1.

Introduction to Engineering Design

Engineering Design begins with an understanding of the needs, balancing conflicting societal,
economic, and customer needs.
Innovative Solutions to existing issues stem from creative new ideas converted into novel,
useful, and viable commercial products/services/business practices.
Effective Delivery is needed for the idea to be implemented.
The process of engineering converts an expressed need into a product or system which
meets the needs in the most cost effective manner throughout its operating lifetime.

The Role of the Engineer is to conceive, design, implement and operate complex value-adding
engineering products, processes and systems in modern team based environments.
The role of the Design Engineer includes working with the customer to define the problem,
and translating the solutions to these needs into design specifications. In this way, they work
on the customers behalf to ensure:
The solutions address the customer needs
The product is delivered to specifications, time, and budget
The risks to project success are controlled
Technical integrity and compliance to standards and regulations

Stakeholder Individuals or organisations who stand to gain or lose from the success or failure of a
system. Most design projects have at least three stakeholders:

Design Stakeholders
Customers that need the Engineers that design the Manufactures/companies that
product product produce the product

Problem Definition begins with a problem statement, that addresses the issues to be addressed, the
operational environment, the relevant safety standards, and is typically not precise.

Project Failure can occur and the common reasons include: incorrect or overextended assumptions,
poor understanding of the problem to be solved, incorrect design specifications, faulty
manufacturing, and error in design calculation.

2. Steps in the Design Process

Product Lifecycle Describes the process of product production from concept to retirement. Each
phase of the product lifecycle is characterised by a set of activities, milestones, artefacts, reviews.
These phases mark the product life in the market and goes through stages of launch, growth,
maturity, decline, and evolution:
i. Market/Need/Problem a market needs a solution to a specific problem, or there is a void.
ii. Product Planning & Setting Requirements analysis and specification.
iii. Design & Development System/Product design and specification, including detailed functional
block diagram and prototype design.
iv. Testing & Production/Assembly -Functioning modules, including system integration and testing.
v. Marketing/Consultation/Sales Delivering the system/product to customers, whether directly or
through retail.
vi. Use/Consumption/Maintenance The bulk of the product lifecycle.
vii. Recycling & Disposal The end of the product lifecycle.
Each step of the lifecycle is intended as fluid phase, allowing engineers to move back and forth as
the design is analysed and revaluated.

The Three Dimensions of Design

Design Problem Solving The central feature is the explorations of alternatives; the designer
creates a plan for a new product/system in response to a gap.
Design is based on knowledge. Good design exhibits a cohesion between the realm of theory
and of practice.
Challenges to Innovation include: isolating an idea, developing a solution, obtaining funding,
ensuring the feasibility of the solution, supplying the intended market, beating competitors,
and market timing.

Professional Role of Engineers is to conceive/design/implement/operate engineering products. This

is accomplished with technical, and social expertise with a bias toward innovation, adding value by
strengthening productivity, entrepreneurship and excellence. Lastly an engineer must work in an
environment that is increasingly based on technologically complex and sustainable products,
processes, and systems.

The Three Dimensions of Design are as follows:

i. Design Strategy Outlines the product concept, business objectives, and customer objectives.
ii. Business Objectives Outlines the product lifecycle, and project management. Is facilitated by
concurrent engineering.
iii. Problem Solving Results from innovation, analysis and solutions and perfected by design
optimisation.

The first Dimension Design Strategy

The Rational Model of Design keeps technical rationality at the centre of the process. Designers
attempt to optimise a design for known constraints and objectives.
The design process is plan driven and is understood as a discrete sequence of stages.

The Action-Centric Model of Design does not depend on technical rationality, and instead relies on
the creativity and emotion of designers to generate candidates.
The design process is improvised and not subject to a universal sequence of stages. Analysis,
design, and implementation are fluid, and inextricably linked.

Competition is the driving force for improvement in capitalism. Businesses compete on cost,
performance, and time-to-market on a global basis. Competitive businesses must:
Respond quickly to customer demands by incorporating new ideas and technologies into
products
Must satisfy and exceed customer expectations, and adapt to different market environments
Generate new ideas and combine existing elements to create new sources of value.
Integrated Product Realisation A solution to the requirements of competition, involving many
more stakeholder from the beginning. Places greater emphasis on customer, product quality,
production cost, and creativity/innovation.

Both models of design are characterised by the Common Elements of design:

i. Needs & Problem Analysis Translates customers wants and needs into a problem statement
that reflects their true needs (wants normally exceed actual needs). The problem statement is
written in the language of the customer, covering all aspects of design.
ii. Requirements Statement/Product Specification/Design Specification Translates the problem
statement and customer needs into abstract, unambiguous, viable, traceable, and feasible
requirements, ranked in order of importance and divided between functional and non-functional.
iii. Product Concepts/Concept of Operation Many preliminary designs are recommended, using
controlled convergence methods to select the final product.
iv. Solution Concept Using a screening matrix or other methods the final product should be
compared and validate all customer needs and requirements.
v. High-Level Design/Embodiment High level design teams propose technical solutions to the
requirements, innovating and optimising designs.
vi. Detailed Design Technical components are combined and condensed into the finalised product.

Product Planning Feasibility Study Addresses fundamental questions of whether to proceed with
the project; considers the market, sales potential, community reaction, financial analysis &
marketing, and technical feasibility.

Concurrent Engineering Systematic approach to the integrated design of products and the related
processes, manufacturing, and support. Requires a multi-disciplined design team with personnel
from all faculties of the product lifecycle.
Intended as a dynamic tool for developers to consider all elements from the product life
cycle from the outset.
Ensures essential changes and reduces delays in the early phase of the development, by
including every involved department in development.
Consumes similar product resources but expatiates the process.

The Second Dimension Business Objectives

Effective design is stakeholder orientated. All interests must be considered and understood in their
priorities:
Good engineering is about trade-offs Cost effective, benefit improving, risk reducing trade-offs. Its
all about optimising the design for best match to conflicting stakeholder needs. Greg Gardner,
Toyota Australia.

At the core of decision-making in any technical

project is the Design Strategy. It is the essential
creative process of engineering which calls for
imagination, application of technical expertise,
and experience/skilful use of materials. A
structured Problem Solving Process is necessary
to overcome the tasks in an engineering problem.

