Accelerating the design process poses challenges within the context of an integrated product design team. To achieve faster designs, a specifically designed tool suite built around Sikorsky's CAD tool has been developed and has resulted in significant productivity improvements. The tool suite provides not only greater design accuracy, required information for downstream processes but also reduced flow time. However, to get best use of the tool suite, new issues arise that must be addressed; as follows; 1) Special attention must be given to the new requirements and skills necessary to use the new tools; the designer must be more capable and encompass a greater part of the basic design effort, 2) Training of the designer (PT) is key; the training must not only address the use of the tools but their place in the design process; also, the training must be "just-in-time" to allow direct application by the PT. Time saving of up to 40% have been seen as determined by surveys.
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