UserRequirementsand

EngineeringSpecifications
Gooduserrequirementsareoneofthekeyfactorsthatleadtoasuccessfuldesign.Userrequirements
capturethestakeholdersneeds,desires,andexpectationsforaproductandarethebasisfordeveloping
engineeringspecificationsthestatementsuponwhichadesignwillbeverifiedagainst.Engineering
specificationsserveasacollectionofcriteriathatthedesignmustmeetinordertofulfilltheuser
requirementsthatwereelicitedfromthestakeholders.

Aftercompletingthisblockyouwillbeableto:

elicitanddevelopuserrequirementsfromstakeholders
identifydatacollectionstrategiestoinformuserrequirements
prioritizeuserrequirements
translateuserrequirementstoengineeringspecifications
writespecificandunambiguoususerrequirementsandengineeringspecifications

TableofContents
Section1:WhatareUserRequirements?
Section2:WhatareEngineeringSpecifications?
Section3:UserRequirementsElicitation
Section4:TranslatingUserRequirementstoEngineeringSpecifications
Section6:WritingQualityUserRequirementsandEngineeringSpecifications
Section7:OrganizingandDisplayingyourUserRequirementsandSpecifications
Section8:CommonPitfallsWhenDevelopingUserRequirements
References

CoreContent
Section1:WhatareUserRequirements?
Userrequirements
[ ,or]productrequirementsareanyfunction,constraint,orotherpropertyrequiredfora
designedartifacttomeettheneedsorwantsofstakeholderstherequirementsaretranslatedinto
engineeringspecificationsthatarebothquantifiableandmeasurableinordertoguideengineeringdesign
[Mohedas]
processes.

Literaturedefinesproductoruserrequirementsinmultipleways:
Identifiablecapabilities expressedas
performancemeasurables offunctionsthatthesystemmust
possesstomeetthemissionobjectives
Attributes ofthefinaldesignthat
mustbeapartofanyacceptablesolutiontothedesignproblem
An externallyobservablecharacteristic ofadesiredsystem
Thetermuserrequirementsmayalsobereferredtoas:productrequirements,designrequirements,or
[Mohedas,Dieter,Jiao]
customerrequirements.

Simplyput,auserrequirementisastatementthatspecifies
WHAT
aproductshoulddo,butitdoesnot
define
HOW itshoulddoit.

Forexample,thefollowinguserrequirementspecifiesWHATaproductshoulddo:

Thedeviceshalldecreasethetemperatureoftheskin

butnotHOWitshoulddoit:

Thedeviceshallapplymoisturetocooldowntheskin.

Insummary,requirementsmustbespecific,clear,andwithoutambiguity.

Whyareuserrequirementsimportant?

Casestudieshavedemonstratedthatthesuccessofnewproductsdependsuponhowwellthefrontend
designphasesareexecuted.Studieshavealsoshownthatinmanyinstancesproductfailuresarearesultof
criticaldecisionerrorsmadeduringthefrontenddesignphasesthatcouldnotbecosteffectivelyrectified
laterinthedesignprocess.Akeycomponentoffrontenddesigninvolveselicitinganddevelopingproduct
requirements. [Mohedas]

Thepriceishighforteamsthatfailtodefinerequirementsorthatdoitpoorly.Illdefinedrequirementsresult
inrequirementsdefects,andtheconsequencesofthesedefectsareugly:

Expensivereworkandcostoverruns.
Apoorqualityproduct.
Latedelivery.
Dissatisfiedcustomers.
Exhaustedanddemoralizedteammembers.

