Efficient Design is the Key to Success

I mentioned Desktop Engineering Magazine in my last post. There is a great article by Amy Rowell that discusses the importance of design. The point is that it is extremely important to push the envelope on design regardless of the industry you serve. Pushing the envelope can mean many things. For some, it may involve the industrial design department, others may need to tweak a % or two to gain extra efficiency and others may need to ensure that their thermal management can accomodate the latest and greatest coming from the EE's. No better example of a company that pushes the envelope than Apple. They have raised the bar so we now expect them to "wow" us. Difficult position to be in for a company, but they are certainly reaping the benefits.

We speak to many engineering manager's all over the world everyday that acknowledge the fact that competition is tough and they would like to expand their foothold on the market. Unfortunately, they are already stretched thin and are struggling to keep up with the demand of their existing products. It is doubtful that hiring additional engineers is on the shortlist. So, doesn't it make sense to optimize the efficiency of your existing team? I know people are cringing as this is the perfect time for a sales pitch. Bear with me.

Today's engineer is multi-tasking. Time management is probably the biggest obstacle. Personally, I go through an exercise of jotting down where I spend my time each day. No fancy tools, just pen and notebook. I try to see where I am wasting time, not necessarily spending the most time. I am trying to identify tasks or areas that can be eliminated or automated.

So, where does Upfront CAE come into play? Begin to look at your process. Are you spending time, building and testing? Is it a fast and inexpensive process? I doubt the answer is yes. Are you spending time supporting customers after the fact because your products are failing in the field? Are there areas of your new designs that you really think would have an impact, but there just isn't enough time in the day to try them? If the answer is not an definitive, NO, then you should at least talk to somone about Upfront CAE.

To start, my advice, ask the sales guy how he envisions incoporating Upfront CAE into "your" process? Often, we get very tied up in how software works click for click. This can be a huge time sink. It is important to understand how it can be implemented first. The rest, usually falls into place.