There are three forms of design listed below in

order of increasing novelty:
i. Adaptive Design The solution principle remains unchanged, only the embodiment is adapted to
new requirements and constraints.
ii. Variant Design The sizes, arrangements of parts, and assemblies are varied within the limits of
the existing design.
iii. Original Design New tasks and problems are solved using new or novel combinations of known
solution principles.
Innovation is a product that realises new functions and properties through novel or new
combinations of existing solutions.
Invention is something truly new based on unapplied knowledge and insights.

Convergent Thinking is the process of establishing deep reasoning by systematically assembling

knowledge and lower level thinking. Divergent Thinking is a freeform process of concept generation
that produces countless solutions to a single stimulus and is often followed by convergent selection
of the answer.

A Good Designer exhibits the ability to tolerate ambiguity and maintain sight of the complete
systems. They will make decisions in response to uncertainty, and utilise the team and several design
languages (business, marketing, design, manufacturing, etc.).

The Third Dimension Problem Solving

Design Problems are achievable goals with constraint that must be overcome, and criteria to assess
potential solutions.
However, there is no definitive formulation or solution of problems, and should be
solution-dependent. Proposing solutions is a means of understanding the problem.

Experienced Designers Novice Designers

Make rapid controlled explorations of the Burdened with data gathering and analysis and
problem, shifting between solution concepts. become fixated on early solutions. They can
They maintain a broad view of all alternatives only concentrate on problems at hand and
and are intuitive in their process. need to develop basic techniques.
The Rational Design Methods are a series of processes and methods for specific stimuli in the design
process:

i. Identifying Opportunities: The User Scenario Method The designer adopts the consumer point
of view, observing and questioning their experiences to form preliminary goals, constraints, and
criteria for a new product opportunity.
ii. Clarifying Objectives: The Objective Tree Method Design objectives are compiled from the
design brief or customer requirements into a hierarchal tree of objective and sub-objectives.

iii. Establishing Functions: The Function Analysis Method Expresses the overall function for the
design in terms of input to output. Functions are broken into sub-functions that show the
relationship and define the limits of the design.
iv. Setting Performance Requirements: The Performance Specification Method Identifies the
generality of solutions, the required performance attributes independent of solutions, and the
quantifiable terms to identify.
 v. Determining Characteristics: The Quality Deployment (QFD) Method Establishes targets for
engineering by identifying customer requirements, determining their relative importance, and
evaluating them in contrast to competing products in a matrix.
vi. Generating Alternatives: The Morphological Chart Method Involves listing the essential
features, the methods which to achieve them, and identifying feasible combinations of sub-
solutions.
vii. Evaluating Alternatives: The Weighted Objectives Method Design objectives are listed and
ranked with relative weighting dependant on importance. Performance parameters are
quantified on point scales and the best design can be seen plainly.
viii. Improving Details: The Value Engineering Method The separate components are identified by
function. Each function and component has its value assessed and solutions for reducing cost
without reducing value are evaluated.

3. Solution Finding Frameworks

The Concept Generation Process involves clarifying the problem, external assessment of user
requirements and technical feasibility, internal assessment of design process and innovation, and
systematic exploration of solutions.

The Creative Thinking Model (Eureka Model) is composed of 5 steps:

i. Preparation Active work that focuses on the problem and its dimensions, to search for new
ideas. Often ends in frustration due to inability to generate sufficient new ideas.
ii. Incubation The problem is internalised for unconscious processing. Sleep on it.
iii. Intimation The feeling of progress, that inspires a resumption of purpose.
iv. Illumination/Insight The creative idea bursts forth from its preconscious processing into
conscious awareness.
v. Verification The concept is consciously verified, elaborated, and the applied.

Conventional Method of solution generation involves information gathering, analysis of natural

systems, analysis of technical systems, drawing analogies, and measuring & modelling.

Intuitive Method of solution generation involves brainstorming, and relies strongly on stimulation of
the memory and association of ideas. Brainstorming is useful where no practical solution has been
discovered, and a radical departure from the conventional is required.
Futuring Setting the problem in a future time and assuming key barriers are solved.
SCAMPER Technique Brainstorming technique: Substitute, Combine, Adapt, Modify,
Put to another use, Eliminate, and Reverse.

Discursive Method utilises a step by step process characterised by a systematic study of physical
processes, use of classification schemes, design catalogues, combination, and mathematical
modelling.

Problem Solving Method endeavours to understand the problem to distinguish the real problems
from the perceived problem. Important to identify the origin of the problem, gather information
from a wide category or sources, revaluate the requirements and implement Root Cause Analysis.
Kepner Tregoe Situational Analysis is a structured methodology for gathering information and
prioritising and evaluating it. Does not find the perfect solution, but the best possible choice.

Common Barriers to Creative Thinking include:

Perceptual Barriers that prevent clear understanding of the design problem.
Cultural Barriers discourage non-traditional approaches that violate society norms.
Environmental Barriers inhibit creativity inherently due to immediate surrounding e.g. poor
lighting, interfering noise, etc.
Emotional Barriers feelings that discourage you considering a solution or distract.
Intellectual Barriers are insufficient knowledge on a topic that is needed for design
incorporation.

Cognitive Bias is a general term that is used to describe the perceptual distortions in the human
mind, inaccurate judgement or illogical interpretation.
Adaptive Biases are evolutional responses to known stimuli to enable fast and more
effective decision making.
Lacking Biases where there are no appropriate mental mechanisms of misapplication
adapting under different circumstances.

Groupthink or rationalised conformity is a type of thought within a deeply cohesive group whose
members prioritise consensus over conflict resolution, critical testing, analysing, and evaluating
ideas.
Individual creativity and unique thinking are lost in the pursuit of group cohesiveness
Causes hasty and irrational decisions, where individuals set aside their reserves for fear of
upsetting the balance.
Symptoms of Group Think include illusions of invulnerability, rationalising warnings,
unquestioned belief, stereotyping, pressure to conform, Self-censorship, illusions of
unanimity, and mind guards.

