Title: 0.1 Process Diversity Lesson
Course: ATEP - MMT: Module A: > Section: WELCOME TO MODULE A - DESIGN FOR MANUFACTURING

0.1.1 Process Diversity

Over the years, many organizations have described the design process in a variety of ways.  The following are just a few:

1. The State of  Massachusetts:  An iterative decision-making process that produces plans by which resources are converted into products or systems that meet human needs and wants or solve problems.
2. Dym’s Engineering Design: A Synthesis of Views, Cambridge, 1994:  Engineering design is the systematic, intelligent generation and evaluation of specifications for artifacts who form and function achieve stated objectives and satisfy specified constraints.
3. Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET): Engineering design is the process of devising a system, component, or process to meet desired needs. It is a decision-making process (often iterative), in which the basic science and mathematics and engineering sciences are applied to convert resources optimally to meet a stated objective. Among the fundamental elements of the design process are the establishment of objectives and criteria, synthesis, analysis, construction, testing and evaluation.

While there are many organizations that have adapted the design cycle to their specific needs, they all tend to follow the basic process and represent it graphically as cyclical steps. Although the wording for each step might be slightly different, the ideas are very similar.

Experienced designers also tend to move around the different phases/steps as needed to accomplish their goals instead of sticking to a linear look of the design cycle. Click on the graphic representation button below to see a comparison of different design processes unfolded from an iterative or circular form to a linear form for ease of comparison.

Graphic