Fundamentals of Managing an Outsourced (CM) Value Stream

This article will cover the management of a contract manufacturer (CM) value stream from the perspective of a company that has outsourced the manufacturing of its product.  A typical CM model is most likely “turn-key” such that the “Company” purchases the only finished goods from the CM.  Part/component purchases are a shared responsibility between the…

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Validation / Systems Engineering (Part 4)

In this final article of the series, we will cover the right leg of the “V” diagram which illustrates the process of verifying and integrating hardware into the system.  We are ensuring all components, subassemblies and subsystems work together as required; full functionality of the system is successfully verified, meets validated requirements and customer needs…

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Validation / Systems Engineering (Part 3)

In Part 1 and Part 2 of this article series, we described validation engineering as the process of validating, monitoring and execution of product requirements to ensure customer needs are met.  The validation engineer is the validation process owner and works with subject matter experts to develop complete, accurate and testable requirements.  We proposed the…

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Validation / Systems Engineering (Part 2)

In Part 1 of this article series, we described validation engineering as the process of validating, monitoring and execution of product requirements to ensure customer needs are met.  The validation engineer is the validation process owner and works with subject matter experts to develop complete, accurate and testable requirements.  We proposed the following “V” diagram…

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Enabling People, Processes and Product Development

Clear roles and responsibilities for project managers and team leaders can significantly improve alignment of skillsets and overall teamwork A generally accepted principle for a successful business is great people, processes & products. This can be further simplified as “maximizing customer value and minimizing cost” of the product. Consider the following: Product Development, Process Improvement…

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Enabling Customer Value in Product Design

Use an Integrated Approach in the Product Life Cycle Process to Enable Customer Value Given our primary goal of developing a profitable product, our objective in the design process is to maximize customer value and minimize cost.  From a financial analysis standpoint: we pursue products with the highest possible margins (ie. charge the customer “as…

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