Design projects, concurrent engineering and software agents

There is no models and methods to support CE design processes or approaches based on Information flows. In spite of a correct representation of the production of knowledge in CE design processes, the spiral development which takes place around the initial purpose doesn´t take into account the functional aspects of the processes. With the help of development models and the understanding of natural design processes we succeed in establishing a systemic model which includes 3 levels (registration/manufacturing, generation/modification, selection/adaptation). It partitioned knowledge, software tools and communications. Following this model we propose a suited support system to manage the organization and the production of knowledge at the level two. It includes software agents that contribute to register and favor interactions among actors involved in a design process and thus, facilitate the construction of a common working repository and the emergence of new solutions.