Int. J.

Production Economics 60—61 (1999) 251—260

Concurrent engineering for global manufacturing

Hassan S. Abdalla*
Department of Mechanical Manufacturing Engineering, De Montfort University Leicester, The Gateway, Leicester LE1 9BH, UK

Abstract
This paper presents the state of the art of the research work carried out within the multi-national collaborative
programme IMS-Test Case 3 “Global Concurrent Engineering”. The project’s aims were to identify the critical
constraints with respect to global manufacturing, and to synthesise the best practices of concurrent engineering (CE) in
a number of industrial sectors including automotive, aerospace, telecommunication, shipbuilding, and information
technology. The consortium was constructed from a cohesive group of world class companies and research institutions
from the USA, Canada, and Europe. The research outcome indicated that effective communication, a systematic
involvement of customers, suppliers; distributors, powerful information infrastructure, and effective use of modern
technology are vital key elements for success.  1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Globalisation; Concurrent engineering; Product life cycle; Organisational strategy; Communication infra-
structure; Functions co-location; Multi-disciplinary teams

1. Background competitiveness. The measures for productivity are

usually based on time to market, product cost,
Concurrent engineering (CE) is the consideration market share, and quality. In reality, these factors
of the factors associated with the life cycle of the are interrelated and CE strategy is to target a mix
product during the design phase. These factors of all these factors to give an overall framework to
include product functionality, manufacturing, as- organisations. For example, taking into account
sembly, testing, maintenance, reliability, cost and the design processes, as early as possible during
quality. Concurrent engineering is important be- the product life-cycle development, might expose
cause it is at the design stage that such aspects as alternative solutions that could provide remarkable
product quality and cost are specified. The essence quality improvement for an insignificant cost
of CE is not only the concurrency of the activities increase.
but also the cooperative effort from all the involved Over the last few years considerable research
teams, which leads to improving profitability and work has been directed towards investigating the
techniques and tools needed for implementing con-
current engineering strategy. A premier effort was
* Tel.: #44 1162 577097; fax: #44 1162 577052; e-mail: conducted at West Virginia University’s Concur-
ha@[Link], [Link] rent Engineering Research Centre (CERC) [1,2].

0925-5273/99/$ - see front matter  1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
PII: S 0 9 2 5 - 5 2 7 3 ( 9 8 ) 0 0 1 5 2 - 2
252 H.S. Abdalla/Int. J. Production Economics 60—61 (1999) 251—260

