Design of a Descriptive Model for Product Portfolio Evolution Based on the Model of SGE – System Generation Engineering

The further development of the product portfolio is characterized by challenges such as shorter product life cycles and increasingly complex networked products. These challenges can soon no longer be met with conventional methods. For the analysis of this process, a descriptive model of product portfolios is needed, which represents all relevant aspects, content wise precisely and formally correctly. There-fore, a descriptive model was developed based on the model of SGE – System Gen-eration Engineering according to ALBERS. Based on a literature analysis, a case study and interuniversity workshops, requirements, to the description of advance-ment of product portfolios, were derived. In a survey among product developers a relevance evaluation of the requirements was performed. Based on the survey a first iteration of a descriptive model was synthesized. The model was validated and fur-ther developed in an application study with product developers within the live lab "ProVIL Product Development in the Virtual Idea Lab". The findings from this were recorded in semi-structured interviews and used to further develop the de-scriptive model. ... mehrThe descriptive model will be enhanced in following research work and extended by an according process model to a systematics for future robust prod-uct portfolio development.