Improving Quality Function Deployment to better support Technology Roadmapping

Thi Ngoc Truc, Pisut Koomsap†, Huynh Trung Luong Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, School of Engineering and Technology Asian Institute of Technology, Pathumthani 12120, THAILAND

Email: ntntruc@yahoo.com1, pisut@ait.ac.th2

luong@ait.ac.th3

Abstract:

Manufacturers are facing the rapid growths of technology innovations and customer’s requirements. Technology Roadmapping (TRM) has been researched to assist the manufacturers in developing of new products so as to fulfill the customer needs. Quality Function Deployment (QFD) is among the supporting tools for TRM. It is considered as an essential tool to link customers’ needs to technology solutions in the TRM process. However, the uncertainty in the input information of QFD is unavoidable. Uncertainty might lead to the output variability in QFD, and hence, misleads the manufacturers in the process of translating the customer’s needs to technology solutions. In this research, a technique that can help incorporate the uncertainty in the input information and the output variability of QFD will be developed to support for robust decision making in TRM process.

Keywords: Technology Roadmapping; Quality Function Deployment; uncertainty; good fit; robust decision making.

Perspectives on roadmaps: how organizations talk about the future

Perspectives on roadmaps: how organizations talk about the future

Thomas A. Kappel* Global Development, Tellabs, Inc., 4951 Indiana Ave., Lisle, IL 60532, USA Abstract

Roadmaps, in the traditional sense, are concerned mostly with space and position. In the way that industrial and public research institutions use the term, though, roadmaps reveal the time dimension of technological progress. The many and increasing applications of roadmaps have generated confusion about what they are for and what they accomplish amid the many tools and techniques of managing technology. Roadmapping is itself a trend, while it seeks to exploit the trends underlying technology. The practice has side effects, biases, and behavioral consequences that are often not visible to practitioners, and until now, were unexamined by researchers. This study provides an organizational perspective on roadmapping as currently practiced, presents the experience of several organizations that have implemented it, and evaluates the results.

Using a case-based, exploratory method the author addresses several practical questions, such as: What are the effects of roadmapping? How are they measured? Is roadmapping always appropriate? How would an organization know if it was roadmapping well? What are the various kinds of roadmaps and how do they relate to each other? In addition, some more general lessons about organizational behavior emerge from the case data. Cases were selected from several large industrial firms participating in a research consortium exploring the modern challenges and tools of technology management. These firms granted extensive access to the research team and actively participated in the analysis, demonstrating a unique and productive model of research collaboration between academic researchers and business practitioners.

Central to an understanding of roadmapping behavior is noticing the tension between its dual nature. Roadmaps are both forecasts of what is possible or likely to happen, as well as plans that articulate a course of action. They are, in a sense, personal to their authors. Roadmaps can be used to align organizations in times of predictable change, but have limited insight into disruptive change. The most influential roadmaps originate as responses to perceived threats, and link the technical storyline to organizational and personal concerns. For those who would implement the technique, the article suggests practical ways to use these and other findings and offers basic definitions and vital questions for future research.

Fast-Start Technology Roadmapping

R Phaal, CJP Farrukh and DR ProbertDepartment of Engineering, University of Cambridge, CB2 1RX, UK

Abstract

Technology is an important strategic asset for many firms, and there is an increasing needto include technological considerations in strategy and planning processes. However,establishing and communicating the linkages between technology resources and companyobjectives presents a continuing challenge for many organisations. Technology roadmapping is atechnique that has the potential to support technology strategy and planning. Such maps can takevarious specific forms, but generally comprise a time-based chart linking technologydevelopments to future product and market requirements. The method has been successfullyapplied in a number of industrial contexts; however, initiating and maintaining the method on anongoing basis can be difficult. This paper describes the development and application of aprocess for supporting the rapid initiation of technology roadmapping in manufacturing firms.The 'start-up' process comprises a series of facilitated workshops that bring together variousfunctions in the business, including technology and marketing. The process supportsunderstanding and communication of the relationships between market and businessrequirements, product and service concepts, and technological solutions. The approachencourages learning and staff involvement, and identifies key knowledge gaps, enabling acompany-specific roadmapping process to be initiated quickly. In addition, theoretical aspects oftechnology roadmapping are discussed, in the context of managing technological knowledge.

Keywords: Technology roadmapping; technology planning; technology strategy.

RESEARCH ON APPLYING ANALYTIC HIERARCHY PROCESS APPROACH TO TECHNOLOGY ROADMAPPING

RESEARCH ON APPLYING ANALYTIC HIERARCHY PROCESS APPROACH TO TECHNOLOGY ROADMAPPING

Chunyan YANG, Ming YU Dept. Industrial Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China yangcy98@mails.tsinghua.edu.cn mingyu@tsinghua.edu.cn

Yedong Liao Beijing Eastar Technology Co, Ltd. liaoyedong@tsinghua.org.cn

Abstract:

Technology roadmapping is a tool for technology planning which has been caused more and more attention in both academic and industrial fields. In this paper, firstly, we summarize the technical problems emerging within technology roadmapping. Then, we demonstrate a methodology based on the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to address the decision making problems in evaluating technology alternatives in technology roadmap. Finally, we present a process which is easily implemental approach to technology roadmapping.

