Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-hc48f Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-25T02:42:25.741Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PRODUCT ARCHITECTURE AND INNOVATION: A STUDY THROUGH DESIGN OF MOTORCYCLES

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 June 2023

Sushil Chandra*
Affiliation:
BML Munjal University
*
Chandra, Sushil, BML Munjal University, India, [email protected]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

How does the quantity and quality of innovation in an organization vary with the architecture of the product that the organization produces is a recurring theme in literature. This paper attempts to answer this question in quantitative terms and establishes an empirical relationship. While establishing this relationship, this paper also finds objective and quantitative expressions both for the product architecture and innovation in such a way that both the qualitative and quantitative aspects of innovation are accounted for. In this process three new formulations, which can be calculated using the data available in public domain, have been established for architectural modularity, architectural complexity and innovativeness of an idea respectively.These formulations have been verified by collecting innovation data in an automobile manufacturing company and analyzing it from the perspective of architecture and innovation. Finally, the relatioships between architectural parameters and innovativeness have been explored. Implications include the type of architecture more amenable to innovation, the impact of innovation on architectural complexity and a methodological contribution to operationalizing innovation.

Type
Article
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BYCreative Common License - NCCreative Common License - ND
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is unaltered and is properly cited. The written permission of Cambridge University Press must be obtained for commercial re-use or in order to create a derivative work.
Copyright
The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press