Toreducetheriskof...projectfailureandthecostsassociatedwithdefectiverequirements,projectteams
mustaddressrequirementsearlyin[thedesignprocess]andtheymustdefinerequirementsproperly.
[Gottesdiener]

Notonlydopoorforethoughtandplanningindevelopinguserrequirementsleadtotheconsequences
describedabove,theimportanceofdevelopingqualityuserrequirementsisevenmoreimportantwhenwe
JournalofHumanComputer
considerinterculturaldesign.Thefollowingexcerpt,fromanarticleinthe
Interaction
,describeshowtheperceptionofwhataproductshouldbecanbehighlyinfluencedbythe
receivingculture:

...Culturaldiversitymakesitimpossiblefordesignerstodependoninstinctiveknowledgeor
personalexperience,therefore,manyresearchershaveidentifiedtheneedtoexploreculturalissues
inwebinterfacedesign.Forexample,Marcus&Gould[15]pointedoutthatwebdesignersneedto
domuchplanning,research,analysis,design,evaluation,documentation,andtrainingtodeeply
comprehendtherequirementsoftheuser,market,andbusiness.Indeed,peoplefromdifferent
culturesusewebinterfacesindifferentways,holddifferentmentalmodelsforvisual
representations,navigation,interaction,andlayouts,andhavedifferentcommunicationpatternsand
expectations.Inthecontextofglobalisation,weblocalisationbecomesapowerfulstrategyto
acquireanaudienceinaglobalmarket.Therefore,webdevelopersanddesignershavetomake
adaptationstofittheneedsofpeoplefromdifferentcultures[Hsieh]

...Amajorfindingfromtheexistingliteratureoncultureand[humancomputerinteraction(HCI)]is
thatthereareculturaldifferencesinthemodelsthatdifferentusergroupshaveofwhatHCIis.For
example,Chineseusersadaptamoreholisticmodelofwhatitistousesoftware,comparedto
Europeanusers(Smithetal.,2004).Theculturaldifferencesimplytheneedforlocalizationofthe
softwaredesign(Marcus&Gould,2000)andforlocalizationandculturaladaptationofestablished
userexperienceandusabilityevaluationmethods(Clemmensen,Hertzum,Hornbaek,Shi,&
Yammiyavar,2009Hall,DeJong,&Steehouder,2004Smith&Yetim,2004
[Clemmensen]

WinschiersTheophilus,2009)...

BacktoTableofContents

Section2:WhatareEngineeringSpecifications?
Engineeringspecifications arethesetofgoalsthat,whenachieved,necessarilymeetstheuser
requirements.Specificationsaretherestatementofthedesignproblemintermsofparametersthatcanbe
measuredandhavetargetvalues.

Thetermengineeringspecificationsmayalsobereferredtoasproductspecificationsorfunctional
[Jiao]
requirements.

Engineeringspecificationsarederivedfromtheuserrequirements.Engineeringspecificationsmustbe
[Makower] :

1. userdriven
2. quantifiable
3. solutionneutral
4. specific

Theseattributesofengineeringspecificationsarefurtherdescribedbelow:

1. UserDriven

Engineeringspecificationsaredevelopedbasedontheuserrequirementstheteamderivesfrom
stakeholders.

Establishingtheengineeringcharacteristicsisacriticalsteptowardwritingtheproductdesign
specification...Theprocessofidentifyingtheneedsthataproductmustfillisacomplicated
undertaking...Amajorchallengeofthisstepistohearandrecordthefullnessofcustomerideas
withoutapplyingassumptions.Forexample,ifacustomeristalkingaboutcarryonluggagethey
maysay,Iwantittobeeasytocarry.Anengineermightinterpretthatphrasetomean,makeit
lightweight,andsetweightasadesignparameterthatshouldbeminimized.However,the
customermayreallywantacarryoncasethatiseasytofitintotheoverheadluggagecompartment
ofaplane.Thecarryingtaskisalreadyeasyduetothedesigninnovationofwheeledluggage.
[Dieter]

Thestakeholdersdesireforluggagetobeeasytocarrymayleadtoseveralconsiderationsin
termsofuserrequirementsandspecifications.Doestheluggageneedtobelightweight?Doesit
needtobecompact?Whatdimensionsandweight(andothercharacteristics)fulfilltheseparticular
requirements?Shouldithavewheelsoracarryingstrap?Therearemanypossibilitiesandthese
shouldbefullyexploredbythedesignteamwhileengagingwithstakeholders.

