UNIT 12 FACTORS AFFECTING PRODUCT

DESIGN
Structure
12.1 Introduction
Objectives

12.2 Factors Affecting Product Design

12.3 Designing for Production - Economic Factors
12.4 Summary
12.5 Key Words
12.6 Answers to SAQs

12.1 INTRODUCTION
Product design can be defined as the idea generation, concept development, testing and
manufacture or implementation of product. Product designers conceptualise and evaluate
ideas, making them tangible through products in more systematic approach. There are
large number of factors which influence the product design. These factors may be
technical or economical.

Objectives
After studying this unit, you should be able to
. describe the factors affecting product design, and
explain the technical and economical factors.

12.2 FACTORS AFFECTING PRODUCT DESIGN

There is a large member of factors which influence product design. These factors belong
to different fields in production and industrial engineering. Also these factors vary in
degree of complexity and character. These factors can be broadly classified in four
groups :
(a) Technical factors
(b) Industrial design factors

(c) Designing for production - economic factors

(d) Other factors
Technical Factors
Operating Conditions
The product designer should consider the type of persons (men, women,
infants, children, skilled, unskilled, and the like) who would use the product 43 1
Product Design and and the environmental conditions in which the product will be used. For
Development example, the noise level, vibration level, temperature and humidity level,
etc. at which the product will be operated should be given due consideration
while designing product. A product designed to operate under one set of
operating conditions may not work satisfactorily under other set of operating
conditions.
Performnnce Parameters
This concerns the speed, feed, etc. at which the product will be used, the
accuracy and quality in performance needed, and the expected duration of
continuous satisfactory working of the product. A product is designed to
give certaln level of performance, and to meet speclfic levels of performance .
the designs will be different.
Maintenance
The product design will be affected by the maintenance factors llke - how
often maintenance and repair can be undertaken; whether planned or
breakdown maintenance will be adopted by the product user, etc. Product
designs vary with respect to the way the products can be maintained. A
design which allows the product to be maintained and repaired by the user
himself is definitely considered better than the one which requires the
specialists for maintenance.
Industrial Design Factors
Functional Aspect
Product designs vary with regards tc functional scope of the product.
Questions such as the following should be considered, as the answers to
these will affect the product design to a great extent.
a What the product is supposed to do?
a How the product is supposed to do it?
a How can it offer any functional attraction compared with the
competitor's product?
a What controls of the product will be automatic and what
manual? etc.
The answers to these questions will vary from person to person and time to
time. A designer with creative mind will invariably come up with new or
modified product designs. -
Operational Aspect
After considering the functional aspect, the operational aspect should be
considered. A'product design should be such that the final product would be
easy to handle and simple to operate. It should be adaptable to various
operational conditions. Products should be designed for increased
versatility. Further, the design should ensure that the product will always be
correctly operated and the possibility of mis-operating it is not permitted. To
illustrate, suppose there is the requirement that a product (say for example, a
mixer cum grinder) must be operated initially at low speed and if needed,
the low speed be increased to a higher one in stages. The design of such a
product should have (say) four switches. First one for START, which will
run the equipment initially at low speed. Operating the subsequent switches
marked 1,2 and 3 will stepwise raise the speed to the highest, and all the
switches are interlocked such that they can be operated only in the specific
sequence.
44
Reliability, Durability, Dependabilzty and Safety Factors Affecting
Product Design
All these terms refer to functional quality aspects of product. Reliability is
the probability that a product will satisfactorily perform its function in the
required manner over its intended life under a given set of environmental
cond~tions.The reliability considerations in product design and development
process are very important because they determine the reliability of the
design itself to a large extent. Many reliability-related tasks are performed
during this phase, including establishing reliability requirements definition,
developing reliability programme plan, reliability modeling, reliability
allocations, reliability predictions, failure modes effects and criticality
analysis, reliability growth testing, subcontractorlsuppliermonitoring and
control, and environmental stress screening. Tasks such as these, if
performed properly, lead to one of the most critical contributions to product
design and development.
The reliability of the product is not only dependent on the design, but also it
is a function of the product that is manufactured from that design. Thus, a
carefUl performance of various reliability activities during the production
process is absolutely necessary to produce a reliability effective product.
During the production process, the reliability tasks basically address the
design and control of the manufacturing process. These tasks include the use
of screening methods to identify defective parts and to highlight flaws
introduced into the product by the production process. The important factors
of reliability during the production process include the control of the
production processes, component/part quality, focus on and control of
changes to design/processes/parts,and the control of variability.