Other barriers to creative thinking include negative attitude, fear of failure, lack of time, overly
stringent rules, assumptions, logic dependence, and tunnel vision.
4. Teamwork Skills

Group Work promotes the development of skills essential for a successful engineering career: peer
learning, collaboration skills, interpersonal skills, conflict resolution, the ability to give and receive
feedback, and facilitating a broader scope of work to be experienced.
For a team to be successful it is important to establish a team charter that outlines the rules,
meeting times, performance expectations, decision making processes, and dispute
resolution.
The team should meet and communicate regularly. Records should be kept of each meeting.
The skills, knowledge, and preferences of each member should be made apparent.

5. Tuckman Model for Successful Groups

Tuckman identified five distinct phases of life within a team or small group:
i. Forming Group members learn about each other and identify the task at hand. It is defined by:
Characterising Features What Works
Unclear objectives Planning and defining member roles
Uncommitted member Performance expectations
Confusion Rules of membership
Hidden feelings Establishing a team leader
Poor listening

ii. Storming Group members continue to work and will engage in arguments about the structure
of the group. This illustrates a struggle for status within the group and is an emotional phase. It is
defined by:
Characterising Features What Works
Lack of cohesions Team leader is not afraid of conflict
Subjectivity Establish a process to resolve conflict
Hidden agendas No tolerance for dysfunctional behaviour
Conflict & confrontation Everyone is held to the same standard of
Anger & Failure excellence

iii. Norming Group members establish implicit/explicit rules about how they will achieve their goal.
They address the types of communication that benefits the group. It is defined by:
Characterising Features What Works
Questioning performance Team members continue to address issues
Reviewing/clarifying objectives and move on from conflict
Changing roles Greater roles and responsibilities
Testing new ground Continued commitment to the team
Identifying strength and weaknesses Motivation to progress to the performing
phase

iv. Performing Groups perform their best work, working cohesively towards the conclusion and
implementation to their issue. It is defined by:
Characterising Features What Works
Creativity Team leader is willing to delegate and
Initiative further empower team members
 Flexibility New and exciting challenges are
Open relationships addressed and conquered
Pride in the success of work Team continues commitment to ongoing
professionalism and personal
development

v. Mourning (or Adjourning) marks the end of the project. The group disbands and categorises
what has been accomplished and learned. It is defined by:
Acknowledging the reasons for the success or failure of the project
Celebration, and discussion of the next opportunities

6. Design Thinking
Design Thinking Methods are intended to help stimulate creative thinking by removing mental
blocks and widening the area in which the search for solutions are made.
Vertical Thinking The typical approach to problem solving, moving in logical sequential
steps that are justified by facts, converging on a single solution.
Lateral Thinking Necessary to break from vertical patterns reorganising dominant
assumptions. Relaxes rigid logical control and encourages alternative perspectives.

Real-Win-Worth It is a method of verifying the feasibility of projects:

Questions are adapted and drawn to suit the requirements and the business itself
 Ambidextrous Organisation is both adaptive (mastering detail and methodical approach for
immediate results), and innovative (taking risks and learning from failures with no attachment to
existing methodology).

7. Stakeholder Requirements Analysis

The design process begins with an expression of need that the engineer must translate into a
problem definition, from which the solution is synthesized.
Design Methodology The method for which the solution is best obtained, chosen per
design complexity. E.g. Prototyping vs. staged design.
Prototyping (Small Scale) One possible solution is considered in detail and evaluated
against criteria (performance, cost, reliability, and maintainability). The process is repeated
until satisfactory. Less expensive and faster overall, used when there us functionally
independent modules.
Staged Design (Large Scale) Number of solutions are considered generally and compared
against criteria. Best solution is selected and proceeds to detailed design. Used when
cheaper to prove functionally dependent modules.

Core Design Requirements Important to specify these parameters to define the concept, influence
the structure, and determine the overall embodiment.
Product Concept addresses the optimised vision that addresses stakeholder needs. May
need approval from the business or customer before proceeding.

New concept proposals are generally composed of the following sections:

i. Executive Summary Summary of concept and plan
ii. Potential Market The fit for the product and list of problems/opportunities
iii. Product Description Core concept and user advantages/benefits
iv. Market Analysis Assessment of market and potential for product
v. Product Development Plan Summary of resources and technologies needed for production
vi. Marketing Plan Objectives and strategies for marketing/distribution/pricing
vii. Financial Analysis Projected income statements, funds required, and breakeven analysis
viii. Supporting Documents Research summaries and references including pricing structures

Problem Domain is the area of expertise or application that needs to be examined to solve a single
problem. Solution Domain is the area of ingenuity in which engineering solve problems that respond
to a set of requirements:
 Requirements are the primary focus in the systems engineering process, transforming the
constraints set into validated designs. The Requirements Engineering Process is as follows:
i. Elicitation The extraction of requirements from stakeholders
ii. Analysis Weighs requirement necessity and sufficiency, discovering conflict and eliciting
renegotiation of requirements
Customer objectives must be refined, and define initial performance objectives. Design
constraints are identified and functional and non-functional requirement identified.
Good analysis results in a clear understanding of function, performance, interfaces, and
other constraints.
iii. Documentation Outlines the agreed requirements in detail
iv. Validation Assures the constancy, completeness, and accuracy from the stakeholder
perspective
v. Management Maintains the requirements during the engineering process

Requirements are used during project planning, risk management, acceptance testing, trade-offs,
and change control. Common problems include: incorrect or poorly specified requirements, and
lacking validation from stakeholders before production.
Act as a filter to remove designs that are overly ambitious, heading for failure, have
conflicting objectives.

Systems Engineering Model Characterises the customer requirements in terms of key factors:
Operational Distribution/Deployment Where will the system be used?
Mission Profile/Scenario How will the system accomplish its mission objective?
Performance and Parameters - What are the critical system parameters to accomplish the
mission?
Utilisation Environments How are the various system components to be used?
Operation Lifecycle How long will the system be in use by the user?
Environment What environments will the system be expected to operate effectively?

Derived Requirements are implied or transformed from high-level requirements, and Allocated
Requirements are established by dividing high-level requirements into multiple lower-level
requirements.
 Attributes of Good Requirements:
i. Achievable Must reflect needs and accomplish objectives that is technically possible and cost
effective.
ii. Abstract- Expressed in terms of the need rather than the solution.
iii. Unambiguous Must be concrete in interpretation.
iv. Verifiable Functional utility must be expressed in a way that allows objective verification.
v. Traceable Must be directly expressed by customer or stakeholder.
vi. Complete Contains the complete sum of operational and maintenance concepts.

