Syftet med studien var att studera fördelar samt utmaningar med att använda sig av modularisering. Vidare var syftet att undersöka hur kundens önskemål tas i beaktning vid produktutvecklingsprocessen för modulära produkter. Studien avgränsades till att undersöka ett svenskt teknikintensivt företag vars huvudsakliga produkterbjudande är lastbilar och bussar. En litteraturstudie genomfördes och låg till grund för resten av rapporten. Dessutom är rapporten baserad på en kvalitativ empirisk studie bestående av semistrukturerade intervjuer. Samtliga respondenter har goda kunskaper om modularisering och arbetar på olika avdelningar hos det studerade företaget. Studien visar många fördelar och utmaningar med att ha en modulär produktarkitektur. En av de främsta fördelarna är en stor slutproduktsvariantbildning vilket möjliggör skapande av högst kundanpassade produkter. Produktarkitekturen skapar tillfredsställda kunder som är- villiga att betala ett högre pris. Inom produktion leder den modulära produktarkitekturen till ett effektivare arbete samt kortare ledtider. Produkterna tillverkas efter order vilket minskar lagernivåerna samt logistikkostnaderna. Vid produktutveckling är det av stor betydelse att förhålla sig till befintliga gränssnitt och formfaktorer vilket gör att det krävs mer tankeverksamhet samt att kompromisser ibland behöver göras. Det är ett komplext system i många aspekter vilket ökar behovet av en stark företagskultur och en stabil IT-infrastruktur. / This report aims to study the benefits and challenges of using modularization. The purpose was also to investigate how customer requirements are taken into account in the product development process for modular products. The study was limited to examining a Swedish technology-intensive company whose main product offerings are trucks and buses. A literature review served as the basis for the rest of the report. In addition, the report is based on a qualitative empirical study consisting of semi-structured interviews. All respondents have good knowledge of modularization and work in different departments at the studied company. The study demonstrated many advantages and challenges of having a modular product architecture. One of the primary benefits was a large number of possible end product variations, which allows for highly customized products. Thus, the product architecture enables satisfied customers, making them willing to pay a higher price. In production, the modular product architecture leads to more efficient work and shorter lead times. Products are manufactured by make-to-order, reducing inventory levels and logistics costs. In product development, it is crucial to adhere to existing interfaces and form factors, which requires more thoughtful consideration and sometimes compromises. It is a complex system in many aspects, increasing the need for a strong corporate culture and a stable IT-infrastructure.

Detta projekt utfördes som examensarbete för högskoleingenjörsexamen i innovationsteknik och design, 22,5 högskolepoäng, vid Karlstads universitet. Som uppdragsgivare stod Reminiscor AB. Uppkomsten av projektet låg i en förfrågan från företaget att utveckla ett moduluppbyggt pedalbord för gitarrister.Det här produktutvecklingsprojektet genomfördes med användarkrav och användarönskemål i fokus för att definiera lämpliga funktioner för och utformning av ett modulbaserat pedalbord. Arbetet inleddes med att undersöka utbudet av olika typer av pedalbord och effektpedaler på marknaden. Intervjuer med gitarrister i olika åldrar och från olika genrer genomfördes för att skapa en uppfattning om gemensamma krav och önskemål som kunde ligga till grund för det fortsatta arbetet. Utifrån observation av pedalbordsanvändning och litteraturstudier ingick även ergonomiska avvägningar i utformningen av konceptet.Konceptet som projektet resulterade i togs fram bl.a. med hjälp av Modular Function Deployment-MFD, en metod för att finna lämplig modulindelning av produkter. Denna metod innefattar Quality Function Deployment-QFD, funktionsanalys, modulindikationsmatris-MIM, utvärdering och förbättring på modulnivå. Arbetet presenterar även hållfasthetsberäkningar och visualisering av det framtagna pedalbordskonceptet.Det framtagna konceptet består av sex olika moduler av två olika typer, främre och bakre. Dessa finns i sin tur i tre olika längder som kan kombineras och monteras samman för att utgöra pedalbord av olika storlek. Varje enskild modul är dessutom försedd med en funktion som gör att monteringsytan för pedaler kan ställas i olika inbördes vinklar. På så sätt möjliggör modulerna ett pedalbord med stora anpassningsmöjligheter för användaren. / This is a Degree Project for a Degree of Bachelor of Science in Innovation and Design Engineering, 22.5 ECTS Credits, at Karlstad university on assignment by Remiscor AB. The project originated in a request from Reminiscor AB to develop a modular pedalboard for guitarists.In order to define appropriate functions and design of a modular pedalboard, user requirements was the focus point of this product development project. The early stages of the project involved research on the range of different kinds of pedalboards and effects pedals offered on the market. Interviews with guitarists of different age and from different genres were carried out to give an understandingo f common demands and preferenses, to serve as a foundation for further work. From observation of pedalboard use and litterature studies, the design of the concept also included ergonomical considerations.One of the methods used to develop the concept that this project resulted in was Modular Function Deployment-MFD. This method helps defining an appropriate modular structure in a product. It involves Quality Function Deployment-QFD, function analysis, Module Indication Matrix-MIM, evaluation and improvement on a modular level. This work also present calculations on Solid Mechanics and visualisation of the developed pedalboard concept.The presented concept consists of six different modules divided into two types, front and back. Each of these include three different lengths that can be combined to constitute pedalboards of different sizes. Each individual module contain a function to enable different angle settings of the pedal mounting surface, independent of adjacent modules. With these properties, the modules make a pedalboard with considerable customization options for the user possible.

