Observations on the implementation of SE, the use of gaming techniques to empower teams and case studies of team working in selected UK industry

Over the last three years a Brunel University team has explored the implementation of simultaneous engineering (SE) in a number of British companies in order to: understand what SE means in a British context; reveal “best practice” in SE; and explore ways of using gaming techniques to empower team working. This paper reports those studies in summary form resulting from an early analysis of the observations made to date. In particular, case studies were made of five SE contexts to show what companies meant by SE, where they tried to implement it and what form this implementation took. A simple questionnaire, which aimed to identify key implementation issues was targeted at companies who had demonstrated an interest in SE. Another, complementary study, looked at the way communication can promote or inhibit SE. A final group of studies, in the university and industrial contexts, looked at how gaming techniques could be used to empower people with the teamworking attitudes and skills which is so essential to the fullest operation of SE. The key elements of this framework are summarised