The S-Curve Pattern of Innovation highlights the fact • Due to the strong competition among

that as an industry, product, or business model the major players in the market which is
evolves over time, the profits generated by it gradually clearly defined at this stage, most of
rise until the maturity stage the resources at this point are spent on
improving the production processes
and making them cheaper.
• Therefore, oftentimes the products at
this stage become completely
standardized and the innovations at
this stage are considered incremental.

A – Lower portion

• This phase is in the beginning of the S-

Curve pattern of innovation.
• It is when the product/ industry is
completely new.
• As a result, a dominant design in the
market hasn’t been established yet.
• Therefore, the competition between the
various players in the industry is fierce.
• As a result, usually at this stage, most
of the resources are spent on research
and development.
• There will be apparently not much
innovation.
• Changes are less and widely spaced

B – Middle portion

• In this phase, due to the ability to

overcome a major technical obstacle or
the ability to satisfy a demand of the
market.
• The product/industry has been adopted
by the early majority and managed to
cross the differences and a dominant
design has been established already.
• Hence, the market will be characterized
by rapid growth in production, and the
product will move quickly towards a full
market acceptance.
• So, A rapid profusion of innovation
(slope) will take place during this
period.
• Many products are launched and many
competitors join the market.

C – Top portion (Maturity)

• Here, the product is adopted almost

completely by society and is usually
approaching a physical limit.
Value engineering is the review of new or existing
products during the design phase to reduce
costs and increase functionality to increase the
value of the product. The value of an item is
defined as the most cost-effective way of producing
an item without taking away from its purpose

Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA) is a

design approach that focuses on ease of
manufacture and efficiency of assembly. By Robust product design is a concept from the
simplifying the design of a product it is possible to teachings of Dr. Genichi Taguchi, a Japanese
manufacture and assemble it more efficiently, in the quality guru. It is defined as reducing variation in a
minimum time and at a lower cost product without eliminating the causes of the
variation. In other words, making the product or
∙ Design for manufacturability ensures the process insensitive to variation. This variation
fabrication of single parts or components that (sometimes called noise) can come from a variety
are based on an integral design in mechanical of factors and can be classified into three main
engineering terms. Every production types: internal variation, external variation, and unit
technology has its own specific design to unit variation. Internal variation is due to
guideline that needs to be consulted deterioration such as the wear of a machine, and
depending on the situation. aging of materials. External variation is from factor
Design for assembly addresses the relating to environmental conditions such as
combination of single parts or components to temperature, humidity and dust. Unit to Unit
subassemblies, assemblies, modules, variation is variations between parts due to
systems, etc., that are based on a differential variations in material, processes and equipment.
design in mechanical engineering terms. An
(Lochner and Matar, 18). Examples of robust design
important issue is how the embodied
interfaces within a product are designed include umbrella fabric that will not deteriorate when
(mechanical engineering, electrical exposed to varying environments (external
engineering). Contrary, software or variation), food products that have long shelf lives
respectively firmware interfaces (software (internal variation), and replacement parts that will
engineering, electrical engineering) are fit properly (unit to unit variation). The goal of robust
not significant for assembly operations, design is to come up with a way to make the final
because these can be easily flash installed product consistent when the process is subject to a
within one production step. That is a cost variety of "noise".
efficient way to enable a wide range of product
variants.
∙ Design for logistics covers issues along supply chain
partners (i.e., legally independent firms) but is by its
means closely related to the design for assembly
guidelines. In academic research, design for logistics is
tangent to the strategic alliances, supply chain
management, and the engineering part of new product
development. For example, Sanchez and Mahoney
(1996) argued that product modularity (i.e., how physical
sub-systems of a product are sub-divided through
interfaces; also called product or system architecture), and
organizational modularity (i.e., how organisational entities
are structured), depend on each other, and Fixson et al.
(2005) found that the relationship between product
architecture and organisational structure is reciprocal in
context of early supplier involvement during the system
design or respectively concept phase of the Product
development process.