Aus der Einleitung: "Die Produktmodularität beeinflusst den finanziellen Erfolg eines Unternehmens (Eitelwein & Weber 2008). Das wirtschaftliche Einsparpotenzial der Produktmodularisierung wird dabei im Wesentlichen durch die Wiederverwendung von Produktkomponenten und der damit verbundenen Skalen- und Lernkurveneffekte erzielt (Göpfert 1998, Schölling 1997, Kersten & Koppenhagen 2002). Modularität ist von firmenspezifischen Faktoren abhängig (Hohnen 2010). Die Kenntnis dieser Faktoren und deren quantitative Ausprägung sind Voraussetzung für eine Determinierung der Produktmodularität hinsichtlich eines Kostenoptimums. Da diese Einflüsse nicht nur firmenspezifisch sind, sondern insbesondere von Produktsparte zu Produktsparte variieren (siehe Eitelwein & Weber 2008), ist es zweckmäßig, die jeweilige Modularität zu ermitteln und diese in Form einer Anforderung als Eingangsgröße an die Produktentwicklung weiter zu geben. Daraus leitet sich die Notwendigkeit einer Vorgehensweise ab, die es ermöglicht, die Modularität eines Produktes analysieren zu können und eine eindeutig quantifizierbare Aussage über die Modularität auszugeben."

In the pursuit of excellence industrial companies are increasingly employing production system development to rationalize their processes. One such approach that has been employed to great extend in the automotive industry is that of introducing modularity to the product design. This shift from integral products to modular ones, is associated with a higher level of standardization of parts and processes. However, researchers are still mapping out this correlation. As the connection between modularity and the recorded effects is still up for discussion, still fewer studies have been made on how to most effectively adopt modularisation. This thesis is therefore a research that explores the relationship between product design and production from a perspective of production system development. It is a collaborative study conducted with a manufacturer of industrial robots that is preparing to transition from an integral product design to a modular one. The case study utilizes discrete – event simulation to model the impact of such a changeover in the production system. Not resulting in a step-by-step how-to guide, the study nevertheless shows that discrete – event simulation can prove to be a valuable asset both when analysing what-if scenarios and when pinpointing pre-emptive measures in order to mitigate any negative disruption such a transition might initially bring.

The world and its economy is going through countless and significant changes. Intangible assets are one of these changes due to the economy and the society have a higher demand for information than before. Nevertheless, tangible assets are still important assets within the economy since no economy will function without tangible assets. Intangible assets and tangible assets can contribute to that a business is gaining competitive advantages and thereby, increasing the level of profits. The focal study has been performed at Sweco Environment AB and aims to investigate how intangible assets and tangible assets contribute to increased gross profits within a specific service industry, where a modular product can be implemented. A modular product wasinvestigated in order to find differences and similarities which can affect a business’ opportunities to generate increased gross profit. The focal study is limited to a modular product and a specific industry, where it can be applied. In order to perform the focal study, scientific articles, books and reports have been utilised to form a foundation of the theoretical framework. The theoretical framework consists of sustainability, modularity and economics. Subsequently, a combination of a qualitative and quantitative research has been conducted. The qualitative research included observations and semi-structured interviews with experienced participants within the field. The quantitative research contained archival records with annual financial statements and balance sheets of private corporations within the Swedish market. The archival records were used in order to perform the econometric analysis. The results from the observations and interviews demonstrated a holistic picture of the nonmodular product and the modular product. The main differences were found within the process from customer order to utilisation and the leasing option for the modular product. The econometric analysis which was performed in the specific service industry indicated that tangible assets were not statistically significant meanwhile, intangible assets were statistically significant. A 1 % increase in intangible assets contribute to 0.088 % increase in gross profit per employee. By investing in intangible assets does not only contribute to increased gross profits, it can also lead to competitive advantages.

Aus der Einleitung: "Die Produktmodularität beeinflusst den finanziellen Erfolg eines Unternehmens (Eitelwein & Weber 2008). Das wirtschaftliche Einsparpotenzial der Produktmodularisierung wird dabei im Wesentlichen durch die Wiederverwendung von Produktkomponenten und der damit verbundenen Skalen- und Lernkurveneffekte erzielt (Göpfert 1998, Schölling 1997, Kersten & Koppenhagen 2002). Modularität ist von firmenspezifischen Faktoren abhängig (Hohnen 2010). Die Kenntnis dieser Faktoren und deren quantitative Ausprägung sind Voraussetzung für eine Determinierung der Produktmodularität hinsichtlich eines Kostenoptimums. Da diese Einflüsse nicht nur firmenspezifisch sind, sondern insbesondere von Produktsparte zu Produktsparte variieren (siehe Eitelwein & Weber 2008), ist es zweckmäßig, die jeweilige Modularität zu ermitteln und diese in Form einer Anforderung als Eingangsgröße an die Produktentwicklung weiter zu geben. Daraus leitet sich die Notwendigkeit einer Vorgehensweise ab, die es ermöglicht, die Modularität eines Produktes analysieren zu können und eine eindeutig quantifizierbare Aussage über die Modularität auszugeben."

The increase in competition amongst companies that produce complex or large product portfolios has created a need to utilise modularity strategies not only to flexibly manage technical complexity in a costeffective manner but also for visual appearance. This research aims to understand how the visual appearance of products is affected by modular product development strategies. Specifically, the aim is to understand how such strategies induce constraints and generate possibilities for management of visual appearance in the design process. Five studies have been conducted during the course of this licentiate thesis. Two were conducted with professionals and students in design, while the remaining three are theoretical studies based on findings in the literature, theory building, and experimental research. The goal has been to investigate how designers work when they are put to the task of changing and developing the designs of complex products that are part of a portfolio. The challenge has been to study what suitable strategies exist that manage complex products and product brands, then investigate how these influence designers’ practices. The first study examined how coherence towards a product category influences the design of new products. The outcome of the study was a method to explore visual coherence and diversity in the appearance of a product category. The remaining four studies investigated how modularity, brand management and the redesign of product portfolios influence a design process. The second study described a design phenomenon known as aesthetic flexibility, which was further explored in studies three and five. The outcome from these studies was a proposal for four aesthetic flexibility strategies. The fourth study investigated in what way portfolio extension strategies found in brand management and design research are related, and how such strategies influence aesthetic flexibility. The results from study four were illustrated as a model. The main contribution of this work is the phenomenon of ‘aesthetic flexibility’, which helps understand the factors that influence designers when working with branded modular products. Understanding visual flexibility serves as a starting point in further investigations of how different development strategies affect the possibilities for visual product design. The findings of this work serve to illustrate and explain a complex and multi-facetted design phenomenon which many designers manage more or less intuitively today, thus advancing academics’, teachers’ and professional designers’ understanding of the field.

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