MAINTAINING PRODUCT PLATFORMS IN INDUSTRIAL MACHINERY
DS 48: Proceedings DESIGN 2008, the 10th International Design Conference, Dubrovnik, Croatia
Year: 2008
Editor: Marjanovic D., Storga M., Pavkovic N., Bojcetic N.
Author: Alblas, A. A.; Wortmann, J. C.
Section: Product family design
Page(s): 261 - 270
Abstract
Product platforms describe the range of products offered by a company in terms of functionality, performance and architecture. Based on an extensive case study in industrial machinery, several important elements of a platform approach are identified in this paper. The technological evolution of a platform is highly uncertain and difficult to define beforehand: therefore, a life cycle approach is needed. The paper argues that a platform life cycle requires incorporating the process aspects of platform development: product development yields continuously proposals for platform engineering change, which have to be properly managed during the whole platform life cycle.
Keywords: product platforms, engineering change management