8. System Design

Large Systems Architecture A method to handle systems too large for a single person to conceive:
The highest level of system requirements is generated with full constraints such as cost and
timeframe
The system is partitioned into successive layers of subsystems and components to be solved
individually

System Design is imperative to decide whether the problem is manageable. It determines the
acceptable performance limits and obtains accurate cost and resource estimates in early project.
Majorly, it provides the framework for a team to work on large designs.

High Level Design Arguments between original and adaptive design produces initial solution.
Synthesis, analysis, and refinement are used to produce the final product:
Synthesis Process of bringing structure to the initial solution concept e.g. functional block
diagram. Conflict between quick sketches/concept generation, and novel solutions offering
advantages over competitor.
Analysis Determines if synthesised system meets performance, and cost objectives.
Physical and computational modelling is often used.
Refinement Modifying the synthesised concept based on the information gathered from
analysis.

The Iterative Process comes to an end when current structures meet the cost and performance
objectives, when change does not stand to benefit, or when the structure does not meet standards.

9. Functional Analysis

Axiomatic Design Theory is used for four purposes:

i. To provide a systematic way of designing products and large systems.
ii. To reduce the random search process.
iii. To determine the best designs among those proposed.
iv. To create system architecture that completely captures the construction of the functions.

The Independence Axiom states that the independence of functional requirements must always be
maintained. The Information Axiom states that the best design is the one with the least information
content while still satisfying independence.

Design in Four Domains in the axiomatic realm includes the customer domain, the functional
domain, the physical domain, and the process domain.
10. Conceptual Design Process

Conceptual Design Process identifies the essential problems through abstraction. It establishes the
high-level function structures, while searching for appropriate working principles. It combines these
into working structures and utilises the divergent search for variants for optimisation.
Abstraction A process used to avoid fixation and broaden available solutions.
Accomplished by expressing the general form of the problem (inventors paradox).
Analyse Working Principles An analysis of the function structure identifies sub-functions
for which new working principles must be found. Physical effects are assigned to solution-
neutral sub-functions.

The Systems Engineering Lifecycle is a reiterated design lifecycle:

i. Preliminary System Design Sub-systems that perform desired functions are designed and
specified in compliance with the requirements.
ii. Functional Analysis and Allocation Understands the priorities and conflicts associated with the
low-level functions and provides information essential to optimising physical solutions.
iii. Requirements Loop Iterative process of revisiting requirements analysis considering the
information collected in the previous section
iv. Design Synthesis Defines the product in terms of the physical and non-physical elements which
must be combined to complete
v. Design Loop Revisits the functional architecture to verify that the synthesised physical design
can perform the required function at the required level of performance.

Testing and Design Reviews

Design Feasibility Risk A measure of the risk of success. Dependent on level of customisation,
range of proven components/materials, and experience:
a) (NO RISK) Customised design based on the selection from a range of proven
component/materials
b) (LOW) Design involving the use of an unproven component, material, or subcontractor
c) (MODERATE) Design based on the interpolation of existing experience
d) (HIGH) Design based on the extrapolation of existing experience
e) (VERY HIGH) Completely new design or application of unproven technology.

! The cost and schedule impact of a major misunderstanding or error in the design increases
dramatically the further the development process has advanced.

Design Verification is a process that involves analysis, inspection, demonstration, and testing.
Commonly the criteria for testing are extracted directly from the requirements.
Testing procedure typically begins with low-level debugging of components as they are
developed. Further on is unit testing of components, integration testing of subsystems, and
acceptance testing of complete systems

Design Reviews are an important tool in managing design processes. They update members on state
of design and enable critical design decisions. Review should occur between each stage of design
and involve stakeholders where possible.
Important to assess whether the proposed solution is the most effective, and efficient
solution. Gives scope of the development of the design.
 Types of Peer Review include concept peer review, requirements peer review, design peer
review, test plan peer review, test design peer review, source code peer review, procedure
peer review.

11. Standards in Design

A Standard is a document which sets out criteria designed to ensure that a material, product,
method, or service is fir for its purpose and performs as intended. For both Performance and Design
standards there are three categories: Mandatory, Guidance, and Industry Standard.
Assures quality and safety in performance to customers looking for independent verification.
Certification marks acts as a recognisable assurance of rigorous examination.
Production Standards Specifies characteristic properties of design, construction, or
composition.
Design Standards Largely concerned with safety and amasses from experience
Safety Standard Provides specific guidance and safety in matters of health, life, and
property.
Testing Methods Centralised steps to ensure the standardisation of properties and
specifications.

12. Design for Manufacturing and Assembly

Design for Manufacture (DFM) Design for the consideration of materials, geometry, tolerances
and other factors that influence the production process.
Minimises cost of production by preventing expensive/difficult manufacturing processes.
Optimises material selection, evaluates tooling and fabrication, eliminates unnecessary
tolerance, and standardises components/processes.

Design for Assembly (DFA) Reduces cost by targeting part count, assembly time, part cost,
assembly process.

Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DFMA) Identifies part consolidation, exposes cost and
quality problems early in design, objectively assess design simplifications, and drives optimisations
to set target costs.
Reduces overhead cost by minimising material use, labour costs, setup costs, dedicated
machinery and clerical work.
Common practices include designing for no tooling, assembly with single linear motion,
immediate securing, using fewer standard components, and maximising accessibility of
components.

Design for X (DFX) A systematic approach for production process that relates specifically to the
products, processes, and facilities. Product developers select and weigh different criteria and
consider distribution and retirement.

Industrial Design is composed of five critical goals: utility, appearance, ease of maintenance, low
cost, and mission communication
 10 Principles of Good Design Good design is innovative, useful, aesthetic, understandable,
unobtrusive, honest, long lasting, thorough, environmentally friendly, as is as little design as possible

Rapid Prototyping Provides aesthetic visualisation, form-fit-and-function testing, and casting

models. Reduces product realisation time and cost, and improves response to market changes.

Engineering Design A systematic, intelligent process in which designers generate, evaluate, and
specify concepts for devices, systems or processes whose form and function achieve client objectives
or user needs while satisfying specified constraints.

