Mechatronics Product Life-Cycle Management — Trends and Best Practices

This Manufacturing Insights report describes the growing critical role mechatronic systems serve in a wide range of industries and products. The report details the unique challenges of mechatronics engineering and why many manufacturing companies are not optimally positioned for efficient and effective product development. Mechatronic systems — the synergetic integration of mechanical engineering, electronics, and computational power into integrated electromechanical devices — are gradually replacing mechanical and electromechanical devices and are serving an increased role in many products and systems.

"Many manufacturing companies consider mechatronic development simply as the merger of several engineering disciplines with which they may be very familiar," says Joe Barkai, program director at Manufacturing Insights. "Although mechatronics is indeed an amalgamation of well-established disciplines, it is the convergence of these very familiar practices with new and emerging market forces that presents engineering and product development challenges."

According to Barkai, "Companies that have traditionally excelled in one or two of the engineering disciplines involved in mechatronics are often challenged by the need to synchronize the development cycles of fundamentally different disciplines and integrate them into a single system. Manufacturers need to recognize that mechatronics is not simply an amalgamation of known engineering disciplines and practices and consider a new product development process for mechatronics product life-cycle management."