Impact of platforming

Product Model Lifetime

Fra ct io n
Su rvivin g Sony
Average Lif e AIWA
1.0 Ot hers Sony To s hib a
1 .1 8 yr 1 .9 7 yr Pa n a s o nic
0.8

About 200 versions of the Sony

0.6
Walkman from four platforms!
0.4 Others had either one on two
0.2
platforms

0
0 1 2 3 4 5
From Sanderson and Uzumeri, Survival Time (y ears)
The Innovation Imperative, Irwin 1997.
What is a product platform
How do manufacturers handle left and right-hand drives?
 1 common platform + 3 distinct modules 3 different products

In what ways, companies can achieve better cost competitiveness when they
deploy platforms?
In what ways, companies can achieve better cost competitiveness when they
deploy platforms?

Life cycle-based approach

 Economies of scale

 Economies of scope

 Even IT/ITEs products

Some key definitions
Common, variant, and unique parts

When designing a product family, it is

imperative that
 The number of common parts be maximum
 The number of unique parts be minimum
 The variants parts be cheapest
Black and Decker – Versa pack Tool Kit
Creating a module-based product family
Creating a scalable product family

How things are different here vis-à-vis modular platform?

Develop a product platform that can be

“scaled” in one or more dimensions to satisfy
different market segments.
# Boeing 777 has also been designed keeping in
mind that it can be scaled upwards/downwards.

Boeing aircraft’s
product family
Platforming strategies: No leveraging

 Niche-specific platforms
(products) with little sharing of
subsystems and/or
manufacturing processes

Myriad of products – Huge complexities across value chain.

Manufacturing process improvement cannot be replicated across different

products
Platforming strategies: Horizontal leveraging

Horizontally leverage platform

subsystems and/or
manufacturing processes across
different segments

Lesser complexities across value-chain

Manufacturing process improvement can be replicated across different products

 Platforming strategies: Horizontal leveraging

# High tonnage
# High horse power

………….. LPT 4923 LPK 4923 Base platform

………….. ………….. …………..

# Low tonnage
# Low horse power

SE1613 SE1613
Trucks Dumpers Base platform
Platforming strategies: Vertical leveraging

 Vertically scale key platform

subsystems and/or manufacturing
processes within a market segment
 Similar benefits as in case of
horizontal leveraging

# Many engine manufacturers such as Pratt and Whitney and Rolls-Royse

Platforming strategies: Vertical and horizontal leveraging
Weak platform may undermine entire product family

Too much commonality takes away the “differentiation” component of the

product
Platforming strategies: Beachhead approach

 Beachhead approach combines horizontal leveraging with upward vertical

scaling
Beachhead approach

Gillett product family

Platforming challenges for global manufacturers
 Return vs. risk
# Large number of similar products derived from same platform can result in
decreased “sales per model” – Commonality vs. distinctiveness
# Sharing can also magnify the risk of increased product recalls - Toyota Matrix and
Toyota Corolla In North-American market

 Consumer behavior
# Tastes of consumers vary differently from developed and developing economies
# North American market is dominated by relatively larger vehicles such as sedans and SUVs, the
emerging markets such as India still have significant volumes of smaller cars
# Buyers in developing world would be apprehensive about buying products that
are derived from platforms focused on developing countries
Major benefits arising out of modularity

 Production of a great variety of end products from a limited number

of building blocks
 Platform strategy permitting many product variants based on a stable
architecture
 Facilitate changes to current and future products
 Simplifies parallel testing
 Serviceability
 Allows for parallel development of design teams
 Allows for outsourcing
Which to share and which to keep distinct?
Instrument cluster # Make those part distinct that customers
of a car
sees, feels, touches (senses)

Assuming, the
cost
Case I implications
remaining
same in both
cases, which
case you
would go with
Case II and why?
Platform planning process Differentiating Sport coupe Family
attributes (DAs) sedan/Station
Market wagon
segment
Curvature of More curvature Straight, vertical
window glass
# Appeals to younger families
Family Family Family Styling of Aggressive Utility oriented
segment
sedan station instrument panel
wagon Relationship Driver sits low to Driver sits higher and
# Station wagon between driver and ground and distant upright
for relatively instrument panel from steering wheel
larger families
Front end styling Shorter nose, Longer nose
Sports Sporty vehicle appears to
segment # Sporty coupe appeals for single attack the road
coupe and young couples without
children Color and texture Darker colors and More practical colors
mix of leather
Time Interior noise Some engine noise Noise minimized, 60
Product plan desirable upto 70
decibels
decibels

Differentiation plan