13. Professional Responsibilities of an Engineer

The three principles of engineering professionalism are knowledge, association, and ethics. These
factors influence the professional judgement.
Engineers Australia Code of Ethics Demonstrate integrity, practice competently, and
exercise leadership.

Charted Engineers are registered in the national engineering register and demonstrate knowledge,
engineering ability, and professional attributes. At all times, they must consider safety and risks:

Safety
Assessment of safety by an individual or group
requires unbiased interpretation of relevant
information, appropriate skills to develop
informed opinions, sufficient time to reach
consensus, and an outcome.
Risk
The potential for unwanted outcomes from an
action. Composed of two aspect:
Nature of unwanted outcomes
Uncertainty of surrounding outcomes

Uncertainty of Outcomes ranges from manufacturing error, installation and operation failure, to end
of life; all of which come with a degree of cost and consequence.
Statistical view of uncertainty dictates that the event can be determined by a stable
probability distribution.
Scenario view of uncertainty dictates that past behaviour is not a reliable guide.

Engineering Liability is divided into contractual liability and tort liability (negligence). Duty of Care is
the legal obligation of any engineer to avoid causing harm.
Employer WHS Duties An employer shall, so far is practicable, provide and maintain a
working environment in which the employees are not exposed to hazards.
Designer WHS Duties The designer and the manufacturer has the duty of ensuring the
facility and subject is designed and constructed so that it may be safely used in the
workplace.

14. Risk Management

Hazard Anything that causes the potential to cause harm, including substances, organics, work
processes, and other aspect of the work environments.
Risk The likelihood that death, injury, or illness might result from a hazard
Risk Management Foundation Organize and maintain the knowledge and information on the
design, development, and manufacturing of the product and ensure accurate data.
Risk Management Scope A clear definition and scope of the risk management plan that is
based on the project focus, the phase of the project lifecycle, and the amount of information
available.
Risk Management Process Composed of the management plan, risk assessment, risk
control, and post-production information.
Risk Management Plan Identifies the hazards associated with functional units, estimates
and evaluates the risk and implements control; the effectiveness of the control is monitored.

RAMS defines the dependability of a system:

Reliability The ability of an item to operate under designated conditions for a designated
period.
Availability The probability that an item will be operational at a given time.
Maintainability The ability to perform preventative or corrective maintenance
Safety Freedom from unacceptable risk of harm

System Safety is an approach to safety that considers the hazards that will be encountered during
the entire life cycle. Industrial Safety usually considers only the hazards that arise during the
operational phases of the product or system.

There are five Principles of Safe Design:

i. Management Control Decision affecting the design of products, facilities, or processes,
promote health and safety at the source.
ii. Product Lifecycle Design safety is considered for every stage from conception through to
disposal.
iii. Systematic Risk Management Requires the application of hazard identification, risk
assessment, and control processes that achieve safe design.
iv. Safe Design Knowledge and Capability Demonstrated or acquired by the design team.
v. Information Transfer Effective communication and documentation of design and risk control
compiled and accessible.

An Ergonomic approach ensures that the design process accounts for a wide range of human factors,
abilities and limitations. Considers the physical and psychological characteristics of people and user
safety.

Risk Assessment Describes the likelihood and severity of risk; numerical expression of
consequence per unit/time or annualised loss expectancy.
Probability Implies a model or mechanism if responsible for the outcome.
Likelihood Refers to situations were unsystematic events occur that cannot be quantified
due to uncertainty.

Risk Analysis Tool

Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) A procedure to analyse the potential failure modes in a
technical system and classifies them according severity. Asks the questions:
How could each component conceivably fail?
 What might cause these modes of failure?
What would be the effect if these failures did occur?
How is each failure mode detected?

Design-Level FMEA is used to uncover problems with the product that will result in safety hazards,
product malfunctions, or shortened product life. Asks how can the product fail?

Process-Level FMEA uncovers problems relating to the manufacturing process, assessing the five
elements of a process: people, materials, equipment, methods, and environment. Asks how can
process failure affects efficiency and safety?

System-Level FMEA validates system design specification in preliminary design phase, to reduce the
risk of functional failure across the systems hierarchy. Identifies systematic failure due to system
interaction.

The FMEA Criteria are composed of severity, occurrence, and detection ratings. These are used to
quantify the Risk Priority Number (RPN):
i. Severity is an assessment of the failure and its seriousness. Can only be reduced by change in
design:
ii. Occurrence is an assessment of the frequency of failure:

iii. Detection is an assessment of the ability to identify the failure before it reaches end use:
 The Risk Priority Number is calculated by multiplying the severity, occurrence, and detection ratings.
The RPN is determined before implementation and recommends corrective actions.

FMEA Steps:
i. Determine the failure modes
ii. Determine potential effects of each failure mode
iii. Determine a severity rating for each effect from the severity rating table
iv. Determine an occurrence rating for each effect from the occurrence rating table
v. Determine a detection rating for each effect from the occurrence rating table
vi. Calculate the risk priority number for each effect
vii. Prioritise or rank the failure mode or reduce its severity
viii. Recalculate the RPN as failure modes are reduced or eliminated

! FMEA avoids the need for costly equipment modifications, and identifies single point failure
modes.

15. Hierarchy of Control

Hierarchy of Control (HOC) is a risk treatment procedure that offers several ways to approach
hazard control and risk management.
Control measures are implemented from the top down where possible, but must be
accommodated at the planning/design stages.
Generally, the high-level controls are more cost effective in the long term and require less
maintenance

The HOC lists control measures by priority, to eliminate or minimise hazard exposure:
i. Level 1 Considers elimination before all other options
ii. Level 2 Minimisation options, substantially reducing risk. Avoid
a. 2nd Priority Substitution. Transfer
b. 3rd Priority Isolation/Engineering. Reduce Threat
c. 4th Priority Administration. Reduce Vulnerability
d. Last Priority Personal Protective Equipment. Reduce Impact

16. Fault Tree Analysis

Fault Tree Analysis (FTA) is a top-down approach to failure analysis, starting with a potential hazard
(TOP Event), then determining the ways it can occur.
Analysis proceeds by determining how the TOP event can be cause by individual or
combined lower-level failures.
The causes of the TOP event are connected through logic gates.
FTA is the most commonly used technique for casual risk and reliability analysis.

