Chapter 3- Forecasting

Question 1

Contract manufacturer

Answer 1

An organization capable of manufacturing and/or purchasing all the components needed to produce a finished product or device.

Question 2

Core competency

Answer 2

The one thing that a firm can do better than its competitors. The goal is to have a core competency that yields a long-term competitive advantage to the company.

Question 3

Concurrent engineering

Answer 3

Emphasizes cross-functional integration and concurrent development of a product and its associated processes.

Question 4

Quality function deployment (QFD)

Answer 4

A process that helps a company determine the product characteristics important to the consumer and to evaluate its own product in relation to others.

Question 5

House of quality

Answer 5

A matrix that helps a product design team translate customer requirements into operating and engineering goals.

Question 6

Value analysis/value engineering (VA/VE)

Answer 6

Analysis with the purpose of simplifying products and processes by achieving equivalent or better performance at a lower cost.

Question 7

Ecodesign

Answer 7

The incorporation of environmental considerations into the design and development of products or services. These concerns relate to the entire life cycle including materials, manufacturing, distribution and the eventual disposal of waste.