Linking Technology, Contextual Factors and Design Tasks: Working Situations in Product Development

This paper describes a framework for understanding working situations and how technology, contextual factors and design tasks can be linked in order for the product development process to become more efficient. The proposed way of achieving this is to ensure a better alignment between design goals, the underlying design process, design methods, and the surrounding contextual configuration, including technology. Engineering designers utilize and depend on design methods, design processes, other people, their physical surroundings, and different technology-based generic and engineering-specific tools, in order to be effective. Hence, they �orchestrate� the design process using the wide array of methods, tools and contextual factors that are availableat their disposal. Designing the working situation in which they engage in problem setting and problem solving, can be viewed a means to improve design performance in concurrent engineering. This can be done by actively manipulating contextual factors ensuring proper alignment between goals, design methods, overall design process and contextual factors.