ME210-VDT: a managerial framework for measuring and improving design process performance

Our goal is to train a team of student mechanical engineers such that during the design phase of new product development, they consistently outperform professional teams of experienced engineers. If the cost of such a training is low in comparison to that of other options, then its relative value will be high. Consequently, the tools and methods used in the training will constitute a pragmatic theory of high performance design management. The paper describes an ongoing project to develop the managerial framework for such a training. We begin by adapting the simulation model of an engineering organization to a project-based design class. We hypothesize that it is possible to simulate these classes with at least the same degree of realism as current computer simulations of engineering organizations. To illustrate the potential impact of this approach on design performance, we present preliminary result from the computer simulation study of ME210. ME210, Mechatronic Systems Design, is a graduate-level course based on industry-sponsored projects. Students, in three-person teams, work on one project for nine months. The inputs to the simulation program are such variables as the class organizational structure, physical layout, team composition, and communication technologies. The principal output is the schedule-performance achieved by each team and the class as a whole. While we were able to prove the hypothesis, the results demonstrated the need for theories of learning processes that are specific to project-based classes.