2022-01-16 engineering phase Implementing a new production line is different from standard projects in several ways. The most important difference: your projects’s framework is set from the beginning. You have a clear understanding of your budget and targets. You don’t talk about the IFs like in product development but about the HOWs. During the initial engineering phase the boundaries of the project are tested: is it possible to produce the product within the given framework ? At the end of this process you have a clear understanding on how the product is going to be build: the specification. Next up is procurement. Usually you are sourcing the necessary knowhow and production equipment. In many cases you end up selecting one or more turnkey suppliers. Once selected your suppliers design and manufacture the components. Your role during this time is coaching and coordinating, mainly between the suppliers and your product development. At a given time the components arrive on your future production site. During construction and commissioning backlogs, hidden before, will become obvious. So your role changes. Construction site monitoring becomes a very important task. Delays need to be taken care of. Escalations will happen and have to be moderated. At a later stage production and maintenance reps should learn how to manage and take care of the equipment. Sample products in various assembly states have to be available to test equipment functionality. Coordination tasks pile up, schedules get narrow. During optimization and ramp up your production and quality reps become your main partners. Production speed (takt), availability and product quality take center stage, your suppliers change to coaches. Start of production is the major milestone, but optimization will be necessary beyond this point. Project closure mainly compiles all documentation, buys off the suppliers, checks balances and provides lessons learned. Compiling this leads to the following process model: engineering procurement design manufacturing construction commissioning optimization ramp up closure Process model ©2022 K.Krueger, Stuttgart Green processes are internal, blue processes are monitoring and coaching 3rd party suppliers. Copyright notice:All content of this web page is copyright © 2022 by Karsten Krueger, Kaufbeuren – All Rights Reserved. Any reuse in printed or digital form requires prior written approval by the owner. This specifically prohibits the embedding of this content into iframes or similar technical approaches. Please contact the author thru our contact page if you intent to reuse content from this page. Thank you for your understanding.