Chapter 4 – Product & Service Design (Stevenson, 14e)

A comprehensive set of 60 question-and-answer flashcards covering strategic importance, responsibilities, key questions, idea sources, legal/ethical/sustainability issues, standardization, customization tactics, reliability, robust design, QFD, Kano model, product/service design phases, CAD, concurrent engineering, service design principles, and operations strategy from Stevenson’s Chapter 4 lecture.

What is the strategic importance of product and service design in an organization?

Goods and services define the essence of the organization, and every aspect of the firm is structured around them.

List three main activities of product and service design.

Translating customer wants into requirements, refining existing offerings, and developing new products/services (others include setting quality goals, cost targets, prototyping, etc.).

Which question of product/service design asks, “Is there a demand for it?”

The market feasibility question—size and demand profile determine potential success.

What does manufacturability measure?

The capability of an organization to produce an item at an acceptable profit.

What does serviceability measure?

The capability of an organization to provide a service at an acceptable cost or profit.

Give two reasons an organization might design or redesign a product or service.

Economic changes, social/demographic shifts, political/legal factors, competitive pressures, cost or availability issues, technological advances.

Name the three broad idea-generation categories for new products/services.

Supply-chain based, competitor based, and research based.

Identify two supply-chain sources of design ideas.

Customers and suppliers (also distributors, employees, maintenance personnel).

What is reverse engineering?

Dismantling and inspecting a competitor’s product to discover improvements.

Distinguish between basic and applied research.

Basic research advances knowledge with no immediate commercial aim; applied research pursues specific commercial applications.

Define product liability.

A manufacturer’s responsibility for injuries or damages caused by a faulty product.

Under the Uniform Commercial Code, what two product assumptions exist?

Merchantability and fitness for intended use are implied.

Why might designers face ethical dilemmas during product development?

Pressure to speed up design or cut costs may tempt them to release products with unresolved bugs.

What is sustainability in design?

Using resources in ways that do not harm ecological systems supporting human existence.

What does cradle-to-grave assessment evaluate?

The environmental impact of a product or service throughout its entire life cycle.

List the Three Rs of sustainability.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.

What analytical tool examines parts and materials to cut cost or boost performance?

Value analysis.

Define remanufacturing.

Refurbishing used products by replacing worn or defective components.

Explain Design for Disassembly (DFD).

Designing a product so it can be easily taken apart at end-of-life.

Why do firms pursue Design for Recycling (DFR)?

To ensure products can be disassembled to recover recyclable parts, meeting cost and regulatory goals.

What are the four stages of a product/service life cycle?

Introduction, Growth, Maturity, Decline.

Define standardization.

Producing large quantities with absence of variety so each customer receives essentially the same item or service.

Give one advantage and one disadvantage of standardization.

Advantage: fewer parts to deal with; disadvantage: reduced product variety and high cost of later design changes.

What is mass customization?

Producing basically standardized goods/services but allowing some customer-specific customization.

Describe delayed differentiation.

Postponing completion of a product/service until customer preferences are known.

What is modular design?

Grouping components into easily interchangeable modules to simplify assembly and repair.

State one advantage and one disadvantage of modular design.

Advantage: easier diagnosis and repair; disadvantage: limited number of possible configurations.

Define reliability in product design.

Ability of a product, part, or system to perform its intended function under specified conditions.

Give two ways reliability can be improved.

Improve component design, enhance testing (others: better assembly techniques, backups, preventive maintenance, user education).

What is robust design?

A design that enables a product/service to function over a broad range of conditions with minimal failure.

List the four degrees of newness in design changes.

Modification, expansion of a line, clone of competitor, entirely new product/service.

What is Quality Function Deployment (QFD)?

A method that integrates the voice of the customer into product and service development, often visualized with the House of Quality.

Name the three quality categories in the Kano model.

Basic quality, Performance quality, Excitement quality.

What is the goal of feasibility analysis in product development?

To determine market, economic, and technical viability before proceeding.

How many phases are listed in Stevenson’s product design & development sequence?

