Exercises
I. List a set of metrics corresponding to the need that a pen write smoothly.
2. Devise a metric and a corresponding test for the need that a roofing material last many years.
3. Some of the same metrics seem to be involved in trade-offs for many different products. What are some examples of such metrics?
Thought Questions
1. How might you establish precise and measurable specifications for intangible needs such as "the front suspension looks great"?
2. Why are some customer needs difficult to map to a single metric?
3. How might you explain a situation in which customers' perceptions of the competitive products (as in Exhibit 6-7) are not consistent with the values of the metrics for those same products (as in Exhibit 6-6)?
4. Can poor performance relative to one specification always be compensated for by high performance on other specifications? If so, how can there ever really be a "marginally acceptable" value for a metric?
5. Why should independent design variables not be used as metrics?