Simple Solutions That Work! Issue 7

frequently achievable, were the back of a napkin sessions – where senior team members and / or a couple key contributors would do a fast deep dive into a problem over lunch, and then follow up on action items before they got back together to discuss progress. As I go from foundry to foundry promoting new technology, I see an industry at large which would benefit from routine technology road mapping, even on the back of the napkin. My ultralight version of the process and a few examples are below. I break road mapping down into two timeframes: Current and future. There’s a lot of time wasted on ‘how far out into the future you’re talking about,’ but it’s your business, so I figure you already know the answer. Current state: Dealing with reactionary / course corrections (what are your pain points?) Future state: What is the achievable target that you are aiming for? The road map from one state to the other outlines the projects that you need to undertake. WILLIAM SHAMBLEY President METAL FISH LLC Welcome to our Emerging Technologies column. In each issue, we will feature new technologies that are entering the metal and die casting industry. BACK OF THE NAPKIN TECH ROADMAPPING I managed a new product development / R&D group for a few years. We were responsible for full product life cycle – from concept, development, through launch, manufacturing support, and obsolescence. The cradle to grave mentality created a great sense of accountability. It eliminated the classic development mind-set of “fix it in production” or “purchasing can deal with that single sourcing risk later.” The regime also meant that as engineering managers, we constantly needed a short-term and long-term technology road map in order to make sure that the ship kept sailing in the right direction without running aground along the way. Hardcore road mapping sessions with the whole team was an incredibly useful annual event, sometimes offsite, with a creative moderator. Also useful, and more 4