Decision Analysis in Product Development – A Case Study

This paper presents how Ford uses decision analysis methodology in product development. An underbody system is used to illustrate this method. The decision analysis methodology breaks down design requirements hierarchically into criteria and sub-criteria and uses a computer based tool to analyze them holistically against different alternatives to arrive at the best choice. With the decision analysis software, we were able to conduct sensitivity analysis around the baseline model to understand the robustness of our decision. We also conducted “what if” analyses on each of the criteria to understand conditions under which the choice would be different.