Steps in FTA include:

i. Definition of the system (TOP Event) and boundary conditions
ii. Construction of the fault tree
iii. Identification of the minimal cut sets
iv. Qualitive and quantitative analysis of the fault tree
v. Reporting of results
Primary, Secondary, and Control Causes Primary faults dictate unplanned failure modes,
secondary faults dictate condition based failure modes, and command faults dictate induced faults
(or sequential faults).

A Cut Set is any group of fault tree initiators that the occurrence of all will result in the TOP event
occurring. Minimal Cut Set is the smallest group of initiators that will result in TOP event occurrence.
 Single Point of Failure is an independent element of a system which causes an immediate hazard to
occur and/or cause the system to fail.

FTA Uses Advantages Disadvantages

Identifies all possible
causes of TOP event
Structured top-down
deductive analysis
Improves systematic
understanding
Not fully suited to model
dynamic scenarios
Results are binary (fail or
success)
Identifies risks in a complex
system
Makes it possible to focus
on fault without losing
perspective
Results are understood
quickly
Provides formal analysis of
failures with major
consequences
Detailed and time-
consuming
Requires expertise and
training
Single value presentation
gives the illusion of
accuracy
Does not guarantee that all
faults are detected
Human and organisational
factors may be neglected

17. Event Tree Analysis

Event Tree Analysis (ETA) is a deductive procedure that shows all possible outcomes resulting from
an accidental (initiating) event.
It can be used to identify the outcome of accident scenarios and sequences in complex
systems
Design and procedural weaknesses can be identified and probabilities of various outcomes
can be determined.
Addresses the probability that a system will respond successfully to an undesired event
 Event tree analysis is defined by the following steps:
i. Identify and define initial event
ii. Identify the barriers that are designed to deal with the initiating event
iii. Construct the event tree
iv. Describe the resulting accident sequences
v. Determine the frequency of the accidental event and the conditional probabilities
vi. Calculate the probabilities/frequencies for the consequences (outcomes)
vii. Compile and present the results from the analysis

The ETA Numeric Analysis is the probability of success given the event is the sum of probabilities for
each path leading to success: (1 ) (1 ) + (1 ) (1 )
Failures assumed to be statistically independent, occurring due to poor maintenance or
defective parts.

ETA is suitable for analysing failsafe mechanisms and safety critical systems where chain of failures
may lead to overall system failure.
May be used to judge the acceptability of the system, identify improvement opportunities,
and justify allocation of resources for improvements.
Does not provide corrective action because it does not address causes for failure

18. Bow Tie Diagram

The combination of FTA and ETA becomes a Bow Tie Diagram, and examines potential major
incidents and causes that may lead to them, followed by a description of consequences that may
result.
Facilitates focused monitoring and auditing of controls
Allows a layer of prevention layers to be examined, and highlights mitigation layers that may
reduce the consequence of an event.
The FTA analyses the causes of a fault, while the ETA tree is used to analyse the
consequence.
19. Design Assurance

Major Hazard Facilities (MHF) are facilities that have the potential to cause major accidents where
the consequences rival natural disasters in terms of loss of life, injury, damage to property, and
community disruption.

The three main elements that constitute a Safety Case are:

Safety Requirements and objectives which define the goals of the analysis
Safety Evidence which defines what the analysis relies on
Safety Arguments which details how evidence is sufficient to demonstrate the achievement
of the objectives

Safety cases are intended to demonstrate the actual safety of a system rather than compliance to
prescriptive regulation. The responsibility of safety is shifted back to the system operator.
Safety Case Regimes are a methodology for delivering duty of care, and critically evaluate
the safety arguments behind the regulation.
Common structure of safety cases includes: Facility Description, Formal Safety Assessment,
and Safety Management Systems.

ALARP Principle (As Low as Reasonably Practicable) dictates that all efforts should be made to
reduce risk to the lowest level possible until the cost of further safety measures grows grossly
disproportionate to the benefit.
Risk should only be tolerated if clear benefit can be demonstrated.
 Reasonably Practicable considers factors of hazard severity, knowledge of hazard,
knowledge of solution, availability of solution, common standards of practice, and cost of
solution.

Safe Design Risk Management Process involves identifying design-related hazards, eliminating and
controlling risks, monitoring risk-control measures, maintain records, and consult individuals
involved in the lifecycle of the product.

20. New Product Success

New Product Development (NPD) Process encourages and facilitates the review of many new ideas
and concepts. Rigorous analysis and decision making prioritises the number of products likely to be
successful. Continuous improvement of the development process is necessary.

Macro-considerations in new product development include shortages of important new product

ideas, fragmented markets, social and governmental constraints, development costs, capital
shortage, and shortened time span.
High Failure Rates can be explained by poorly matched resources, reduced market size, poor
understanding of customer needs, competitive response, insufficient return, and internal
organisational problems.
Successful businesses dedicate twice as much time and money on screening, financial, and
market analysis before undergoing the design process.

21. Stage-Gate Product Development Model

The Stage-Gate System is a conceptual and operational road map for moving a new product from idea
to launch. Divides the effort into distinct stages separated by management decision gates.

i. Stage 0 (Discovery) Discovers opportunities to generate new ideas and market opportunities
ii. Stage 1 (Scoping) Preliminary investigation into the feasibility of projects, providing inexpensive
information to enable project reduction
iii. Stage 2 (Build the Business Case) A more detailed investigation by primary marketing and
technical research. Includes product definition, justification and plan.
iv. Stage 3 (Development) A detailed design and development plan with simple testing parameters.
v. Stage 4 (Testing & Validation) Extensive product testing in the lab, facility, and marketplace.
vi. Stage 5 (Launch) Beginning of full production, marketing, and selling. Reviews are performed of
all operations

The benefits of the Stage-Gate model when implemented properly are: accelerates speed-to-market,
increases likelihood of success, introduces discipline to chaotic processes, reduces forms of time
wasting, and ensures a complete process.