It is important to keep a reliable product functional in a reliable manner.
This calls for the following steps :
(a) introducing changes to improve design,
(b) highlighting potential harmful factors, as well as keeping them
from degenerating the design under consideration, and
(c) providing appropriate and systematic introduction into service.
The operational phase is the ultimate stage where many hidden design
problems become quite transparent, and changes to the design may be
recommended. Some of the problems could be operator and maintainer
failures and the damaging of partslcomponents during maintenance actions.
The potential harmhl factors that could alter product reliability include
changes to the product operating modes, logistics support factors, operator
maintainer actions, and changes to replacement parts or processes. The poor
introduction of the product into service may decrease its reliability.
Systematically designed steps are therefore necessary to introduce the
product into operation.
Durability is the length of active life or endul..np* of the product under the
given working conditions. Dependability ana avsi~ii~;!iry (of product in
working condition, when needed for usc) are closely related. They signify
the capability of the product to function when called upon to do the job.
Safety is another important quality aspect of consumer and capital goods.
In order to produce safe products, it is of paramount importance to identify
hazards during the early stages of design. Because there could be many
different sources of hazards, the main classifications are as follows :
(a) Kinematic hazards
(b) Environmental hazards
(c) Electrical hazards
(d) Human factors hazards
 (e) Energy hazards
(f) Misuse-and abuse-related hazards
Locations where components or parts come together while moving and lead
to possible cutting, pinching, or crushing of any object caught between them
belong to the kinematic hazard classification.
The environmental hazards may be classified into two groups: internal and
external. In the case of internal hazards, the changes in the surrounding
environment lead to internally damaged product. For example, a drop in
temperature below O°C surrounding a water-cooled internal combustion
engine will result in an internally damaged engine. Also, during the design
phase to minimize or eliminate internal hazards, the product designer must
carefully consider factor such as extremes of temperatures, vibrations,
illumination level, atmospheric contaminants, electromagnetic radiation, and
ambient noise levels.
The external hazards are the hazards posed by the proposed product during
its life cycle, for example, service-life operation-related hazards,
maintenance related hazards, and disposal-related hazards.
The electrical hazards are a very important group of hazards. Two principal
electrical hazards are the shock hazard and the electrocution hazard. Also,
the major electrical hazard to property is from electrical faults, often referred
to as short circuits.
The human factors hazards are associated with poor design with respect to
the human element. The product or equipment design must carefully take
into consideration appropriate human factors to avoid related hazards. These
human factors include height, weight, intelligence, visual acuity,
computational ability, physical strength, education, visual angle, and length
of reach. Usually, for a given human factor, the common requirement is that
a product or equipment be usable by a person between the 5Ih and
95thpercentile.
The energy hazards may be divided into two categories: potential energy
and kinetic energy. The potential energy hazards are associated with
components that store energy. Some examples of such components are
springs, compressed-gas receivers, electric capacitors, and counterbalancing
weights. The stored energy can cause injury when released suddenly : thus
this type of hazard is particularly important during the servicing of the
equipment.
The kinetic energy hazards are associated with components that have energy
because of their motion. Such components include fan blades, flywheels.
and loom shuttles. Because these components have large amounts of kinetic
energy, any object interfering with their motion could be damaged
substantially.
Misuse-and abuse-related hazards are associated with product usage by
humans. Sometime misuse of products can lead to serious injury, and
product designers must carefblly consider the misuse of products under
design so that their misuse is either minimised or eliminated altogether. Poor
operating practices or lack of proper maintenance are normally the causes of
product abuse and ultimately can lead to hazardous situations.
In addition to the design, the material of the product and the production
process used for processing of material greatly influence these quality
aspects of product. For profit oriented organizations, the criterion for
selecting the optimum quality level is profit maximisation. The key
relationships are shown in Figure 12.1.
 I I
Optimum Quality level
quality
I
I
I

t I
I
I

Optimum Quality Level

quality

~( Figure 12.1 : Determination of Optimum Quality Level

Resthetics Aspect
This concerns the final shape appearance and size of the product. Aesthetics
make the product attractive and induce in the customer a willingness to
possess. The appearance of a product makes deep impressions on a buyer: it
may suggest power and speed in a car, durability in a machine tool,
cleanliness in hospital equipment or precision in an instrument. If there are
two products having approximately the same functions, the same cost, and
the same time required for delivery, the product with better appearance will
have greater sales appeal. The basic form of a washing machine, a
television, a chair or an orange squeezer is determined by its function,
utility, and many other factors. This basic form can be modified and given a
pleasing appearance by considering :
Unity - simplification of fo,. ..,prok ::qicnal relationship;
repetition