The objectives of the research work undertaken at provement of manufacturing processes was pre-
CERC were to develop a system that facilitate data sented by Senechal and Tahon [11].
interchange so that design data from one system Glover et al. [12] described the significance of
can be used by other systems. It also permits virtual implementing the software tools “SYNTHESIS” to
meetings with voice, graphics, text, and video capa- integrate Reliability and Maintainability (R&D)
bilities. The CE wheel-set which encompasses two into the early stage of the product-life cycle devel-
wheels, the first “represents the integrated product opment. SYNTHESIS tools enable each partici-
and process organisation” issue and the second pant to productively contribute to concurrent
wheel “accomplishes the integrated product devel- engineering and design decision process. This sys-
opment theme” was presented by Prasad [3,4]. tem can be seen as an effective tool for supporting
O’Brien [5] discussed different approaches for im- multi-disciplinary design teams which is a critical
plementing CE strategy. He highlights the need for element of CE. A CE environment for micro-CAD
“better information systems, and decision support systems, based on a commercially available local
tools to support CE activities”. O’Grady et al. [6] area network operating system, in order to provide
introduced an approach to CE using artificial intel- adequate facilities for managing team-based design
ligence constraint networks. The system uses con- projects has been developed by Gay et al. [13]. Oh
straint networks that can advise designers on and Park [14] proposed an integrated decision
improvements that can be made to the design. The model in which decisions on product and process
advantage of this system that it is flexible enough to design are simultaneously performed through eco-
allow design problems to be approached from nomic evaluation at each stage. This approach
a variety of viewpoints. A system approach to the minimises the product cost under a set of strategic
design of mechanical components where con- constraints defined by the organisation. The model
straints associated with design attributes of a con- was tested on designing a printed circuit board
current engineering environment was presented by to demonstrate the effectiveness of a concurrent
Dowlatshahi [7]. The proposed approach is ca- product and process.
pable of reflecting the results in an optimisation El-Gizawy et al. [15] described an approach for
model leading to the identification of product con- integration of product, process and tooling design
figuration. Finger and Fox [8] developed a system and systematic method for acquiring and analysing
that surrounds designers with experts and advisors information about capabilities and limitations of
that provide continuous feedback based on in- the manufacturing processes. The suggested strat-
cremental analysis of the design as it evolves. The egy allows for the timely evaluation of the effects of
system uses constraints as a language by which changing product and process design parameters
perspectives (e.g., comments on its manufacturabil- on the performance of manufacturing as measured
ity) communicate with one another and with the by cost effectiveness and productivity indices. Sim-
user. These perspectives are coordinated through ilar approach for quality control planning of mech-
blackboard architecture. Shekhar and Azadivar [9] anical components was proposed by Abdalla [16].
present an expert system for information flow in A new methodology and tool based upon a process
a CE environment, their framework can be cus- modelling and analysis technique, aimed at assist-
tomised for a particular application. An open-sys- ing in re-engineering of organisational processes
tem platform for integrating different engineering and structures for a CE environment was introduced
tools and management services in order to maxi- by Pawar et al. [17]. A human-oriented approach
mise engineering design and production planning to computer supporting of CE in distributed enter-
efficiency was investigated within the framework of prises was discussed by Rohatynski [18] and
the ESPRIT project (CONSENS) [10]. The system Fernando et al. [19].
has the ability to support designers by monitoring Further studies still needed to address or develop
the manufacturability and estimating production more comprehensive methodology and tools to
cost of a designed part. A modelling approach for help designers conduct the CE discipline. A
production costing estimation and continuous im- key aspect of this methodology is to assure that
 H.S. Abdalla/Int. J. Production Economics 60—61 (1999) 251—260 253

components are manufacturable for the lowest pos- Table 1

sible cost in specially designed manufacturing facili- IMS Test case 3 consortium members
ties such as manufacturing cells. However, the
Organisation Country
implementation of CE strategy has been shown to
be non-trivial task inherent difficulties have to be Northern Telecom Canada
overcome before the full benefits can be accomp- Nokia Corporation Finland
lished. Since designers need to be equipped with Odense Steel Shipyard Denmark
effective and integrated information technology Trans Tec Ltd UK
Syntax Software Italy
tools, which act as a formal feedback route from the North Carolina State University USA
manufacturing phases. However, full realisation of Carleton University Canada
a successful concurrent engineering practice re- De Montfort University UK
quires cooperative team(s) to work on the product California Poly State University USA
development. This task is a difficult one for a num- Technical Univ. of Denmark Denmark
VTT Research Laboratory Finland
ber of reasons: firstly, lack of a comprehensive
model clearly describing the decision activities
in simultaneous product and process design; sec-
ondly, lack of sufficient computer-based tools, ca- ity to ensure the future viability of manufacturing
pable of supporting cooperative decision-making industries in a global market. The project objec-
activities. tives were: (i) to establish the extent to which CE is
The work undertaken in this project aims to practised; (ii) to identify the critical constraints with
develop a methodology for the development and respect to Global Manufacturing in terms of tech-
manufacturing of products based on the concept of nology, technology management and human re-
concurrent engineering, for organisations that op- sources; (iii) synthesise the best practices of CE and
erate on a global basis. Globalisation in this con- to diminish the effects of the critical constraints;
text means that the product or different parts of the (iv) to design an architecture of a CE System for
product can be manufactured in different sites global manufacturing, which represents a model of
around the world for a number of reasons, such as the functional activities, and (v) to disseminate the
technology and resource availability. This necessi- results through Global Concurrent Engineering
tates the fulfilment of some requirements as stated workshops. Researchers from a number of organ-
by Hayashi [20]: “a company may have various isations within the EU, the US, and Canada carried
facilities located around the world and to manage out the research work as part of the IMS feasibility
those facilities effectively, and to handle its policy study. The collaborators of the feasibility study are
making and production planning, a company needs listed in Table 1.
a communications network that interconnects its
multiple manufacturing plants and sales offices as
well as other facilities”. 3. Research methodology

