Systems thinking in developing production concepts for new products

Innovation through the development of new products is a key driver for the continuous renewal that a business must achieve for long term growth and survival. However, the follow through of the introduction of a new product in production is often handled in an ad hoc manner. If the optimal effect of the innovation is to be achieved, the development of the delivery system (production system) must be optimized to ensure that the full potential of the product can be realized in the market. There are many uncertainties about setting up a new production. These uncertainties vary significantly, even for apparently similar products. This paper looks at structuring these uncertainties so that each production concept can be tailored to ensure the best combination of robustness to uncertainty together with optimal performance. This requires a systems view that incorporates the risks associated from the product and customer side. This synthesis is the focus of this paper.