Configuration Methods Used Today

Typically, manufacturers use three different approaches to handling complex product configurations:

• The first approach creates unique end-part numbers. This approach creates a part number for every combination of features and options that build a viable end-item product. This method can be cumbersome and not conducive to change because the quantity of part number can become too large to effectively manage.

• The second approach creates generic end-part numbers with extended manual descriptions. You embed critical information about the features and options to be included in a final product into the text. All inventory records in the system appear as the same product because they all have the same part number, even though each end item may have different features and options. This method creates a poor audit trail for parts, it limits priority and capacity planning, and its costs are distorted. These results occur because the software system has no way to retrieve and use the information embedded in the text.

• The third approach is the use of a configurator—that is, a tool developed to handle complex product configurations.