Quality Function Deployment vs Axiomatic Design: Understanding Customer Needs for Product Development

Table of contents:
1.0 Quality function deployment VS Axiomatic design
1.1 Quality function Deployment
1.2 Axiomatic Design
2.0 Conman
3.0 Differences
3.1 Case Study
4.0 Conclusion

1.0 QFD Quality function deployment VS Axiomatic design
1.1 Quality function Deployment
The tool used for the process of understanding customer needs, prioritizing the
needs and then implementing the needs into the product development is Quality Function
Deployment (QFD). The QFD is developed by a Japanese named YojiAkao in 1966. Quality
function deployment is a method of acquiring and analyzing the customer voice and then
transforming it into the product requirements which also acts as a quality assurance measure
throughout the design, building, testing, and commercializing.(Chan, L. K., & Wu, M. L., 2002)
The House Of Quality is the process in that the plan looks like a house, based on the
customer feedback we can find what are customer need, how can it be provided, what are
relationship between that, and the importance that customer gives to each of their needs.
Objectives of QFD:
The objectives of QFD are,
 To identify the true voice of the customer and to use that knowledge in product
development which will satisfy the customer
 To help in the organization and analysis of all the relevant information associated
with the project.
Capturing voice of customer:
The initial process of QFD is capturing the voice of the customer and what is the exact
requirement of the product.
The various methods of capturing the customer voice are,
 Direct discussions
 Customer survey
 Market survey
 Trade trials
 Focus groups
 Customer Visit
 Consultants
 Observation
 Warranty data
 Customer audits
 Customer complaints
 Field reports

 Standards
 Government regulations
The primary planning tool used in QFD is the house of quality
The house of quality converts the voice of customer into product design characteristics. The
QFD uses a series of Matrix diagrams also called quality tables that resemble connected houses.
(Matzler, K., &Hinterhuber, H. H., 1998).
Basic Structure of House of Quality
The HOQ has six sections,
Section I: Customer relationship
The exterior wall of the house are the customer requirements. On the left hand side, the
voice of the customer is located.
Section II: Prioritized Customer requirements
On the right hand side the prioritized customer requirements are listed it is also called as
planning matrix are listed. Factors such as customer benchmarking, importance rating by the
customer, target value, scale up factor and the point of sales.
Section III: Technical Descriptors
The second floor or the ceiling of the house contains the technical descriptors. The
product design characteristic, expressed in engineering terms are located in this ceiling.
Section IV: Relationship matrix
Customer requirements and technical descriptors makes up the interior wall of the house.
This relationship matrix relates customer requirements with product features.
Section V: Trade off matrix
The top roof of the quality house is the relationship among technical descriptors and the
tradeoff between the similar technical descriptors.

Section VI: Prioritizing Technical Descriptors
The foundation of the house is the prioritized technical descriptors. Some of the items
included are the technical benchmarking, grade of technical difficulty and mark value.
Quality Function Deployment process