ASSESSING INCREASED PRODUCT LINE COMMONALITY'S EFFECT ON ASSEMBLY PRODUCTIVITY AND PRODUCT QUALITY
DS 92: Proceedings of the DESIGN 2018 15th International Design Conference
Year: 2018
Editor: Marjanović D., Štorga M., Škec S., Bojčetić N., Pavković N.
Author: Løkkegaard, Martin; Mortensen, Niels Henrik; Jensen, Lasse Skovgaard; Christensen, Carsten Keinicke Fjord
Series: DESIGN
Section: DESIGN PROCESSES
Page(s): 841-848
DOI number: https://doi.org/10.21278/idc.2018.0112
Abstract
We present results of an experiment focused on quantifying effects on assembly productivity and product quality by introducing a product platform and increasing commonality between variants in a product family. The experiment was set up with 50 engineering students, who over three rounds produced a family of LEGO car models. Over the rounds a product platform was introduced and the Commonality Index was increased from 47,8% to 88,4%. Compared to productivity and quality results show an increased output of 118% and a decrease in product defects by 31% when applying a platform-based approach.
Keywords: product platform, commonality, experimentation, product families