22. Break-Even Analysis

Determines the sales volume (units sold) required to break even:

Quantified by values:

Total Cost Sales Income Profit No. Units Required

=+ = =
=
( )
Where P = Sales price per unit, F = Fixed Costs, V = Cost for total unit

Limitations of Break-Even Analysis are that it only gives supply side analysis, it assumes fixed costs
are constant, assumes variable costs are constant per unit, and assumes that the quantity of good
produced are the quantity sold.
 Economic analysis should be performed to determine Product Viability (potential demand,
costs, and cash flow/cumulative profit), and when Sensitivity Analysis on internal
(development time/costs) and external factors (competitors/market share) is needed.

23. Base-Case Financial Model

Realising Business Value. The Four Ares

i. The Strategic Question Is the investment in line with our vision, consistent with our business
principles, and contributing to our strategic objectives.
ii. The Architecture Question Is the investment in line with our assets, contributing to their
growth, and in line with other initiatives.
iii. The Value Question Do we have a clear understanding of the benefits, clear accountability for
realising this, and a relevant metrics.
iv. The Delivery Question Do we have effective and disciplined management, available resources
for delivery, and the required capabilities.

A Business Case is a document detailing the proposed product, project definition & plan, financial &
resource justification, and recommendations for proceeding.

A business case is a verifiable statement regarding actions or alternatives on whether the

investment return is greater than the cost of implementation.
It depends on a set of assumption on how value can be created, developing top-down from a
clear understanding of the desired business outcomes. The desired outcomes are monitored
and controlled through the full lifecycle.

The Base-Case Financial Model simply states that the project costs (outflow) should not exceed the
project revenue (inflows). Linear and Non-Linear Sensitivity Analysis is vital to address certain what-
ifs.

24. Estimating Costs and Sales

Top-Down Estimation is based on collecting judgements and experience on the subject matter, to
estimate the cost of major tasks. The major tasks are broken to lower-level tasks until a complete
scope of the work is complete.

Bottom-Down Estimation is based on a breakdown of the work structure into task elements,
resource requirements are estimated by those responsible for executing the task.

Costs are divided into direct costs (variable costs) and indirect costs (fixed/overhead).

Fixed Costs occur in a predetermined independent of the number of units manufactured.

Variable Costs are incurred in direct proportion to the number of units produced.

Selling Price may be determined in two main fashions:

i. Cost Basis Is a financial accounting calculation fixing a gross profit margin that the business
requires to produce a net profit.
ii. Value Basis uses projections of customer willingness and actual value of product/service to
dictate a price.
25. Marketing

Marketing creates demand whereas sales creates customers. It is used as a tool to identify,
satisfy, and keep customers.

Product Orientation is concerned with the quality of its own product; acts under the
assumption that high quality products will always be desirable.
Sales Orientation focuses primarily on the selling/promotion of a product and not with
determining new consumer desires.
Production Orientation specialises in producing as much as possible of a given good.
Marketing Orientation bases its marketing plan around the core marketing concept.

Product Innovation Approach is the practice of pursuing innovative idea and developing them for
market breakthrough.

Customer Orientated Marketing is viewed from the customer perspective by 4 Ps: Product
(customer solution), Promotion (customer communication), Price (customer cost), and Placement
(customer convenience).

26. Organizational Structures

The various positions of the organizational structures offer different advantaged:

Senior Management Establishes the fundamental values by which the organisation and
people interact. Responsible for creating structure, business strategy, and clarifying issues in
middle management.
Middle Management Implement the business system and allocate tasks. Responsible for
removing barriers to successful execution, and clarifying issues for supervisors and workers.
Supervisors and Workers Execute the business plan and upkeep the schedule. Participate in
problem solving and production.

Overview of Organizational Structures:

i. Functional Organization Structure Organised by activities that need to be performed, typical to

a project or department.
Advantages: Easier to train within functional areas, better technical capability, mentoring
and cohesive structure.
Disadvantages: Poor inter-function interaction, lack of emphasis on project, large staff
size, and higher overhead
ii. Product-Line/Project Structure Organised by market areas, projects, and/or components.
Typical to a multi-project company, and a development organisation.
Advantages: Strong end-product focus, emphasis on customer, and ideal for
development.
Disadvantages: Duplication of effort, and difficult to expand product base.
iii. Matrix Organisation Structure Organised by function and product, typical to mid-level
organisations.
Advantages: Share valuable expertise across number of projects, and ensures customer
satisfaction.
Disadvantages: Competition for resources, and too much management weight.
27. Concurrent Engineering

A systematic approach to the integrated, concurrent design of products and their related processes;
including manufacturing and support. Integrated, multi-functional teams work together,
simultaneously attacking multiple aspects of new product development.

Concurrent Engineering can be defined by the principles:

i. Starts all tasks as early as possible

ii. Utilises all relevant information as early as possible
iii. Empower individuals and teams to participate in defining the objectives of their work
iv. Achieve operational understanding for all relevant information
v. Adhere to decisions and utilises all previous relevant work
vi. Make decisions in a single trade-off space
vii. Make lasting decisions, overcoming the natural tendency to be quick and novel
viii. Develop trust among teammates
ix. Strive for team consensus
x. Use a visible concurrent process

Concurrent Engineering reduces delay and allows a better product to enter the market earlier, by
performing tasks in parallel and representing late-stage design earlier in the cycle.

Concurrent engineering design teams may become uncontrolled if it spans too much of the
lifecycle. More suitable to smaller scale and creates more problems at lager sizes.
It is useful to set and analyses goals, directing and controlling integration, encouraging
communication, applying best practices, and facilitating design generation.

28. Engineering Management Systems

Engineering Management Systems (EMS) is comprised of the organisational structure,

responsibilities, process, procedures, and resources that apply to the conduct and management of
engineering activities.

Engineering Management Plan (EMP) Considered a quality manual for engineering practices within
an organisation, providing central points of reference to the full range of plans, processes, and
procedures.

Technical Support Networks To fill in gaps in engineering expertise, organisations formally establish
a network of individuals and other organisations allowing them to certify work.

Project Management

Managing the design process means meeting the design objectives of functionality and performance,
and establishing the project plan This outlines the definition and breakdown of tasks, allocates
resources, and establishes the schedule.

i. Initiating
ii. Planning
iii. Executing
iv. Controlling
v. Closing

SMAARRT Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Action-Based, Realistic, Resourced, Time-Framed

! Developing a project plan is an iterative process, requiring frequent review, data collection, and
management.

