HASSAN ALLI A DESIGN METHODOLOGY INCORPORATING USER REQUIREMENTS AND ...

197 Pages·2015·2.12 MB·English

Ph.D
A DESIGN METHODOLOGY INCORPORATING USER REQUIREMENTS
HASSAN ALLI
AND PREFERENCES FOR A SUCCESSFUL PRODUCT 2015
A DESIGN METHODOLOGY INCORPORATING USER
REQUIREMENTS AND PREFERENCES FOR A SUCCESSFUL
PRODUCT

HASSAN ALLI

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING
UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA
KUALA LUMPUR

2015
A DESIGN METHODOLOGY INCORPORATING USER
REQUIREMENTS AND PREFERENCES FOR A
SUCCESSFUL PRODUCT

HASSAN ALLI

THESIS SUBMITTED IN FULFILLMENT OF THE
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING
UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA
KUALA LUMPUR

2015

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UNIVERSITI MALAYA
ORIGINAL LITERARY WORK DECLARATION
Name of candidate: Hassan Alli (I.C/Passport No:
Registration/Metric No: KHA080080
Name of Degree: Doctor of Philosophy
Title of Project Paper/Research Report/Dissertation/Thesis (“this work”):
A Design Methodology Incorporating User Requirements and Preferences for a
Successful Product
Field of Study: Engineering Design
I do solemnly and sincerely declare that:
(1) I am the sole author/writer of this work;
(2) This work is original;
(3) Any use of any Work in which copyright exists was done by way of fair dealing
and for permitted purposes and any excerpt or extract from, or references to or
reproduction of any copyright work has been disclosed expressly and
sufficiently and the title of the work and its authorship have been acknowledged
in this work;
(4) I do not have any actual knowledge nor do I ought reasonably to know that the
making of this work constitutes an infringement of any copyright work;
(5) I hereby assign all and every rights in the copyright to this work to the
University Malaya (“UM”), who henceforth shall be owner of the copyright in
this work and that any reproduction or use in any form or by any means
whatsoever is prohibited without the written consent of UM having been first
had and obtained;
(6) I am fully aware that if in the course of making this work I have infringed any
copyright whether intentionally or otherwise, I may be subject to legal action or
any other action as may be determined by UM
Candidate’s Signature Date
Subscribed and solemnly declared before,
Witness’s Signature Date
Name:
Designation:
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First of all, I would like to express my warmest gratitude to my Professor, Dr.
Hj. Zahari Taha, for his continuous assistance and encouragement throughout my study
at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of
Malaya, and after his move to University Malaysia Pahang. He has been a source of
inspiration, support and encouragement during the arduous as well as pleasant work. I
would also like to thank to Dr. Salwa Hanim Abdul Rashid for her supervision, which
was of great value to the development of my understanding of the subject.
I also wish to express my appreciation and gratitude to all the administrative and
technical staff at the Centre for Product Design and Manufacturing, Department of
Mechanical Engineering, who provided such a pleasant working environment. Very
special thanks to University Putra Malaysia (UPM) and Bahagian Biasiswa, Jabatan
Pengajian Tinggi, Kementerian Pengajian Tinggi Malaysia (KPT) for their invaluable
support and sponsorship during my study at PhD level. I am also grateful to everyone
who has been involved and contributed their knowledge, ideas, and experience as
product designers and users as respondents in this research.
Last but not least, I would like to thank my beloved family, especially my wife,
Zuraini Ahmad, for being such a wonderful companion and thoughtful partner who has
shared the ups and downs throughout the process of completing my study. To my
daughters, Nur Hannani Zuhairah, Nur Haziqah Zahraa and my son Muhammad Haziq
Zafran, I want you to know that my love is always with you.

Hassan Alli

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ABSTRACT

The failure of most new products on the market is almost always caused by the inability
to integrate user requirements and preferences in the development of a product. It has
been proven that involving the user in the development of a new product results in the
success of the product. This should be done in the product definition stages of the
design process, particularly in the development of the specification and characteristics
of the product. Involving the user opens up possibilities for new ideas, improves product
innovation, decreases the product risks, prevents it from being irrelevant and makes it
pleasurable for the product designer to verify the product requirements. The aim of this
research is to develop a design methodology for identifying the product characteristics
that satisfy the user requirements and preferences, and increasing the probability of its
success. A survey was carried out in order to establish the relationship between the
product designer and the user during the product development process. In particular, the
study seeks to determine the role of the main stakeholders in the success of a new
product. The survey consisted of a questionnaire and structured interviews to explore
product development activities and decision-making practices during the product
definition stages of the design process. Seven successful product characteristics were
established from past successful products; namely, multi-function, advanced
technology, good performance, good brand, good design, user-friendly and
environmentally friendly. It was also found that there are twenty-seven requirements of
product design that can be defined in a product design specification. Thirteen
requirements are recognized as functional requirements followed by fourteen aesthetical
requirements. Both of which contribute to the establishment of successful product
design characteristics. In addition, these requirements serve as an indicator of the degree
of user satisfaction. This was proven through a product user survey and technical
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specification analysis. A case study was conducted in which factor analysis of sales
performance through a correlation and regression test also showed that the seven
characteristics have a strong influence on the success of a mobile smart phone.

