Application of system design tools to integrative product development process

Abstract

Although Magna (a fictional name for an automobile manufacturer) demonstrates year-on-year improvement across new and refreshed vehicle programs, they continue to lag behind the industry average within the category of "problems per 100 vehicles" as measured by J.D. Power and Associates' Initial Quality Survey (IQS). This project is concerned with the development of tools which can be used to improve the characteristics associated with complex system performance - considered a major factor in providing customers with high quality vehicles. The primary toolset leveraged for this effort was Datum Flow Chain (DFC) analysis which is useful for mapping out complex mechanical systems and identifying sources of potential improvement. This toolset also provides a practical means of generating standard design architectures which can be used to inform future product designs. Several technical and cultural barriers had to be addressed in order to clearly demonstrate the value of this new approach to improving customer satisfaction.