Eight (feasibility, product specs, process specs, prototype, design review, market test, introduction, follow-up).

Define concurrent engineering.

Early and ongoing collaboration among design, manufacturing, marketing, purchasing (and often suppliers/customers) to align product features with capabilities.

Give two advantages of CAD.

3–10× designer productivity and a database for manufacturing specs (others: faster cost/engineering analysis, simulation, shorter time-to-market).

Why must designers understand production capabilities?

Equipment, skills, materials, schedules, and technologies limit feasible designs and impact cost, productivity, and quality.

Explain manufacturability.

Ease of fabrication/assembly, influencing cost, productivity, and quality.

What is component commonality and one of its benefits?

Using identical parts across multiple products; benefit: inventory reduction and bulk purchasing savings.

In service design, what two key issues guide strategy?

Degree of variation in service requirements and degree of customer contact/involvement.

State two fundamental differences between service and product design.

Services are intangible and created/delivered simultaneously; products are tangible and can be inventoried (other differences include visibility, location importance, etc.).

Why can services not be inventoried?

They are produced and consumed simultaneously, so they exist only at delivery.

List the five phases of the service design process.

Conceptualize, identify service package components, determine performance specs, translate to design specs, translate to delivery specs.

Give three characteristics of a well-designed service system.

Consistent with mission, user-friendly, robust to variability (others: sustainable, cost-effective, obvious value, strong back-front linkages, unifying theme, reliability checks).

Provide two guidelines for successful service design.

Define the service package in detail and focus on the operation from the customer’s perspective (others: align image, involve managers, define quality, consistent HR policies, plan for events, continuous improvement).

How can effective product/service design support operations strategy?

By packaging goods/services to raise sales, using multi-use platforms, achieving volume efficiency with variety, seeking continuous improvements, and shortening time-to-market.

What is life-cycle analysis (LCA) also called?

Cradle-to-grave assessment.

Name two environmental factors examined in an LCA.

Global warming impact and solid-waste generation (others: smog formation, oxygen depletion).

Why do European regulations increase interest in remanufacturing?

Manufacturers are required to take back used products, encouraging refurbishment for resale.

What is value analysis primarily trying to reduce or improve?

Cost reduction and/or performance improvement of a product.

Define Design for Assembly (DFA).

Designing a product to simplify and reduce the cost/time of assembly operations.

What does the House of Quality sequence link?

Customer requirements → Design characteristics → Specific components → Production processes → Quality plan.

What is the first house (House 1) in the House of Quality sequence?

Customer requirements vs. Design characteristics matrix.

Which Kano quality category can only dissatisfy if missing but doesn’t strongly delight when present?

Basic quality.

Why might modular design limit repairability?

If a module cannot be disassembled, the entire module may need replacement even for minor faults.

What is delayed differentiation an example of?

A postponement tactic supporting mass customization.

List two production requirements designers must consider.

Available equipment and workforce skills (others: material types, schedules, technologies, special abilities).

How does CAD with finite element analysis (FEA) speed time-to-market?

By enabling virtual simulations that reduce physical prototyping and design iterations.

Give one reason firms monitor products/services for small improvements.

To maintain competitive advantage and respond quickly to market feedback.

What does ‘user education’ contribute to product reliability?

Proper use and maintenance by customers reduce failures, enhancing overall reliability.

What is the primary objective of the ‘reduce’ aspect of the Three Rs?

To lower costs and material usage through value analysis and design simplification.

State one risk and one benefit of introducing a completely new product (degree of newness #4).

Risk: high uncertainty and development cost; Benefit: potential for significant market advantage.

In the Kano model, why does ‘excitement quality’ fade over time?

Customer expectations rise, turning exciting features into performance or basic requirements.

What is the role of a market test in product development?

To validate customer acceptance and identify last-minute issues before full introduction.

Why is location often critical in service design?

Convenience and proximity affect customer access and perceived value.

How does component commonality aid service parts management?

Common parts simplify repairs and lower spare inventory levels.