2.4 Product analysis

A set of 50 question-and-answer flashcards covering product analysis, production scales, quality measures, and obsolescence based on the lecture transcript.

What is the process of looking at a real-world product and thinking about it more deeply than just its manufacturing materials?

Product analysis

What are five factors to consider when performing product analysis?

How it works, who it is for, how it is made, how it looks, and how well it does its job.

What does the term 'scales of production' refer to?

How many products are made and the methods used to make them.

Which type of production is used for products designed and made for a specific use or situation that will only happen once?

One-off production

What is an early model or sample version of a product created to test and evaluate an idea before full production?

A prototype

What is a specific example of one-off production mentioned in the text?

A custom-made bicycle for a particular competition or an exclusive piece of jewelry like a Faberge egg.

What is batch production?

When a product is manufactured in a batch of a specific quantity, ranging from a few items to many thousands.

How can a baker use batch production to offer different products?

By making a batch of $50$ wholemeal loaves and $50$ ciabattas.

Which tools are commonly used to speed up the process of making batches?

Jigs, moulds, and templates.

What is mass production?

When identical products are made in large quantities, from a thousand up to millions.

What kind of infrastructure is required for mass production?

Specialist machines and assembly lines.

What is a typical example of a product made through mass production?

Nuts and bolts (hex nuts).

What is continuous production?

When products are made for weeks or months on end, $24$ hours a day, seven days a week.

What are the characteristics of products made through continuous production?

The product range is typically small, specialized, and the process is heavily automated.

What is a specific example of continuous manufacturing?

The production of fuels, oils, plastics, and lubricants from crude oil.

What is defined as checking products during manufacture to find any faults?

Quality control (QC)

What is defined as the system to prevent mistakes and ensure the whole process meets quality standards?

Quality assurance (QA)

What are four reasons why QC and QA checks are important?

To protect user safety, maintain reputation, reduce waste, and save costs.

Which process focuses on checking the final product to ensure it is free from errors?

Quality control (QC)

Identify the four main stages of a product's life story.

Design, Manufacture, Use and maintenance, and End-of-life.

What happens during the 'Manufacture' stage of a product's life story?

Raw materials are gathered and turned into the finished product in a factory.

What is 'obsolescence'?

The state of products breaking or becoming old, sometimes deliberately.

What is planned obsolescence?

When products are deliberately designed to stop working well or go out of fashion after a while.

Name one method companies use for planned obsolescence involving software.

Releasing firmware updates that slow down older models.

How do companies use materials to achieve planned obsolescence?

By using materials that break easily.

What are two examples of making things hard to repair as a tactic of planned obsolescence?

Gluing parts together or hiding fasteners.

What is unplanned obsolescence?

When a product breaks down unexpectedly, which was not intended by the manufacturer.

List three causes of unplanned obsolescence.

Mistakes in the design, a vital component failing sooner than expected, or accidental damage (like dropping a phone).

Who conducted a product analysis by taking apart a games controller?

Damian, an international school student.

What did Damian find that made the games controller difficult to repair?

Hidden fasteners and glued parts.

According to Damian’s analysis, why could the games controller not be recycled effectively?

It was made of mixed materials.

What principle did Damian use to design his modular games controller?

Design for disassembly

How did Damian’s modular design address damaged buttons and joysticks?

He made them replaceable so they can be swapped out.

What joining methods did Damian use to enable easy repair?

Temporary joining methods

What type of drawings did Damian use to show how the controller parts fit together?

Exploded drawings

What technology did Damian use to test his models with users?

$3D$ printing

What are 'Repair Cafes'?

Free meet-ups where volunteers help people fix their broken stuff for free.

How do Repair Cafes fight against planned obsolescence?

They make repair normal, cut down waste, share skills, and build community.

Who started a Repair Cafe in an international school to help teachers and students?

Marc

What framework is suggested as a 'top tip' for carrying out product analysis?

ACCESSF

What is the impact of both types of obsolescence on the environment?

More stuff gets thrown away, using up resources and creating more waste.

In scales of production, what typically happens to labor costs as you move from one-off to mass production?

Labor costs per product generally decrease as production becomes more automated.

What is the focus of the 'End-of-life' stage in a product's life story?

Whether the product is disassembled, reused, recycled, or sent to a landfill.

In Damian's design, how did he increase the lifetime of the controller?

By using durable, long-lasting materials.

Why are assembly line machines for mass production usually considered a financial risk?

They are usually expensive to set up.

What is the benefit of a high sales turnover in mass production?

It increases profit.

During which stage of the life story are raw materials converted into finished goods?

Manufacture

What does QA focus on to prevent problems?

Ensuring processes are correct, controlled, and consistent using plans and manufacturing specifications.

What is the goal of 'design for disassembly'?

To reduce waste and combat planned obsolescence by making products easier to fix and recycle.

Which production level uses specialist machines to produce identical products in the range of thousands to millions?

Mass production