Rolls-Royce AB in Kristinehamn, Sweden, part of Rolls-Royce Marine, is a leading developer and supplier of water jet and propeller based propulsion equipment. Its low volume production series and wide product variety offered to its customers along with an increasingly competitive market has entailed an increased demand on both delivery time and cost reductions. The on-site manufacturing engineering department is responsible for developing all tools and fixtures, and programming required to maintain the on-site production, assembling and quality testing. As part of the departments streamlining efforts this study aimed on evaluating streamlining possibilities related to the existing tool design used for static balancing and function testing controllable pitch propeller assemblies before packaging and shipping, along with the related tool development and manufacturing processes has been conducted.The process evaluation started from the point when a hub assembly design was finalized until when a manufactured tool was delivered for use in production. Work focused on locating inefficient activities and product properties, with respect to tool cost and lead time, followed by setting up an amendment proposal, implementing it and producing an alternate tool design of which the effects on tool cost and manufacturing lead time would be evaluated. Post evaluating the current state of the process and product a set based front loaded product development methodology known as Modular Function Deployment was chosen to be the applied method. This application resulted in a modular tool design that avoided the determined most inefficient manufacturing operation combination of welding and annealing. Modularity increased manufacturing flexibility, enabling more concurrent manufacturing, to reduce the lead time. The tool design also applied integral properties by identifying the common components and features between tool sizes. This led to reducing manufacturing and material costs. Possible lead time reduction for manufacturing was determined to be 35-45%, 3-4weeks, in comparison with the original tool design due to increased parallel manufacturing and avoiding inefficient manufacturing methods. The estimated cost reduction for combined development and manufacturing was determined to be 105K SEK the initial year followed by 175K SEK the second year assuming the current tool manufacturing rate. The combined effects of reduced cost and lead time would be beneficial to Rolls-Royce AB by contributing to an increase in delivery reliability and competitive prices on the market

Modular product architecture is characterized by the existence of standardized interfaces between the physical building blocks. A module is a collection of technical solutions that perform a function, with interfaces selected for company-specific strategic reasons. Approaches to modularity are the structured methods by which modular product architectures are derived. The approaches include Modular Function Deployment (MFD), Design Structure Matrix (DSM), Function Structure Heuristics and many other, including hybrids. The thesis includes a survey of relevant theory and a discussion of four challenges in product architecture research, detailed in the appended papers. One common experience from project work is structured methods such as DSM or MFD often do not yield fully conclusive results. This is usually because the algorithms used to generate modules do not have enough relevant data. Thus, we ask whether it is possible to introduce new data to make the output more conclusive. A case study is used to answer this question. The analysis indicates that with additional properties to capture product geometry, and flow of matter, energy, or information, the output is more conclusive. If product development projects even have an architecture definition phase, very little time is spent actually selecting the most suitable tool. Several academic models are available, but they use incompatible criteria, and do not capture experience-based or subjective criteria we may wish to include. The research question is whether we can define selection criteria objectively using academic models and experience-based criteria. The author gathers criteria from three academic models, adds experience criteria, performs a pairwise comparison of all available criteria and applies a hierarchical cluster analysis, with subsequent interpretation. The resulting evaluation model is tested on five approaches to modularity. Several conclusions are discussed. One is that of the five approaches studied, MFD and DSM have the most complementary sets of strengths and weaknesses, and that hybrids between these two fundamental approaches would be particularly interesting. The majority of all product development tries to improve existing products. A common criticism against all structured approaches to modularity is they work best for existing products. Is this perhaps a misconception? We ask whether MFD and DSM can be used on novel product types at an early phase of product development. MFD and DSM are applied to the hybrid drive train of a Forwarder. The output of the selected approaches is compared and reconciled, indicating that conclusions about a suitable modular architecture can be derived, even when many technical solutions are unknown. Among several conclusions, one is the electronic inverter must support several operating modes that depend on high-level properties of the drive train itself (such as whether regeneration is used). A modular structure for the electronic inverter is proposed. Module generation in MFD is usually done with Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA), where the results are presented in the form of a Dendrogram. Statistical software can generate a Dendrogram in a matter of seconds. For DSM, the situation is different. Most available algorithms require a fair amount of processing time. One popular algorithm, the Idicula-Gutierrez-Thebeau Algorithm (IGTA), requires a total time of a few hours for a problem of medium complexity (about 60 components). The research question is whether IGTA can be improved to execute faster, while maintaining or improving quality of output. Two algorithmic changes together reduce execution time required by a factor of seven to eight in the trials, and improve quality of output by about 15 percent. / QC 20120605