I Interest - emphasis; contrast; rhythm

Balance - symmetry

I Surface treatment - colour; texture

in product design means that the form of product is such that people will like
it instinctively. That means a design having unity, will have all the
Product Design and simplicity of form,
Development
proportional relationship, ahd
repetition.
When the eye sees a new thing, it immediately records its form, i.e. its
general geometry, such as a cube, a cylinder, a cone, a pyramid, a sphere, or
an ellipsoid. These simple forms lead to the development of all designs.
Proportion is concerned with the size relation of one part of design to other
components within the design or to the entire design as a whole. Unity in the
design is achieved principally by proportion.
Repetition, as the name implies, is concerned with the regular recurrence of
identical or similar components. Thus, the regular occurrence of such parts
as wheels or round push buttons, will lead to the blending together of the
various components in the design.
Interest : The designer can have contrasting elements placed and controlled
so as to attract and hold attention. To accomplish this, he introduces what is
termed as interest, i.e. calls for emphasis, contrast, and rhythm in his
designs.
Emphasis is achieved through prominence in size or colour. Thus, if through
repetition there is a series of four button groupings, emphasis can be
acquired by appreciably increasing the size of one of each of the sets of
buttons and/or by brightening the colour.
Contrast is used to highlight the differences among two or more components
or to stimulate emphasis on a given component of a design. It can be
obtained through size, colour or location. To give a feeling of strength or
safety, a member or section may be designed so that its location with a
similarly shaped section gives a feeling o f durability in view of,"contrast"
with the smaller, more insignificant component.
Rhythm in design exists as a result of the presence of a regular pattern of
elements. Thus, due to arrangements of components, the eye will move
along a design and see a regular pattern of similarly shaped components.
Simple rhythm may include alternating small and large shapes, while more
complicated rhythms may involve periodic combinations of size, shape and
colour.
Balance : Balance of design gives an immediate impression of stability to
the viewer. It is best achieved through symmetry. When two halves of an
object are identical, the halves are classified as being symmetrical.
Surface Treatment : The form of a product that the designer achieves is
appreciated to a large extent by sight and touch; in which the surface
treatment play a major role. The two factors that affect sight from the
standpoint of surface treatment are colour and surface texture.
Hum& Factors
In order to have an effective human - compatible product, the relevant
human factors must carefully be considered during the design stage. The
main objective should be to design a product that allows people to use it in
the most suitable manner, that possesses adaptability to humans, and that
does not subject the users to extreme physical or mental stress or to hazards.
Table 12.1 gives some general behaviour expectancies of people along with
proposed design considerations.
 Table 12.1 :General Behavioural Expectancies and Related Design Considerations Factors Affecting
Product Design

ecial attention to the handling aspect.

