Mass Customization

From: Steven Pollack (steve@familyjeweler.com)
Date: Wed Jan 02 2002 - 12:02:09 EET


Dear List,

I recently had the interesting experience of purchasing a new pair of gym
shoes. I dutifully went to the wall of left shoes at the mall store and was
amazed by the proliferation of shoe designs and materials. I have no doubt
Rapid Prototyping technology advances have fueled this bonanza of choice.
In fact I started feeling like an old man (of 36) thinking how in the world
am I supposed to choose from among all these crazy styles and wistfully
conjuring up simpler times when shoe designs offered less choices.

Now this is not mass customization but I am aware that there are sites that
allow for enough choice control to be given such a title. My question is
this: Does the general public have the desire to make these kinds of choices
or enough design skill to feel comfortable in making these kinds of choices?

The current mass production driven system of manufacturing makes this
question irrelevent because the product engineer and product designer
pre-digest the available options and present the marketplace with well
thought out designs. But as we are all seeing CAD/CAM is lowering the cost
threshold for providing one off designs. Automated manufacturing systems
will undoubtedly crop up where the user becomes the designer, turning the
designer/manufacturer/consumer relationship around.

Digital Jeweler, our server side CAD software walks the line in between
these alternatives by offering customization of a pre-engineered core design
through the use of knowledge engineering. My question as far as I am
concerned is if the consumer would desire to go the next step further in
having "complete" design control within a system that either guides for
proper manufacturing parameters or mandates it. Is the general population
incapable of this level of design choice meaning it would be a niche product
for those brave enough to try it or is the current state of
consumerism(choosing between alternatives) just a temporary natural
consequence of the marketplace created by the industrial revolution and mass
production?

Would your answer change if there were design helpers in the program such
that while the user could be allowed to design something outside the bounds
of good design or manufacturing, pop-up helpers would alert the user and
give them alternatives to their current choices? What if the helpers were
also design driven?
Or do you believe the user would need to be corralled inside a system that
only produces "good results" as pre-determined by those knowledgeable about
product design?

Finally, is the analysis of this issue fatally skewed by this being a forum
of engineers? d:^D

Steven Pollack
President, Digital Jeweler
660 Vernon Ave
Glencoe, IL 60022
www.DigitalJeweler.NET

For more information about the rp-ml, see http://rapid.lpt.fi/rp-ml/



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