Integrating Cultural Value in Value Analysis

摘要

Value Analysis (VA), as it was originally conceived, was defined and applied mainly as a cost cutting tool, in order to make products more competitive in the market place. Many different and alternative applications of the value concept and of its original methodology have taken many professional practitioners and scholars to theorize and apply new and derived concepts and methods. We can find many different application tools and some theoretical evolution from that work, but that has not yet answered some aspirations regarding the concept of value and value analysis. This paper introduces a new and more comprehensive understanding to professional practitioners, scholars, trainers and students, about some major concepts and applied methodologies in the discipline of Value Analysis (VA). In that regard, a revision of the literature about the concept of value will be made, in relation to the tangible and intangible dimensions of value, namely "use value" and "economic value", and "cultural value" and "perception value", respectively. However, more important is the presented redefinition of the current understanding of value, function, and their applications. New concepts and terminology will be introduced and explained by this paper; such as "emotional attributes" and "utility attributes", "esteem service functions" and "use service functions", and "soft-product cultural functions" and "hard-product technical functions". As a result of this new concepts application in value analysis exercises, the process of function analysis needs to be revised. Therefore, this paper brings a new perspective of "value" and "Value Analysis" to professional practitioners, scholars, trainers and students in VA, VE and VM.