Theaboveexampleisjustoneofmanysituationsinwhichthedesignteamwillneedtothoroughly
accurately
explorethestakeholdersdesirestocreateengineeringspecificationsthat reflectthe
stakeholdersneeds,akaareuserdriven.
Thisconceptofbeinguserdrivenisnotlimitedtothe
developmentofengineeringspecificationsalone,rather,thebulkofthedesignprocessshouldbe
focusedontheuseraswell.

2. Quantifiable

Engineeringspecificationsshouldbequantifiable,orinotherwords,abletobemeasuredintermsof
engineeringunits.Thefollowingprovidesgivesagoodoverviewofhow quantifiable
engineering
specificationscanbedefined:

a. DesignParameters .Parametersareasetofphysicalpropertieswhosevaluesdetermine
theformandbehaviorofadesign.Parametersincludethefeaturesofadesignthatcanbe
setbydesignersandthevaluesusedtodescribetheperformanceofadesign.Note:itmust
beclearthatdesignersmakechoicesinanattemptto achieveaparticularproduct
performancelevel,buttheycannot guaranteetheywillsucceeduntilembodimentdesign
activitiesarefinalized.
b. DesignVariable. Adesignvariableisaparameteroverwhichthedesignteamhasa
choice.Forexample,thegearratiofortheRPMreductionfromtherotatingspindleofan
electricmotorcanbeavariable.
c. Constraints. Constraintsarelimitsondesignfreedom.Theycantaketheformofa
selectionfromaparticularcolorscheme,ortheuseofastandardfastener,oraspecific
sizelimitdeterminedbyfactorsbeyondthecontrolofboththedesignteamandthe
customers.10Constraintsmaybelimitsonthemaximumorminimumvalueofadesign

 variableoraperformanceparameter.Constraintscantaketheformofarangeofvalues.
[Dieter]

Insimpleterms,engineeringspecificationsthatarequantifiableoftenhavethefollowing
characteristics:

Numeric
Unit[i.e.inches,centimeters,kg,rpm]
Relationaloperator(=,<,)
Testable [Makower]

3. Specificity

Engineeringspecificationsthatshowspecificityaccuratelyreflectthestakeholdersrequirements
andareabletobeunderstoodbyoutsidedesignerswhomaynotbefamiliarwithyourproject:

Examplesofnonspecificspecifications:

productweightweightofstandardrefrigerator
productisaestheticallypleasing

Forsomeonewhomaynotbefamiliarwithyourproject,theymighthaveseveralquestionsinmind
whatistheweightofastandardrefrigerator?Howdoyoudeterminewhatisstandardintermsof
refrigeratorsizes?Whatdoesitmeantobeaestheticallypleasing?Isthereacertainstandardone
needstomeettobedeemedaestheticallypleasing,andwhatisthatstandard?

Examplesofspecificspecifications:

productweight500lbs.
productisrankeda4outof5ona5pointLikertscaleby75%ofstakeholders.

Whilespecifyingtheirengineeringspecifications,thedesignersshouldalwaysseektocreate
standardsbasedonclearrationale.Thisrationaleisachievedthroughacriticalanalysisof
ethnographicdata,engagingwithstakeholders,andconsultationofexistingliterature.

Specificityisespeciallyimportantwhentryingtodefinevaguerequirementssuchassafeor
effective

4. SolutionNeutral

Engineeringspecificationsshouldbesolutionneutralmeaningthat:

atthistime
...thespecification shouldnotbesocompleteastosuggestasingleconceptorclassof
concepts.[Dieter]

Inotherwords,solutionneutralengineeringspecificationsdescribeWHATthedesignshould
achieveinordertofulfilltheuserrequirements,buttheydonotdictateHOWthedesignshould
achievethesegoalsorWHATthedesignshouldbe.

