Integrated design and production of multi-storey timber frame houses – production effects caused by customer-oriented design

• Published in: International journal of production economics Vol. 77; no. 3; pp. 259 - 269
• Main Authors: Stehn, Lars, Bergström, Max
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 11.06.2002; Elsevier; Elsevier Sequoia S.A
• Series: International Journal of Production Economics
• Subjects: Concurrent engineering; Customer-oriented design; Design build construction; Flexible production; Forecasting; Home building; Integrated design/production; Product development; Studies; Timber frame houses; Timber Structures; Träbyggnad; Sweden; Integrated design/production; Flexible production; Timber frame houses; Customer-oriented design
• ISSN: 0925-5273; 1873-7579; 1873-7579
• DOI: 10.1016/S0925-5273(00)00153-5

This paper presents the results from an ongoing R&D project aiming for an industrialised development of a multi-storey timber frame house system. The development was conducted systematically using methods from concurrent engineering (CE) focusing on the customer satisfaction and production–design problems/possibilities. A Swedish SME building company was investigated from the viewpoint of customer orientation, production and design of multi-storey timber frame houses. The company uses industrial fabrication of volumes. The aim was to analyse how the production can benefit from an integration of a customer-oriented design and production. First, a model based on the QFD method is proposed on how requirements from customers, i.e., tenants, can be taken into account in the design process and how CE can be adapted to a SME design process. Second, a preliminary model is proposed considering disturbances and relative cost effects on the production due to changes in the design solutions. The presented model aims to predict the total cost for a customer affected design on the used building system to forecast the costs for the main contractor and building owner for a similar integrated design in the future. All observations are based on case studies of the design process and the industrialised production of a three-storey timber frame house with three different floor designs.