A CONCURRENT ENGINEERING METHODOLOGY USING ANALOGIES TO JUST-IN-TIME CONCEPTS

In this paper, a systematic methodology to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of the product development process under a Concurrent Engineering (CE) environment is presented. The concepts adopted by this methodology are analogies to the total productivity enhancement concepts employed in Just-In-Time (JIT). The development processes are analysed by making distinctions between creative and routine operations, and value-added and non-value-added operations. Product development projects are classified by their types of development operations. The classification of development operations and projects facilitates the identification of possible improvement points by applying JIT analogy. A concurrent engineering framework is developed to define how JIT analogy works. The effectiveness of the proposed methodology is analysed through application to some actual mass-market oriented product development cases.