Model to Determine the Best Modifications of Products with Consideration Customers’ Expectations

Abstract

The current situation in the energy market contributes not only to the sales growth of photovoltaic panels (PV) but also to the intense search for possibilities for its improvement. The purpose of this research was to develop a model to determine, where possible, the most beneficial modifications to improve products. The model used combination techniques, i.e., the SMARTER method, brainstorming (BM), the 7 ± 2 rule, questionnaire, ant colony optimization (ACO), and importance-performance analysis (IPA). In addition, an algorithm supporting ACO was proposed in the MATLAB program. The test was carried out on PV and showed that it is possible to determine the way of product (PV) improvement by determining a sequence of modifications for product criteria states while simultaneously considering customers’ expectations. It was shown that each state of the short-circuit electricity and peak power was satisfactory for customers. It was necessary to modify the maximum current and idle voltage. In addition, the selected modification states of the weight and dimensions will be more satisfactory compared to the current states. The proposed model is based on searching for the best changes in product criteria to achieve the highest possible customer satisfaction (i.e., product quality level). Originality is the ability to define a product improvement method (PV) depending on customer expectations but also taking into account the requirements of the company.

A Novelty Procedure to Identify Critical Causes of Materials Incompatibility

“…To efficiently and dynamically search for the main causes of porosity clusters according to ACO, the MATLAB programme was used. MATLAB software implements an algorithm developed based on the example presented in [ 60 , 68 ].…”

“…Later, following the authors of articles [ 60 , 68 ] a random number was randomly drawn (with the use of MATLAB software) and amounted to 0.0950.…”

“…Then, the calculations were carried out adequately for the potential cause and were repeated accordingly for the subsequent potential causes of the porosity cluster on the mechanical seal. Later, an algorithm was initiated in MATLAB, an example of which is presented in [ 60 , 68 ]. It was assumed that the number of iterations (the number of passages of ants) was equal to 100.…”

“…The rows and columns of the matrix are the individual potential causes of non-compliance and the corresponding values of the degree of impact of these causes. The pairwise comparison of the degree of influence of the causes of non-conformity is to calculate the difference between the mutual influences of these causes, as presented in Equation (5) [ 46 , 60 ]: where: b—the value of the degree of impact of the cause of non-conformity k, determining its degree of impact on the occurrence of non-conformity or on the natural environment; k—the cause of non-conformity of the product; i, j—1, 2, 3…, n.…”

“…In order to dynamically analyse the causes of inconsistencies, it is possible to implement the data in MATLAB software, as presented by the author of the study [ 60 , 68 ]. Then the calculation process is effective and less complicated.…”