Successful Projects meet time targets, create & implement deliverables under agreed requirements,
stay within budget, and involve the right people.

PRINCE2 Project Management Method in controlled environments if designed to minimise risk of

project failure, reduce waste, increase productivity, and produce higher levels of customer
satisfaction.
Case Study 1# - Sydney Harbour Bridge
1. Design Team
Who were the main team member?
JJC Bradfield Chief Engineer responsible for coordinating all activities
Ralph Freeman & Design Team British Design Engineer
Dorman Long British Design Company

Construction team, steel fabricators & riveters, creeper crane operators, parts manufactures,
painters & maintenance crews, temporary township works at quarry in Moruva, and stone masons
from Italy and Scotland.

How was the team managed?

Chief Engineer Bradfield and Design Engineer Ennis oversaw all facets of the project, while Gangers
and team leaders supervised work crews.

What was done internally? What was outsourced? How did they work across the boundary?
Internally: Bridge works carried out manufacturing and assembly, while segments were fabricated at
local factories and transported on-site. (Riveting, painting, concrete pours, and asphalt production).
Externally: 75% of steel was imported from England, and stone masons were brought from Italy and
Scotland.

2. Stakeholder Needs and Requirements

Who were the influential stakeholder?
NSW Government, North Shore residents, city businesses, Bradfields city plan, bridge workers,
residents displaced by the project, steel manufacturers in Australia & England, railway operators,
harbour waterway users, motor vehicle users.

What were their most important needs?

Joining the two cities, affordable & efficient transport, integrated road/rail system, jobs during the
depression, and compensation for displaced residents.

What were the alternative solution concepts?

Different types of bridges at different locations, increased ferry services, harbour tunnel, cable car
spanning the harbour, and a barge between the north and south.

How were the stakeholder needs met by the final design strategy? (Concept of Operation)
Joined the cities and included 3 modes of transport, and provided an economic solution to the great
depression.

Why was the Concept of Operation the best choice?

The arch design compensated for the lack of room that made a cantilever bridge impossible
Ferries would never be able to supply the necessary capacity
A tunnel was economically unfeasible in scope and technical capability
Cable cars and barges would be limited by the same capacity issues as ferries

3. Design for Manufacture, Assembly, and X

How was the product designed for manufacture?
 Fabrication occurred off-site for assembly on site, while stay cables, temporary hinge
arrangement, and hydraulic jacks were used to culminate construction from both ends and
meet at the middle.
Three specialised carrier ships were designed to carry the granite and loose aggregate
material.

What were the design for assembly features?

Components were designed for on-site assembly, with major components constructed up
river to facilitate transport
Very little production on-site

Were their other design constraints (DFX)?

Safety was concerning due to lack of regulation and protocol. 17 workmen were killed during
construction; 2 falling from the bridge, 2 from machinery accidents, and the remainder form falling
objects.
Other considerations were the use of expansion joints to allow deflection when trains
crossed.
Service holes were left for access to allow for maintenance, and a lightweight gantry was
mounted under the deck. Scaffolding was erected to clean the granite face bricks during
construction.

4. Design Engineers Role

What was the design engineers main role?
Ralph Freeman focused on design and calculation of the project, while Bradfield oversaw the system
and project management.

What was the role of certification/and designer verification?

Bradfield certified the bridge with a physical demonstration; loading the bridge with trains while
personally standing at the centre.

Were there design reviews?

The cantilever bridge was considered the best candidate, until it become apparent that the straight
portion on the north side could not accommodate the sharp curve needed to navigate Milsons Point.

5. Testing, Verification, and Validation

How was each stage of the design verified?
Construction on the northern side was kept 7 months behind to allow for corrections. Consequently,
the north side was completed more rapidly.

How was the end design validated against the requirements?

Material testing and verification was performed by manufacturers, while 7660 tons were loaded on
the quarter points of the bridge to verify capacity.

What were the safety design objectives for build, operation, and maintenance?
Stay cables were used to self-support the bridge during construction
Temporary three hinged arch was used temporarily, where the bottom chord was subject to
the bulk of the weight. Two hinged chord was later adopted as construction was complete.
 Functional Requirements
Smooth curve before bridge
Light weight concrete to keep mass to
minimum.
Infrastructure and Planning
100 years of planning from need identification
3 years of construction
12 days to bridge the sides (2 inches per day)
128 anchor cables before the bridge became 2-
hinge
Purely aesthetic pylons added million Pounds
worth of cost
Steel sections fabricated at Milsons Point

Resource Management Risk Treatment

5 Million Rivets 128 ground cables
25% Australian Steel & 75% UK Steel Work was suspended during harsh weather
Granite Masons from Italy and Scotland South side constructions were 7 months ahead
Granite waste was crushed and used as Hydraulic Jack overcompensated and has back-
concrete aggregate ups
53,000 tons of steel Danger signage visible
17,000 cubic meters of Granite
Safety Design for Maintenance
Smooth curve on north side Man-holes designed in steel chords
Relatively little safety standards to modern Gantry under the bridge still used for
time maintenance and painting
127 people killed 100-person staff
No major repairs have been performed yet
Expected to service well into the next
millennium
Repainted with rust preventive paint every 12-
15 years
Case Study 2# - Boeing 747

Who were the main team member and what were their roles and responsibilities?
William Allen Boeing President who initiated, funded, and oversaw the project
Malcom Stamper Project Manager who managed construction activities
Juan Trip Pan-Am President responsible for financing and primary stakeholder
Design team, factory workers, part manufactures, construction workers

How was the team managed?

Planning and control room produced a Gantt (bar chart for time scheduling), to organise work

What was kept internal and what was outsourced? How did they work across the boundary?
Outsourced: Engines, parts and components were all outsourced
Internal: Design, assembly testing, food and medical services

What were the difficulties in achieving concurrent engineering and how were these overcome?
Need for the facilities and planes to be built at the same time, overlapped jobs, safety issues.
Pratt and Whitney engines were too powerful for the wind design and the blades were
rubbing. The engine mounts were redesigned to redistribute the force across the wing.
Detailed specification and quality assurance were made by Boeing for parts sourced from
around the world.
A localised train line and asphalt was laid to expedite the interconnection of facilities.