Functional Modeling is a powerful tool that drives innovation and improves engineering systems. Using the System Functional Model tool in the PRIZ Innovation Platform, engineers can analyze components, identify inefficiencies, and develop innovative solutions. This article demonstrates functional modeling through an example of an IC interconnection layer, showing how it simplifies systems, cuts costs, and boosts performance. You’ll discover how this method can enhance your engineering outcomes and guide your innovation process. Some housekeeping To innovate and improve your engineering system, start by creating a Functional Model and performing a functional analysis. Functional Modeling is the most effective method for:…

In today’s rapidly changing world, innovation is not just a luxury or a path to growth; it’s a necessity for survival. To illustrate this, let’s step back in time to the story of Robinson Crusoe, the shipwrecked man who found himself stranded on a deserted island. Crusoe had to innovate constantly to survive, and his story highlights the essence of innovation in action. Similarly, modern organizations face a daily survival challenge requiring structured innovation. The article encourages organizations to go beyond traditional brainstorming and instead adopt systematic, meaningful innovation to achieve sustainable improvements and thrive in competitive environments. The PRIZ…

Would you agree to lower your standard of living? Would you give up the internet, cell phones, air-conditioned apartments, etc.? I believe you wouldn’t. If you want to continue enjoying your current living conditions, you need to support innovation and do everything possible to keep it going. Innovation must continue. Don’t expect someone else to innovate for you. No, all of us, humanity as a whole, should be innovative everywhere and anytime to make our lives better. It’s important to mention that innovation always solves existing problems. This article discusses how to innovate, find the best tools for innovative thinking,…

RCA thinking is a tool for learning how the system operates and creating solutions to problems.

This article explores the various components of production costs and the factors that lead to their escalation, such as inflation, technological advancements, and market shifts. It emphasizes the need for a problem-solving culture as one of the Effective Cost Reduction Strategies in Production. The article highlights hidden opportunities for cost reduction through process optimization and provides a simple strategy for reducing production costs by categorizing operations and improving or eliminating them accordingly. Production costs Production cost refers to the total expenses incurred in making a product or providing a service, including materials, labor, and related costs. For a more detailed…

The word “Innovation” meets us everywhere: at work, bank, pharmacy, post office, gym, playground… “Innovation” became a brand indicating the effectiveness and success of the company. Do we clearly understand what innovation is? This article discusses the essence of innovation and the difference between innovation and process/product change, improvement, or fixing. We also discuss and describe the innovation process using the PRIZ Innovation Platform. The Ambiguity of Innovation Definitions The internet provides an abundance of different definitions and explanations of innovation. This suggests that the concept of innovation is not trivial and requires further analysis and clarification. According to the…

Engineering work is built on three essential pillars: process improvement, cost reduction, and root cause analysis. Engineers should dedicate their thinking to a specific and measurable target, use thinking tools and resources, and recognize and value engineering thinking. The PRIZ Innovation Platform offers tools for engineering thinking, including Process Functional Modeling, 40 Inventive Principles, and Effective Brainstorming. Engineers should focus on improving only those operations that increase the value of the product, remove all operations that do not increase the value of the product, and understand the origin of defects and eliminate them. What does an engineer do? What does…

Six Sigma is a popular approach for improving manufacturing quality, but small and medium-sized businesses often struggle to implement it due to a lack of resources. PRIZ Guru offers analytical and problem-solving tools to assist engineers at any step of the Six Sigma DMAIC process, including defining problems, collecting and documenting data, analyzing processes and systems, generating innovative solutions, making decisions, and effectively managing these projects. The Six Sigma process involves continuous problem-solving, and the PRIZ Innovation Platform is a comprehensive system designed to enable engineers to operate as professional problem solvers. SMB’s are Struggling to Implement Six Sigma Continuous…

This case study explores the usage of Process Functional Modeling (PFM) as a problem-solving tool in microchip manufacturing. PFM is an innovative way of thinking that involves breaking down a process into its components on multiple levels and generating innovative solutions. The tool enables us to move from general to specific, from process to operations, operations to components, and components to functions. In this article, we provide a real-life example of how a team applied PFM to the microchip manufacturing process. We want to demonstrate its effectiveness in creating a model of failure in the context of the whole process….