A world-wide benchmarking survey was carried

2. Project aims and objectives out at the beginning of the project in order to
provide the information needed to define the best
The goal of this project was to demonstrate the CE practice and to build the GCE architecture. The
improvement that can be made to Global Manu- methodology developed to gather the necessary
facturing capabilities through the implementation information is illustrated in Fig. 1. Over 320 com-
of CE techniques which have been generated, tried, panies were identified, but only 150 distinguished
tested and evaluated within companies operating in organisations and companies were approached
national and international markets. It was believed as suitable candidates to participate in the study.
that this approach could improve designs, reduce The selection of those companies was based on
product lead times, reduce costs and improve qual- two major factors; firstly these companies were
254 H.S. Abdalla/Int. J. Production Economics 60—61 (1999) 251—260

Fig. 2. IMS-GCE questionnaire structure.

Fig. 1. Research methodology.

considered as market leader in their respective field

and claim that their success is partially as a result of
practising concurrent engineering. This claim was
confirmed during the preliminary market analysis,
which was carried out as part of this study and
indicated that these companies, respond to the
market demand much quicker than their competi-
tors, and deliver a product at a competitive cost
without any compromise on the quality. Secondly,
these companies are actively manufacturing and
marketing their products in different countries
world-wide. Following the identification of the
companies, questionnaires were designed to ad-
dress a wide range of issues to establish how GCE is Fig. 3. The corporate strategy for a product development.
exercised in those organisations participated in this
research. The questionnaires were also designed in
such a way to allow examination of different factors agement and project teams. This level of analysis
for New Product Development (NPD) activities. focuses on factors determining the effectiveness of
To ensure that suitable feedback is achieved, logical GCE practices at the development program and
and quantitative types of questions were addressed project level. It surveys project team leaders, design
and included in the questionnaires. and manufacturing team members, and managers
The questionnaires consist of three parts: corpo- working directly with project teams. The third level
rate level, management issue, and psychological of analysis was the infra-project level which exam-
issues, as shown in Fig. 2. The corporate level was ines the internal operation of teams in terms of how
addressed by a questionnaire which aims to exam- team members interact, communicate, and co-
ine corporate policies as shown in Fig. 3, strategies operate towards achieving the project goals.
and practices during the implementation of GCE The strength of this GCE research concept was
and the organisation of product development with- to allow the linkage of these three levels of analysis
in those identified companies. The second level of within each company. Since corporate or business
analysis examines the relationships between man- unit strategy was linked directly to project team
 H.S. Abdalla/Int. J. Production Economics 60—61 (1999) 251—260 255

decisions and processes, which in turn linked to perspectives. It is the process of comparing business
measure team satisfaction, cohesion and commit- practices and performance levels between com-
ment. It also allows for the hypotheses concerning panies in order to gain new insights and to identify
the relative merit of different CE strategies and opportunities for making improvements. The ma-
policies in influencing the outcomes of specific de- jor benefit is likely to be achieved by focusing on
velopment projects, both in terms of meeting busi- those areas of the business that are critical in driv-
ness goals and management satisfaction with the ing competitive success. Benchmarking enables
development process. companies to set strategy and identify new tech-
niques and maintains the stimulus for continuous
improvement. It also addresses problems encoun-
4. Benchmarking strategy tered by companies during implementing new tech-
nology and techniques, and leads to better
The essence of benchmarking is based on com- understanding of the customer expectations; fewer
petitive performance according to other external complaints and better customer satisfaction; faster

