ACTIVITY-BASED COST TABLES TO SUPPORT WIRE HARNESS DESIGN

An accurate product cost estimation should be made at the concept desi gn stage to support decision making. Examples of such decisions are th e selection of the least cost design among alternative designs that me et the required specifications and the economic feasibility of the pro duct. This paper presents a cost estimating methodology for the manufa cture of wire harnesses. Cost tables, which are databases of detailed cost information based on various manufacturing variables, have been d eveloped. These are useful for design and manufacturing engineers when estimating the manufacturing cost of wire harnesses. The cost tables can be used to estimate the manufacturing cost at the early stages of design for a wide range of wire harnesses using various component part s and manufacturing methods. Parts or manufacturing methods that are c ostly can be detected early and changes to the design can be effected. What-if analysis can also be performed by changing a component or sel ecting a different manufacturing process.