References

Altshuller, G. (1999) The innovation algorithm. 2nd ed. Moscow Worker Publishing House, 1973 (in Russian). Translated into English by Lev Shulyak (Worcester: Technical Innovation Center; 1999)Google Scholar
Argyres, Nicholas and Bigelow, Lyda (2010) Innovation, Modularity, and Vertical Deintegration: Evidence from the Early U.S. Auto Industry. Organization Science. Organization Science Vol. 21, No. 4, July–August 2010, pp. 842–853Google Scholar
Blackenfelt, Michael. (2001) Managing Complexity by Product Modularization: Balancing the Aspects of Technology and Business during the Business Cycle. Doctoral Thesis. KTH Royal Institute of Technology. Department of Machine Design.Google Scholar
Boer, Henrike Engele Elisabeth (2014) Product, Organizational and Performance Effects of Product Modularity Published in: Proceedings of the 7th World Conference on Mass Customization, Personalization, and Co-Creation (MCPC 2014)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cabigiosu, Anna; Francesco Zirpoli, Francesco and Arnaldo Camuffo, Arnaldo (2013) Modularity, interfaces definition and the integration of external sources of innovation in the automotive industry, Research Policy, Volume 42, Issue 3, 2013, Pages 662-675, ISSN 0048-7333, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2012.09.002.Google Scholar
Chandra, S. (2015) Developing an Objective Formulation for Motorcycle Architecture. International Conference on Engineering Design 2015Google Scholar
Chandra, S (2022) Formulating a Multi-layered Framework for Automobile Architecture. Scientific Reports, January 2022CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cameron, D., Selva, D., and Crawley, E. (2016) System Architecture: Strategy and Product Development for Complex Systems. Pearson, MilanoGoogle Scholar
Corso, M.; Martini, A.; Paolucci, E.; and Pellegrini, L. (2001) Information and Communication Technologies in Product Innovation within SME s – The Role of Product Complexity. Enterprise and Innovation Management Studies, Vol. 2, No. 1, 2001, 35–48CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fixson, Sebastian K.; Park, Jin-Kyu (2007) The Power of Integrality: Linkages between Product Architecture, Innovation, and Industry Structure. MIT Sloan Working Paper 4642-07 January 2007CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Galvin, Peter (2001) Product modularity and the contextual factors that determine its use as a strategic tool. Working Paper Series 01.03 (Curtin University of Technology Graduate School of Business)Google Scholar
Galvin, Peter; Burton, Nicholas; Bach, Norbert and Rice, John (2020) How the rate of change and control of a modular product architecture impact firm-level outcomes. Strategic Change ⋅ January 2020CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garina, Ekaterina P.; Kuznetsov, Viktor P.; Andryashina, Nataliya S.; Romanovskaya, Elena V. and Kuznetsova, Svetlana N. (2018) Exploring Alternative Strategies for Managing the Complexity of a Product. Lecture Notes on Networks and Systems Volume 57. pp. 741747.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Henderson, Rebecca, and Kim, Clark. (1990), Architectural Innovation: The Reconfiguration of Existing Product Technologies and the Failure of Established. Administrative Science Quarterly 35 March (1990). 9-30CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Henriksson, A. and Yxkull, F. (2017) Controlling product complexity over time in a modular product architecture A case study of a home appliance company. Doctoral Thesis. KTH Royal Institute of Technology, School of Industrial Engineering and ManagementGoogle Scholar
Ivanov, Vladimir K. (2021) Computational model to quantify Object Innovativeness. Conference Proceedings of the II International Scientific and Practical Conference “Fuzzy Technologies in the Industry- FTI 2018”. Volume: 2258. P:249-258Google Scholar
Jacobs, Mark A., (1994) “Product Complexity: A Definition and Impacts on Operations” (2007). MIS/OM/DS Faculty Publications. 94. https://ecommons.udayton.edu/mis_fac_pub/94Google Scholar
Jiao, R., Sipson, T. and Siddique, Z (2007) Product family design and platform-based product development: a state-of-the-art review, Journal of Intelligent Manufacturing, July 2007Google Scholar
Langlois, Richard N. (2002) Modularity in Technology and Organization. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization Vol. 49 (2002) 1937CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lhuillery, Stephane;Livramento, Intan Hamdan and Raffo, Julie Diego (2015) Measurement of Innovation. Chapter-7: The Elgar Companion to Innovation and Knowledge Creation. P:99118Google Scholar
Macduffie, J. P. (2013) Modularity-as-Property, Modularization-as-Process, and ‘Modularity’-as-Frame: Lessons from Product Architecture Initiatives in the Global Automotive Industry. Global Strategy Journal. 3: 840 (2013). Page. 1-33CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Magnusson, Thomas; Lindstrom, Goran and Berggren, Christian (2003). Architectural or Modular Innovation? Managing Discontinuous Product Development in Response to Challenging Environmental Performance Targets. International Journal of Innovation Management Vol. 7, No. 1 (March 2003) pp. 126Google Scholar
Marty, Michael (2007) Complexity Management: Optimizing Product Architecture of Industrial Products. Deutscher Universitäts-VerlagGoogle Scholar
Meissner, Dirk, Burton, Nicholas, Galvin, Peter, Sarpong, David and Bach, Norbert (2021) Understanding cross border innovation activities: The linkages between innovation modes, product architecture and firm boundaries. Journal of Business Research, 128. pp. 762769. ISSN 0148-2963CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Midgley, David F. and Dowling, Grahame R. (2016) Innovativeness: The Concept and its Measurement. Journal of Consumer Research, 4(4), 229242.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Muffatto, M. and Roveda, M. (2002) ‘Product architecture and platforms: a conceptual framework’, Int. J. Technology Management, Vol. 24, No. 1, pp.116.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pandit, D., Joshi, M., Gupta, R and Sahay, A. (2016) Disruptive innovation through a dynamic capabilities lens: an exploration of the auto component sector in India, International Journal of Indian Culture and Business Management, 2016Google Scholar
Pandremenos, J.; Paralikas, J., and K, J.. Salonitis, K. (2009) G. Chryssolouris * Modularity concepts for the automotive industry: A critical review, CIRP Journal of Manufacturing Science and Technology, 1 (2009) 148152CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ray, Sangeeta and Ray, Pradeep Kanta (2011) Product innovation for the people's car in an emerging economy, Technovation, Volume 31, Issues 5–6, 2011, Pages 216227, ISSN 0166-4972,Google Scholar
Souchkov, V. (2007) Differentiating Among the Five Levels of Solutions. The TRIZ Journal, July 2007Google Scholar
Shamsuzzoha, A., Piya, S., Helo, P. & Alkahtani, M. (2022). Modular product architecture to manage product development complexity. International Journal of Industrial and Systems Engineering 36(2), 225247. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJISE.2020.110243CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sinha, Kaushik, and de Weck, Olivier L.. (2013) “Structural Complexity Quantification for Engineered Complex Systems and Implications on System Architecture and Design.” ASME 2013 International Design Engineering Technical Conferences and Computers and Information in Engineering Conference IDETC/CIE, Portland, Oregon, 2013CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Toepfer, F and Naumann, T. (2016) Management of Vehicle Architecture Parameters, International Design Conference- Design 2016. DubrovnikGoogle Scholar
Ulrich, Karl. (1995), The Role of Product Architecture in the Manufacturing Firm. Elsevier, Research Policy 24, pp. 419440CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ulrich, Karl (1994) Fundamentals of Product Modularity, Sloan School of Management, Pages 113Google Scholar
Zlotin, Boris; Zusman, Alla. (2020) Levels of Invention. In: Encyclopedia of Creativity, Invention, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2020. p. 1552-1557.Google Scholar
Ziv-Av, Amir, and Reich, Yorum. (2003) SOS – Subjective Objective System for Generating Optimal Product Concepts. International Conference on Engineering Design 2003.Google Scholar