Table 2
The benchmarking data analysis approach
256 H.S. Abdalla/Int. J. Production Economics 60—61 (1999) 251—260

awareness of important innovations and how they practising CE strategy. The benefits and barriers of
can be applied profitably; a stronger reputation implementing CE are also reviewed.
within industry; improving skills and the general
performance of company’s workforce. The key for
best benchmarking practice emphasises on under- 5.1. Steps taken for implementing CE
standing the actual performance of the business
rather than just comparing results [21]. Due to the diversity of the data collected from
The collected data were analysed using the ap- the five industrial sectors involved in the
proach shown in Table 2 to identify differences in benchmarking exercise, in terms of product nature,
performance levels and practices according to the size of companies, and its objectives, the steps taken
following benchmarking criteria: to implement CE varied from one company to
another. The various common steps taken by the
1. Generic benchmarking investigates the strategy
companies towards implementing CE strategy are
and practices of businesses in order to under-
shown in Fig. 4. Training for staff was regarded as
stand and learn from their experience.
the most vital step and ranked first with 56% of the
2. Functional benchmarking compares similar
companies have indicated the importance of this
functions in different industrial sectors such as
factor [22]. The management structure of 52% of
the manufacturing or the design process in Au-
the companies had to be reorganised in order to
tomotive, Aerospace, and Telecommunications.
utilise a Concurrent Engineering strategy. Func-
3. Competitor benchmarking compares between
tions collocation was considered by 44% of the
functions or performance and practices in sim-
companies participated in the benchmarking as an
ilar industries. For example, the current NPD
initial step. IT tools were used by almost 30% of the
strategy between company (A) and company (B)
companies to support CE, but was not regarded as
in Aerospace industry.
the strongest factor as some might have expected.
Samples of the benchmarking findings, parti- While innovation and globalisation were addressed
cularly the benefits, the barriers and the methods as key strategic issues for GCE [23].
adopted by companies practising CE strategy are
discussed in the following sections.
5.2. Barriers to CE implementation

5. Some of the benchmarking findings The major barriers reported during practising
CE were management reluctance and resistance to
The results have shown that best practices of CE
require the formation and support of multi-func-
tional development teams that set product and
process parameters early in the design phase, deci-
sions made in the first 20% of the development
cycle usually determine almost 80% of the prod-
uct’s performance, producibility, reliability, main-
tainability, schedule, and life-cycle costs. The
ingredients of a successful development team re-
quire process management and organisation, team
structure and dynamics, common information tech-
nology and integrated multi-discipline processes
and development practices. Further discussion re-
garding some of the findings are presented briefly in
the following sections including the steps and
methods which are adopted by companies currently Fig. 4. Steps taken for implementing GCE.
 H.S. Abdalla/Int. J. Production Economics 60—61 (1999) 251—260 257

Fig. 6. Benefits gained during implementing GCE.

Fig. 5. Problems encountered during implementing GCE.

change, as 41% of the companies involved reported ucts to market at higher quality and less cost.
(see Fig. 5). Lack of expertise or information and Through team working and the support of inte-
poor definition of CE were highlighted by 33% of grated information technology tools designers as
the participants as major difficulties to persuade well as manufacturing planners were able to cope
employees of the philosophy. Similar outcomes with late changes, share data with other parties
were stressed in the British Design Council’s survey involved in the product development process. Some
where 70% [25] of the companies indicated that of the benefits gained by companies participated in
lack of information and difficulty in knowing where this exercise as a result of implementing concurrent
to start was crucial barrier to CE implementation. engineering best practise are illustrated in Fig. 6.
Lack of training was another obstacle and was Shorter time to market (70%), better communica-
reported by 41% of the companies. These results tion (59%), and better quality (56%) were seen as
emphasise the necessity of training for management direct reward of practising CE. Reduction in design
as well as employees in order to have a clear under- changes, which means shorter ramp-up time and
standing of CE best practices. improving competitiveness, were highlighted by al-
Companies which have been practising concur- most 48% of the participants [22]. Reductions in
rent engineering have also focused on team building testing, quality failures, and life-cycle cost were also
skills and the use of total quality management achieved through the consideration of concurrent
(TQM), and quality function deployment (QFD) as product and process design.
successful techniques which entail the involvement
of customers and suppliers as principal players with
a key role in the success of the business. However, 6. Specifications of the GCE system
lack of IT tools was hardly mentioned as a major
barrier as it was reported by only a few of the Developing a generic GCE system requires
companies. This indicates that the implementation gathering information in specific areas including
of concurrent engineering requires changes in the functional, informational, resources, organisational
organisational, managerial, and cultural as well as and cultural aspects at different levels. The func-
technical aspects. tional area gathers specifications and constraints
referred to product development process and pro-
jects. The product development processes have the
5.3. Benefits of concurrent engineering meaning of grouping tasks and sub-tasks that
organise, optimise, and define the guidelines to
The outcome of this study indicated that CE produce the information about products and their
enables industrialists to quickly bring quality prod- production process under the consideration of the
258 H.S. Abdalla/Int. J. Production Economics 60—61 (1999) 251—260

