Module E: Product Design and Development

Subject description

Development processes and organizations

Opportunity identification

Product planning

Identifying customer needs

Product specifications

Concept generation, selection and testing

Product architecture

Industrial design

Design for manufacturing

Prototyping

Robust design

Product development economics

Design for environment

Product management

Entrepreneurship

The subject is taught in programs

Electrical engineering 1st level

Objectives and competences

The aim of the subject is to introduce systematical methods for the development of new products by combining and integrating the fields of marketing, design, planning and manufacturing. Practical skills are gained via a team work in which the students propose a concept for a new product, develop a prototype and demonstrate its main competitive advantages.  

Teaching and learning methods

Theoretical methods are illustrated on different practical and well-known products, ranging from simple to highly complex ones, so that the students get some insights into possible applications.

Some lectures are conducted by invited lecturers form domestic and possibly foreign industry.

The students work on their projects in small teams in which they propose concepts for new products, develop prototypes and publicly demonstrate their main competitive advantages.  

Expected study results

After successful completion of the course, students should be able to:

  • define basic steps for product planning
  • apply techniques for creative concept development and tools for problem solving
  • analyse properties of existing and new products
  • estimate marketing potential of new products
  • evaluate the impact of design on production, quality, economy and environment
  • recognise the role of product management in entrepreneurship

Basic sources and literature

  1. Karl Ulrich, Steven Eppinger, Product Design and Development, McGraw-Hill, 2011
  2. Elektronsko gradivo – prosojnice predavanj in navodila za vaje: http://lit.fe.uni-lj.si/ZRI

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E:  dekanat@fe.uni-lj.si T:  01 4768 411