Keywords: Technology roadmapping, AHP, group decision making

Technology Roadmapping Method and Its Usage In Chemistry

Technology Roadmapping Method and its Usage in Chemistry

Aline Marta Vasconcelos Loureiro, Suzana Borschiver, Paulo Luiz de Andrade Coutinho

ABSTRACT

Technology roadmapping is a widely used technique in the industry for the development of long term planning strategies, making it possible to align market, product and technology over time. This article offers a brief review of this tool, covering the definitions of the terms technology roadmap and technology roadmapping, the types and formats of roadmaps, the structure of roadmaps, the processes of operation/adaptation of roadmapping, challenges and the key successful factors in implementing the roadmapping and its usage. Finally, an overview of public domain roadmaps is given, with special highlight to the ones related to Chemistry.

Key words: technology roadmapping; technology roadmap; roadmaps in Chemistry.

Innovation Projects Using Roadmaps

INNOVATION PROJECTS USING ROADMAPS

Jordi Albiol Rodríguez

Joaquim Lloveras Macià Department of Engineering Projects. Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya

Abstract

Roadmaps and their methodology (TRM, Technology roadmapping) are a planning tool for medium and long-term projects which are useful to any business or corporation. Roadmaps cover many aspects that must be taken into account in a company's innovation forecasting and its development over time, such as opportunities to launch new products or to change existing ones, marketing, new markets, competitors, capabilities and skills, weaknesses, results exploitation, goals...

The basic beginning information of the Roadmap is the result of research on internal and external factors of the company by asking questions like: What do we produce? Who are we in our sector? What do we want to / can we achieve? What or who is our competition? What do we have and what should we have? This article deals with the historical development of roadmapping and the state of the art of its different methodologies as well as the clusters that generate them (EIRMA, Northwestern, Cambridge, Purdue, Nottingham...) and their distinguishing features.

Keywords: TRM, Roadmaps, Innovation Projects.

TECHNOLOGY ROADMAP PROCESS

Characteristics of Technology roadmap process

Technology roadmap process is a powerful method for supporting technology management and planning. It has been widely used in industry (Barker and Smith, 1995) but consists of various types of format. For example a roadmap may appear in the forms of multiple layers, bars, texts, time, pictorial representations, flow charts, or arrows (see figure 1). A roadmap may not appear in the form as shown in figure 1 but may contain many different kinds of combination (of these formats) to suit a particular business situation. The diverse ways of roadmap construction may be due to a lack of clear and accepted standards or guidelines for managers (Phaal et al., 2004). Nevertheless a few organisations have successfully developed an effective roadmaps, such as Motorola’s technology roadmap (Willyard and McClees, 1987) and Cambridge’s technology roadmap (TRM). The purposes and architectures of these roadmaps are discussed in the following paragraphs.




Market
Product
Technology
Time
xxxx
xxxx
Multiple layers
bars
arrows
texts
Flow charts
Pictorial representations
time















Figure 1: Examples of technology roadmap types (format)


According to Willyard and McClees (1987), the Motorola’s technology roadmap is used to define technological capabilities, analyse engineering and financial resources, determine whether the technological priorities are correct, and help to track the progress in product and process development. The process of roadmap development aims to encourage business managers to pay significant attention to their technological future, increase communications between R&D and the marketing personnel. The roadmap is a compilation of documents, charts, matrices, and graphs that provide a comprehensive explanation of the product line from past to future, in supporting the process of planning and managing the complex technological environment. The technology roadmap has eight sections and each of them can stand alone as a separate piece of information, but the benefit lies in the combined usage of each section. Each section is representing tools used for the management of technology. An example is shown in Figure 2. As refer to figure 2, the roadmap shows whether the company has committed or remain caution in terms of different critical technology in the development of different product family.


Critical technology 3
Critical technology 2
Products
Critical technology 1
Product 1
Product 2
Product 3













Committed
Caution
Critical






Figure 3: An example of Motorola’s technology roadmap (source: adopted from Willyard and McClees, 1987)


An example of a TRM is show in figure 3. The TRM shows how a firm’s resources and technologies are linked to the development of its product which ultimately meeting the business objectives and market needs.


Market / Business
Product feature
Technology area
Other resources
Year 0
Year 1
Year 2
Year 3













Figure 3: An example of a TRM (Source: Phaal et al., 2004)

Clearly, a TRM is used to support technology strategy and planning. The TRM “is a high-level planning tool that can be used to support the development and implementation of strategy and plans, as well as communication of the plan” (Phaal et al., 2001). However, unlike the Motorola’s technology roadmap process, there is no detailed guidance on how to develop the TRM. An attempt was made to fill this gap by the development of a T-plan fast start guide (Phaal et al., 2001).