whole product life cycle. The information area is the right quality and quantity of data when it is
tightly coupled with the functional area since it necessary.
aims to bring together all specifications and con- Operational level: This level addresses the re-
straints referred to production, exchange and share quirements of hardware and software needed to
of information created during the performance of improve product development processes within the
a product development process. The resources area resources area. These requirements are:
gathers the specifications and constraints referred (i) To harmonise product process development and
to the necessary support to realise the activities in tools or systems in a configurable and flexible way.
a company and deals mainly with hardware and (ii) Simulation tools in all aspects of product
software supports, with human resources and development process, and production process.
financial capabilities. The organisational area fo- (iii) Tools to generate geometrical data at early
cuses on the requirements that deal with a set of phases of the development process.
relations between people and the organisational
structure within an enterprise. It also embraces
specifications and constraints linked with multi- 7. Lessons learned from the international
disciplinary teams. The cultural area investigates collaboration
the way a group(s) of people who share same objec-
tives and have some sort of cohesion think, can Working in an effective international collabora-
cooperate towards achieving those goals. tion provides industrialists and academics with
After gathering all information required, the a clear vision and experience that is necessary for
analysis process was carried out and the system improving global product management operations.
specifications and constraints were classified into There is no doubt that globalisation of manufactur-
three principal classes [24]. ing requires efficient transfer of manufacturing
Strategic level: Specifications at this level refer to knowledge from various regions. The project par-
the product in terms of key success factors for ticipants have gained experience as a result of the
a company. The requirements in this class are cor- benchmarking exercise, through monitoring their
related to the objectives of high management level. company performance versus others in similar in-
Aspects such as shorter time to market, increase dustrial sectors. Other experiences include:
market share, reduce product development costs,
E Discovering the pitfalls of their business and learn
and increase quality represent major concern at
more effective management strategies. The
this level.
benchmarking exercise has given a better insight
¹actical level: Specifications at this level refer to
for improving productivity and quality of products.
the product development process, and are directly
E The international collaboration itself was an ex-
linked to the intermediate management level. This
ercise in giving the consortium real insight on
class brings together specifications about func-
how multi-disciplinary teams could be managed,
tional, informational, organisational, and cultural
how data can be shared amongst teams from
areas. First the functional view: within this view,
different domains, and how conflicts amongst
requirements for three different sub-aspects were
team members can be resolved.
addressed as follows: (i) Product development pro-
E The feasibility study has addressed a number of
cess which covers optimisation and standardisation
research areas, which need further investigation
requirements for the development process. The
in order to fulfil the requirements for establishing
constraints include the limitation of available
a GCE environment. It has also identified some
methods and tools, and costs. (ii) Requirements in
of the shortfalls and reasons for why visionary
the area of product which includes standardisation
objectives could not be achieved.
of products. Second, is the information view
and the major focus in this view are to share consis- The consortium members have learnt that deal-
tent information as soon as possible to improve ing with this type of projects requires clear and
the level of paralellisation of tasks and to share strong project management strategy.
 H.S. Abdalla/Int. J. Production Economics 60—61 (1999) 251—260 259

8. Conclusions [2] Information Sharing Systems Manual (Release 1.0),

CERC-TR-RN-93-026, Concurrent Engineering Research
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