The product planning process has been highly developed in the automotive industry. It involves some consideration of nearly all the various functions of a business. The emphasis in this paper is on the aspects of product planning which are usually outside the engineers direct responsibility.
Implicit in the process are: forecasting technological and economic changes that will affect the future product and its market, developing product and program objectives by design and by analysis, and monitoring and controlling the program to insure that the objectives are met.
This paper examines one systematic approach using a case history to illustrate the manner in which the task can be organized as well as some of the specific techniques which can be used. The treatment is intended to provide a framework of reference and to suggest avenues for further study.
