How do you identify and prioritize the functional requirements and specifications of industrial products?

1 Understand the problem

The first step is to understand the problem that the product is intended to solve, and the context in which it will operate. This involves researching the needs, wants, and expectations of the users, customers, and stakeholders, as well as the market, industry, and regulatory standards. You can use various methods, such as interviews, surveys, observations, focus groups, or benchmarking, to gather relevant information and insights.

2 Define the functions

The next step is to define the functions that the product must perform to solve the problem and deliver value. Functions are the actions or tasks that the product does, such as heating, cooling, cutting, or displaying. You can use tools, such as function analysis, function trees, or function maps, to break down the problem into smaller and simpler functions, and to show how they relate to each other and to the overall goal.

3 Specify the requirements

The third step is to specify the requirements that the functions must meet to ensure quality, reliability, and safety. Requirements are the measurable and verifiable criteria that the product must satisfy, such as dimensions, weight, speed, temperature, or noise. You can use tools, such as quality function deployment, house of quality, or morphological analysis, to translate the functions into requirements, and to evaluate and compare different design alternatives.

4 Prioritize the requirements

The fourth step is to prioritize the requirements according to their importance and urgency. Not all requirements are equally critical or feasible, and some may conflict or trade-off with each other. You need to rank and weigh the requirements based on their impact on the user satisfaction, the product performance, and the project constraints. You can use tools, such as Pareto analysis, Kano model, or analytical hierarchy process, to prioritize the requirements and to identify the optimal balance.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?