clear that its use
and that there is

Humans, in general, regard

manufactured products as being

,to the right, etc. to turn

recommended procedures for its

Designing products to suit human usage requires the data about the parts of
b human body and their abilities and limitations on how best they can be used
and the loadlstress they can carry or bear. This kind of information becomes
a key input in the design of consumer products (cars, appliances, shoes,
clothing, etc.) and industrial products (lathe, wheat grinding machine,
industrial stitching machines, industrial furnaces, etc.)
Recent trends point to the growing importance of designing products for
ease of use, ease of maintenance, and safety. In this context, automobile
design can be cited as a good example. Present day designs allow for greater
visibility, easy-to-read displays, more leg space, seats adjustable to
maximize driver comfort, an interior that is pleasing and safe in the event of
impact (collapsible steering wheel, padded dashboard rounded out knobs
and handles, etc.).
SAQ 1
(a) How factors affecting product design can be classified?
(b) What are the technical factors which affect product design?
(c) What are industrial design factors affecting product design?
Product Design and
Development 12.3 DESIGNING FOR PRODUCTION - ECONOMIC
FACTORS
Materials and Processing Requirements
A large number of materials are often available for making a product, although for
some products the range of choice is very limited or nonexistent. For example the
designer of electronic equipment often has limited choice from the available
transistors. In general, where a wide choice of materials is available, the selection
proceeds in three stages :
Stage I
The attention is focused on the type of materials for the product that satisfies
the product's functional requirements and the psychological needs of the
customer. This means that designers must consider not only strength,
durability, or weight characteristics of materials but also qualities like colour
and texture which affect the appearance of the product.
Stage 2
After making a general selection of materials that meet functional and
aesthetic requirements, designers must consider the various sources of
supply. The purpose of this stage is to identify suppliers who offer
competitive prices combined with reliability of service with regard to quality
and delivery times. Trade-offs are sometimes allowed between higher cost
of materials and more reliable service from the selected supplier.
Stage 3
The selected materials are examined from the standpoint of processing cost.
This requires a detailed knowledge of the material properties
(micro-structure, hardness, etc.) and the capabilities of the production
system to process them with available equipment. Teflon, glass, ceramics
are expensive and difficult to process while wood, aluminum and mild steel
are relatively cheaper and easier to process on simple machines.
The required processing depends on many factors, say for instance on the
desired tolerances or on the desired surface roughness. The tolerance on size
will in turn determine the precision in assembly and the quality and
reliability of the product. Lenses for a Nikon camera require much closer
tolerances than for a Kodak one.
Finaily, the selection of materials is made in a way that achieves desired
product characteristics at minimum cost (purchase cost plus processing
cost).
Quality
Quality cannot be inspected into a product but must be designed and built illto it.
The product designer should specify part tolerances, surface finish, material
specification, and performance requirements so as to assure a product that is of
acceptable quality. Tolerances and specifications that are more rigid than necessary
should not be assigned as they add to the unnecessary cost. Some product
designers have a tendency to specify tolerances and specifications that make the
cost of manufacture prohibitive. But a good designer must always strike a balance
between satisfactory quality and competitive cost of production.
The production-design engineer should realize that there are not many customers
for the best possible product. The customer usually is desirous of a "less perfect"
product at a much lower price. Each product has its ratio of increments of cost and
selling price. Starting with a given product, having minimum acceptable quality,
each increase in quality will have a measurable increase in the cost of manufacture.
50
 This increase in quality will result in larger permissible selling price up to a certain Factors Affecting
point. As long as the permissible price increase is greater than the cost increase of Product Design
quality improvement, there will be a profitable investment in quality. This
relationship is shown in Figure 12.2.

Increase in Selling Price It is not Desirable to

Established by Product Improve Product Quality
Beyond this Point

-
/
,
I

lncrease in Cost of
Manufacture due to
Minimum Cost of Quality Improvement
Manufacture and
Minimum Selling Price
I Figure 12.2

