INDUSTRIAL PERSPECTIVE ON RESEARCH NEEDS AND OPPORTUNITIES IN MANUFACTURING ASSEMBLY

This paper investigates whether investments in research and developmen t (R&D) could have a significant impact on reducing the cost and/or en hancing the effectiveness of manufacturing assembly. It also recommend s a research agenda that from an industrial perspective would result i n the highest return on investment in assembly R&D. The assessment was conducted on 24 product line across companies ranging in size from $1 0 million to $2 billion in annual sales. Approximately 64% of the asse mbly dollar value surveyed corresponded to Department of Defense (DoD) products. A needs and trends analysis was conducted to determine the perception of industrial participants regarding their current investme nt, need for investment, and cost impact potential of assembly activit ies. Findings for government contractors versus commercial firms, for prime contractors versus subtier contractors, and for electrically int ense versus mechanically intense operations are presented. The researc h methodology also included analysis of qualitative data from open-end ed questions and interviews. This resulted in identification of three major assembly issues: R&D opportunities, R&D inhibitors, and technolo gy transfer. These findings are also summarized.