An analysis of the process of developing a new model automobile identified six major development activities, which together define a new model’s product development lead time.

1. Concept generation—conducting marketing research and combining it with technical possibilities into a product concept to meet future market needs.

Product planning—translating the concept into product design, styling, and target costs.

Advanced engineering—conducting basic research to extend technical possibilities.

Product engineering—developing parts, components, and detailed, feasible designs.

Process engineering—translating product designs into manufacturing processes.

gBtBSNhS Pilot ruan—testing the manufacturability of the product and process performance.

The study also revealed significant differences in both the average overall product development lead time and the individual activities for high-volume automobile manufacturers in three major regions: the United States, Europe, and Japan. These differences appear in the following comparative Gantt charts, which show average time before the start of product sales for each major development activity.

Required

a. Describe the overall and specific development lead-time differences among the three types of manufacturers. What appear to be the most important differences in development lead time?

b. How can shorter development lead times result in competitive advantages for Japanese producers?

What factors other than lead time do you think are important for successful development of new products?

d. Explain how you would begin to analyze a typical US product development process with the objective of significantly reducing development lead time.