The automobile is a truly complex consumer product whose design and manufacturing is influenced by national and international policies. Over the last century, the design, manufacture and operation of the automobile have grown into complex system integration paradigms cutting across applications of traditional disciplines in physical sciences, engineering, social and behavioral sciences, and business. For example, strict emissions regulations are driving research and development in advanced engine concepts running on conventional and alternative fuels, and hybrid vehicular powertrains. Conversely, there are a number of issues generated by the automotive industry that drive policy. Such issues must be constantly monitored and integrated into the design and manufacturing decisions for the vehicle systems. One such approach that is used industry wide is the V-model, which provides a conceptual platform for complex system specification, design, manufacture and refinement.

This seminar presents elements of the development of an up-armored vehicle within the V-model framework. Under this rubric, several research projects and their integration into the overall product design, development and execution are discussed. In particular, elements related to real-time electronic stability control, light weight / next generation materials and processing, and production system optimization for global companies will be presented in light of present and future capabilities. The development of an up-armored version of a commercial vehicle is an excellent example integrating all of these concepts. Such vehicles are produced by many OEM’s as well as government groups. The work presented in the seminar demonstrates that even some of the most basic assumptions are not valid when pushing the limits of the vehicle’s design and production. The ability to accurately model and simulate vehicle performance is critical to refine the up-armored vehicle design, before production is initiated. To realize cost effective production, integration of the up-armored vehicle into standard commercial production lines must be executed and presents a series of significant problems. Furthermore, the need for specialized components made of difficult to machine materials demands new and innovative approaches to process modeling and outsourcing strategies that lend themselves well to next generation cloud manufacturing concepts. The extrapolations of best practices for these operations are presented with respect to other market sectors. The talk concludes with the extending the discussion from automotive manufacturing to general manufacturing and highlights the needs of society, the nation and the globe for next generation capabilities of both hardware/software and personnel related to production.