibility in new product development

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between strategy and flexibility in new product development, and the operational and financial performance in the supply chain context. The motives for conducting this research are to introduce the supply chain strategies and new product development flexibility (NPDF) as constructs that could have the potential to contribute to the success of supply chain performance. Based on the relational view of the firm, the authors propose that supply chain strategy is an antecedent of NPDF and can create value for the buying firm in terms of better financial and non-financial performance. Design/methodology/approach – The structural equation modeling approach was used to evaluate the proposed model and analyze hypothesized relationships. The analysis, based on data collected from 175 small- and medium-sized (SME) Canadian manufacturing companies. Findings – The analysis shows that there are direct positive effects from strategy on NPDF. The findings indicate also a direct positive association between NPDF and performance and showed that the total effect (direct and indirect) positively influenced performance. Originality/value – The literature did not reveal any study which attempted to examine strategy, NPDF, and performance in the supply chain context of SMEs. The current study fills this important gap in the literature.

Possible Applications of 3D Printing Technology on Textile Substrates

3D printing is a rapidly emerging additive manufacturing technology which can offer cost efficiency and flexibility in product development and production. In textile production 3D printing can also serve as an add-on process to apply 3D structures on textiles. In this study the low-cost fused deposition modeling (FDM) technique was applied using different thermoplastic printing materials available on the market with focus on flexible filaments such as thermoplastic elastomers (TPE) or Soft PLA. Since a good adhesion and stability of the 3D printed structures on textiles are essential, separation force and abrasion resistance tests were conducted with different kinds of printed woven fabrics demonstrating that a sufficient adhesion can be achieved. The main influencing factor can be attributed to the topography of the textile surface affected by the weave, roughness and hairiness offering formlocking connections followed by the wettability of the textile surface by the molten polymer, which depends on the textile surface energy and can be specifically controlled by washing (desizing), finishing or plasma treatment of the textile before the print. These basic adhesion mechanisms can also be considered crucial for 3D printing on knitwear.

New product development flexibility in a competitive environment

Managerial flexibility can have a significant impact on the value of new product development projects. We investigate how the market environment in which a firm operates influences the value and use of development flexibility. We characterize the market environment according to two dimensions, namely (i) its intensity, and (ii) its degree of innovation. We show that these two market characteristics can have a different effect on the value of flexibility. In particular, we show that more intense or innovative environments may increase or decrease the value of flexibility. For instance, we demonstrate that the option to defer a product launch is typically most valuable when there is little competition. We find, however, that under certain conditions defer options may be highly valuable in more competitive environments. We also consider the value associated with the flexibility to switch development strategies, from a focus on incremental innovations to more risky ground-breaking products. We find that such a switching option is most valuable when the market is characterized by incremental innovations and by relatively intense competition. Our insights can help firms understand how managerial flexibility should be explored, and how it might depend on the nature of the environment in which they operate.

Exploring relationships among IT-enabled sharing capability, supply chain flexibility, and competitive performance

This research explores the mechanism through which IT infrastructure enables superior firm performance by empirically examining the links among IT-enabled sharing capability, supply chain flexibilities (as measured by a manufacturing firm׳s product development flexibility, production flexibility, logistics flexibility, suppliers׳ flexibility, and the flexibility of the supply base), and competitive performance. This study expands the research on IT׳s impact on competitive performance by focusing on IT-enabled sharing capability and the indirect effect of this capability on firm performance. Most prior research focused on the technical aspects of IT infrastructure and tested direct relationships.In this research, a large-scale survey was used to collect 198 responses from U.S. manufacturers to investigate this framework. Structural Equation Modeling was used to examine and test the measurement and structural models. The results indicated that IT-enabled sharing capability is associated with flexibilities in a manufacturer׳s supply chain, which in turn are associated with the firm׳s competitive performance. This finding suggests that a firm should focus on flexibilities in the supply chain to improve its performance. IT-enabled sharing capability is an antecedent for improving these flexibilities. Longitudinal research, multiple respondents, and techniques for improving response rate should be considered in future research to provide more robust results.

Product concept and prototype flexibility in manufacturing: Implications for customer satisfaction

Abstract A rapidly changing competitive landscape and dynamic customer expectations require manufacturing firms to seek flexibility in product development. Product concept flexibility (i.e., developing design options) and product prototype flexibility (i.e., creating working models) emerge as effective ways to quickly develop new products that meet competitive challenges and satisfy customer demands. Product concept flexibility enables firms to fully explore various product definitions and ideas. Product prototype flexibility allows firms to gather customers’ feedback and investigate design feasibility. Using data from 273 manufacturing firms, this research tests mediating, moderating, and additive models that relate product concept flexibility, product prototype flexibility, and customer satisfaction. The results indicate that firms with high product concept flexibility are more likely to benefit from prototype flexibility than firms with low product concept flexibility, and that product concept flexibility and product prototype flexibility act independently and additively to predict customer satisfaction.

Flexible product development

PurposeMost development processes have the effect of putting innovation in a straitjacket. This is because they encourage heavy up‐front planning followed by sticking to the plan, which imposes considerable constraint on change during a project. Unfortunately, change in product development is linked inescapably to innovation. The more innovative the product, the more likely it is that the team will need to make changes during its development. Therefore, for these more volatile projects, developers need more product development flexibility – the ability to make changes even relatively late in development, without being too disruptive – than is possible with standard development processes. The aim of the book by Preston Smith, Flexible Product Development, is to help companies build a process and apply tools and approaches that are more tolerant of change – ones that accommodate and even embrace change as a natural consequence of working in the innovative domain where change is the norm. The aim of this paper is to explore this issueDesign/methodology/approachThe paper reviews the book by Preston Smith, Flexible Product Development.FindingsThe paper finds that the book helps companies build a process and apply tools and approaches that are more tolerant of change.Originality/valueThe paper provides a useful review of the material in Preston Smith's Flexible Product Development, which will help companies build a process and apply tools and approaches that accommodate and even embrace change as a natural consequence of working in the innovative domain where change is the norm.

Product development flexibility in a changing business environment

Increasing global competition has instilled a high degree of uncertainty into the business environment. A firm's capability to deal with uncertainty is increasingly important. While facing the business environmental change, each industry may face a distinctive rate of business evolution. The product life cycle in the electronic industry is much shorter than that in the utility industry. In the changing business environment, any firm that possesses a higher clock speed would enhance its product development flexibility to hedge against market uncertainty. This paper proposes a research model to depict the relationship among firm's clock speed, the supplier involvement, Concurrent Engineering (CE) practices and product development flexibility.

Chemical changes during extrusion cooking. Recent advances.

Cooking extruders process a variety of foods, feeds, and industrial materials. Greater flexibility in product development with extruders depends upon understanding chemical reactions that occur within the extruder barrel and at the die. Starch gelatinization and protein denautration are the most important reactions during extrusion. Proteins, starches, and non-starch polysaccharides can fragment, creating reactive molecules that may form new linkages not found in nature. Vitamin stability varies with vitamin structure, extrusion conditions, and food matrix composition. Little is known about the effects of extrusion parameters on phytochemical bioavailability and stability. Reactive extrusion to create new flavor, antioxidant and color compounds will be an area of interest in the future.