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ABSTRAK

Kegagalan beberapa produk baru di pasaran adalah disebabkan oleh ketidakupayaan
untuk mengintegrasikan keperluan pengguna dan keutamaan dalam pembangunan
produk baru. Ia terbukti bahawa penglibatan pengguna dalam pembangunan produk
baru telah menyumbang kepada kejayaan produk. Ini perlu dilakukan pada peringkat
definisi proses reka bentuk, terutama dalam pembangunan spesifikasi dan ciri-ciri
produk. Penglibatkan pengguna telah menyumbang kepada penghasilan idea-idea baru,
meningkatkan inovasi produk, mengurangkan risiko produk, mengelak daripada
penghasilan produk tidak relevan dan memudahkan para pereka bentuk produk
mengenalpasti keperluan produk. Tujuan penyelidikan ini adalah untuk membangunkan
satu methodologi untuk mengenal pasti ciri-ciri produk yang memenuhi keperluan dan
citarasa pengguna, dan meningkatkan kebarangkalian kejayaan sesuatu produk. Satu
kajian telah dijalankan dalam usaha untuk mewujudkan hubungan antara pereka
bentuk produk dan pengguna semasa proses pembangunan produk. Khususnya, ia
bertujuan untuk menentukan peranan pihak berkepentingan utama dalam kejayaan
produk baharu. Kaji selidik ini terdiri daripada soal selidik dan temu bual berstruktur
untuk mengenalpasti aktiviti-aktiviti pembangunan produk dan amalan membuat
keputusan diperingkat definisi proses reka bentuk. Tujuh ciri-ciri reka bentuk produk
berjaya telah dikenalpasti berdasarkan kejayaan produk terdahulu iaitu pelbagai
fungsi, teknologi canggih, prestasi yang baik, jenama yang baik, reka bentuk yang baik,
mesra pengguna dan mesra alam. Terdapat juga dua puluh tujuh keperluan reka bentuk
produk yang menentukan spesifikasi sesuatu produk. Tiga belas keperluan telah
dikenalipasti sebagai keperluan fungsi diikuti oleh 14 keperluan estetika. Kedua-dua
mereka menyumbang kepada pengukuhan ciri-ciri reka bentuk produk berjaya. Di
samping itu, keperluan-keperluan ini adalah menjadi sebagai penunjuk kepada tahap
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kepuasan pengguna. Ini terbukti melalui kajian produk pengguna dan analisis
spesifikasi teknikal. Satu kajian kes telah dijalankan untuk menganalisa faktor prestasi
jualan melalui korelasi dan ujian regresi yang juga telah menunjukkan bahawa tujuh
ciri-ciri tersebut mempunyai pengaruh yang kuat terhadap kejayaan kepada telefon
pintar mudahalih.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ORIGINAL LITERARY WORK DECLARATION ........................................................ ii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................. iii
ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................... iv
ABSTRAK ......................................................................................................................... vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................... viii
LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................ xii
LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................... xiii
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ......................................................................................... xv
LIST OF APPENDICES ................................................................................................ xvi
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................... 1
1.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 1
1.2 Research Background ......................................................................................... 1
1.3 Aim ..................................................................................................................... 2
1.3.1 Research Objectives .................................................................................... 2
1.3.2 Scope and Area of Research ....................................................................... 3
1.3.3 Research Contributions ............................................................................... 3
1.4 Outline of the Thesis .......................................................................................... 4
CHAPTER 2 NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT ...................................................... 7
2.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 7
2.2 New Product Development ................................................................................ 7
2.2.1 The Design Process ..................................................................................... 8
2.2.2 Product Definition Stage of the Design Process ....................................... 11
2.3 Successful Product Design ............................................................................... 11
2.3.1 The Role of the Users in a Successful Product ......................................... 12
2.3.2 Understanding User Behavior ................................................................... 13
2.3.3 User Involvement in the Product Development ........................................ 15
2.4 The Development of Product Characteristics ................................................... 16
2.4.1 Requirements of Product Design .............................................................. 17
2.4.2 Functional and Aesthetical Requirements of Product Design .................. 18
2.4.3 Preferences of Product Design .................................................................. 20
2.5 Incorporating Product Designer Decisions and User Requirements ................ 21
2.5.1 The Product Designer-User Collaboration ................................................ 21
2.5.2 Existing Methods in the Product Development Process ........................... 23
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