Economic Aspects
The product designer should consider the economic aspect for both the producer
and consumer. He should consider the life cycle cost of the product which is the
total cost occurring over its entire life span (i.e. procurement cost plus ownership
cost). There are many ways during design to reduce a product life cycle cost while
at the same time improving its reliability/maintainabilitylavailabilitysuch as the
following :
Minimise the number of components in the product during design.
Reduce design errors by using design reliability checklists.
Perform failure modes, effects and criticality analysis (FMECA) to
idectify redesign, research, and development areas.
Use improved and more compatible materials.
Integrate reliability engineeringlproduct assurance program in
development, engineering, purchasing, manufacturing, testing,
installation, and so on.
Allocate scientifically required product reliability1 maintainability1
availability down to all associated paytslcomponents.
Perform reliability design reviews.
Use manufacturing reliability checklists.
Avoid the abuse of the product/equipment in the field by including
mechanisms such as load and speed limiters, warning labels, and so
forth.
Assure the proper and adequately burned-inbroken-inldebuggedl
stress-screened of parts prior to their shipment and use.
The product designer should particularly be conscious of cost of manufacture and
distribution. Product should be designed so as to fully utilise the advantages of
standardisation, simplification and specialisation.
Product Design and Standardisation is a means of achieving lower production and assembly costs by
Development reducing variety. This is advantageously applied in the choice of materials, process
and equipment, manufacturing and assembly procedures, and design of parts. The
use of standardised parts reduces unnecessary or economically unjustifiable
variety. Through standardisation, the hidden costs of unnecessary production
controls, additional paper work, near-duplicate designs, and the inefficient use of
space, equipment, and tools can be reduced. Further, the use of standardised parts
encourage their economical mass production.
The use of modules, or standardised "building" blocks in designing and producing
products is an extension of the concept of interchangeable parts. The basic idea
behind modular design is to identify basic functional or aesthetic requirements for
one or a number of products and design a standard part, component, or
subassembly that will meet the specification requirement of all the products in
which it will be used. The part or subassembly may not be economically ideal for
any particular product. But for a line of products in which modules are employed,
the combined costs of production, spare parts inventory, equipment repair, and
maintenance can be significantly lower. General purpose equipment often contains
standardized modules. The inter-changeability of these modules and their lower
cost reduce the volume and the cost of spare parts inventory for both the
manufacturer and the customer.
Product simpli~cationaims at reducing the variety of products offered, and thus at
reducing the production costs because of higher production volumes, fewer
equipment setups, and lower inventory levels. However, there may be a
disadvantage of greater competitive risk due to less complete product range.
Value analysis is a systematic organizational effort to reduce the costs of material
and purchased parts for producing a product, without sacrificing aesthetic or
functional requirements. Value analysis seeks to resolve issues such as what the
function of the item or the part is, whether it is necessary, whether the cost of the
item commensurate with the function it performs, and whether there are any
alternatives and what will they cost. These and many other issues must be
addressed and the solutions evaluated if the chosen design to be economically
optimized. Often efforts to reduce production costs are made by teams of
individuals with different educational backgrounds and knowledge, including
engineers, purchasing agents, and production personnel. Value engineering,
closely related to value analysis, directs its efforts to ensuring the functional ability
of a product at minimum cost.
Both value analysis and value engineering concepts and objectives should be
included in any discussion of product design. Although value analysis and value
engineering often are delegated to the purchasing and engineering departments
respectively, management would do well to promote a more general acceptance of
both the objectives and the philosophy of these programmes to increase
productivity by avoiding unnecessary production costs.
Other Factors
Patent Protection
In certain cases, the design of a new product may contain innovations that
require protection by one or more patents. In the early development phase, it
is necessary also to make sure that the proposed design does not infringe on
exclusive rights of competitors protected by their earlier patents. In both
instances it is advisable that technical and4egal specialists work together for
developing new product plans that give necessary protection to the rights for
production and distribution.
Environmental Impacts
Industrialised societies have experienced pressure from the problems of
rapid depletion of natural resources and environmental pollution. Product
design is one major contributing factor to these problems, and can play a
significant role in reducing their impact in the future.
 The specific product design selected and the process to be used for making it Factors Affecting
determine the demand for raw materials, energy, and human resources. Product Design
Similarly, the technology used and how a product and its packaging will be
discarded after use determine the form and extent of environmental
pollution. The product design and process selection affect not only the
production costs but also significantly affect the social costs related to
resource depletion and pollution.
SAQ 2
(a) How the selection of material is made for a product?
(b) How reliability of product can be improved?

12.4 SUMMARY
In this unit you have learnt that there is a large member of factors which influence
product design. These factors belong to different fields in production and industrial
engineering. The reliability of the product is not only dependent on the design, but also it
is a function of the product that is manufactured from that design. Thus, a careful
performance of various reliability activities during the production process is absolutely
necessary to produce a reliability effective product. In order to have an effective human -
compatible product, the relevant human factors must carefully be considered during the
design stage. The main objective should be to design a product that allows people to use
it in the most suitable manner, that possesses adaptability to humans, and that does not
subject the users to extreme physical or mental stress or to hazards. The selection of
materials is made in a way that achieves desired product characteristics at minimum cost
(purchase cost plus processing cost). Quality cannot be inspected into a product but must
be designed and built into it. The product designer should consider the economic aspect
for both the producer and consumer. Product should be designed so as to fuIly utilise the
advantages of standardization, simplification and specialization. The product design and
process selection affect not only the production costs but also significantly affect the
social costs related to resource depletion and pollution.

12.5 KEY WORDS

Product Life Cycle : The demand for a product, its market acceptance,
generally tends to follow a predictable pattern is
' called the product life cycle.
Aesthetics Aspect : This concerns :h - final shape appearance and size
I of the product. Aesthetics make the product
attractive and induce in the customer a willingness
' to possess.
Standardisation : Standardization is a means of achieving lower
production and assembly costs by reducing
variety.
Product Simplification : Product simplification aims at reducing the variety
of products offered, and thus at reducing the
t production costs because of higher producticjn '
volumes, fewer equipment setups, and lower
inventory levels.
Product Design and Value Analysis : Value analysis is a systematic organizational effort
Development to reduce the costs of material and purchased parts
for producing a product, without sacrificing
aesthetic or functional requirements.

12.6 ANSWERS TO SAQs

Refer the preceding text for all the Answers to SAQs.