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One-off or Batch upgrading is the term given to the process of improving one or several operational instances of complex products or systems (e.g., trains, aircrafts, etc.) during their life span. Other products such as cars or personal computers are regularly improved through redesign, generation after generation; however, redesign never concerns only one or several instance(s). The main challenge presented in this paper is to provide a suitable framework to analyse one-off and batch upgrading processes. This framework targets at containing required concepts and drivers for upgrade problem posing. The axiom beneath this research is that the goal of upgradings is to improve the performances of products or systems. Upgrade-to-performance, UtP in short, represents this paradigm that will be defined and illustrated through examples. To reach this goal, necessary concepts are defined and linked together through a generic data model. The UtP data model can be used in a conceptual way clarifying the scope of the upgrading process. It can also be specialized to specific industrial domain and used as the main driver of the design of a database for a given upgrading projects. The use case reported concerns the conversion of a passenger train into an express freight where the focus is put on enlarging a coach’ door. The results are then discussed to figure out the links between the UtP problem-posing and problem-solving methods and the gaps to fill. Finally, further research niches are described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Firms look for procuring a sustainable advantage over their competitors. Therefore, they should be both operationally and strategically efficient. However, as firms work with other companies, they are under threats of misunderstanding, inefficiency, difficult synchronisations, etc. These threats will be transformed into real business traps. In this paper, authors propose a global framework which focuses on collaborative new product development (NPD) projects. The ultimate goal is to minimise harmful potential consequences of collaborations. This framework emphasises critical characteristics of any collaboration among partners. It helps users to have a clearer understanding of the overall environment of such projects. This understanding leads not only managers towards a better definition of their strategy but also guides them to acquire a more resourceful operational efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In new product development (NPD) projects, various partners may be involved at different phases and their participation can lead to either success or failure of the project. Therefore, a company that launches an NPD project has to carefully select the most appropriate partners. Currently, partner selection in supply chains is often performed according to well-known criteria such as cost, delay and quality. However, problems could emerge in such processes due to the unavoidable power disequilibrium of the parties involved. The strongest party will sooner or later force the weaker ones to accept more challenging constraints. The use and abuse of power will lead to doubtless mistrust and frustration. Therefore, the awareness of the suppliers' power before any collaboration is of upmost importance and in realistic situations, it should be used as a high-level selection criterion. This article argues that the power of partners represents a significant issue for the achievement of a coherent supplier selection strategy. An innovative method is suggested to assess the power of each potential partner based on its performances. The joint use of a power-based selection approach and a performance-based selection approach is illustrated at the end of the article. This study demonstrates how power consideration can help decision makers in selecting more relevant partners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Innovative product development and in-house process design have been largely studied and methods, such as concurrent engineering, integrated product development, or dynamic product development are set up to answer real needs of industrialists. However, no innovative product can be put on the market without a well-structured and well-organized network of partners. This simple idea deeply influences various aspects of collaborative enterprises. This article studies the close relationship between two parallel design processes: product design and network design. This paradigm called co-design is explained and some basic concepts and exploratory results are defined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]