 Example:Inresponsetotheusersdesirefortheirproducttobeeasytocarryastudentengineer
cameupwiththefollowingengineeringspecifications:

productweighs 10lbs.andismadeoflightweightaluminumalloy
theproductisabletobestowedinanairplaneluggagecompartment

Unlesstheuserspecificallyrequestedthatsaidproductbeconstructedfromaluminumalloy,the
secondstatementisnotagoodengineeringrequirementbecauseitdictates howthedesignshould
achievethequalityofbeinglessthan10poundsandeasytocarry

BacktoTableofContents

Section3:UserRequirementsElicitation
Todevelopqualityrequirements,designexpertshaveadvocatedthecollectionofinformationabout
endusers,stakeholders,andproductuseenvironmentsfromavarietyofsourcesandusingavarietyof
methods,suchasinterviewswithendusersandotherstakeholders,focusgroups,surveys,customer
complaints,salesdata,andcodesandstandards.Newerinformationgatheringmethodsbasedonthe
philosophiesofhumancenteredandparticipatorydesignincludefocusgroupbrainstormingtechniques,
consensusbuildingworkshops,theuseofprototypesduringelicitation,protocolanalysis,and
comprehensivedesignethnographies.Thesemethodsallowonetogainabetterunderstandingofa
[Mohedas]
productsstakeholdersanditscontextofuseinordertoproperlydefineproductrequirements.

Itisthecustomersdesiresthatordinarilydrivethedevelopmentoftheproduct,nottheengineersvisionof
whatthecustomershouldwant.Informationonthecustomersneedsisobtainedthroughavarietyof
channels:

Interviewswithcustomers:
Activemarketingandsalesforcesshouldbecontinuouslymeeting
withcurrentandpotentialcustomers.Somecorporationshaveaccountteamswhoseresponsibility
istovisitkeycustomeraccountstoprobeforproblemareasandtocultivateandmaintainfriendly
contact.Theyreportinformationoncurrentproductstrengthsandweaknessesthatwillbehelpfulin
productupgrades.Anevenbetterapproachisforthedesignteamtointerviewsinglecustomersin
theserviceenvironmentwheretheproductwillbeused.Keyquestionstoaskare:Whatdoyoulike
ordislikeaboutthisproduct?Whatfactorsdoyouconsiderwhenpurchasingthisproduct?What
improvementswouldyoumaketothisproduct?

Focusgroups: Afocusgroupisamoderateddiscussionwith6to12customersortargeted
customersofaproduct.Themoderatorisafacilitatorwhousespreparedquestionstoguidethe
discussionaboutthemeritsanddisadvantagesoftheproduct.Oftenthefocusgroupoccursina
roomwithaonewaywindowthatprovidesforvideotapingofthediscussion.Inboththeinterviews
andthefocusgroupsitisimportanttorecordthecustomersresponseinhisorherownwords.All
interpretationiswithhelduntiltheanalysisofresults.Atrainedmoderatorwillfollowuponany
surpriseanswersinanattempttouncoverimplicitneedsandlatentneedsofwhichthecustomeris
notconsciouslyaware.

Customercomplaints:
Asurewaytolearnaboutneedsforproductimprovementisfromcustomer
complaints.Thesemayberecordedbycommunications(bytelephone,letter,oremail)toa
customerinformationdepartment,servicecenterorwarrantydepartment,orareturncenterata

 largerretailoutlet.ThirdpartyInternetwebsitescanbeanothersourceofcustomerinputon
customersatisfactionwithaproduct.Purchasesitesoftenincludecustomerratinginformation.
Savvymarketingdepartmentsmonitorthesesitesforinformationontheirproductsandcompeting
products.

Warrantydata: Productservicecentersandwarrantydepartmentsarearichandimportantsource
ofdataonthequalityofanexistingproduct.Statisticsonwarrantyclaimscanpinpointdesign
defects.However,grossreturnnumberscanbemisleading.Somemerchandiseisreturnedwithno
apparentdefect.Thisreflectscustomerdissatisfactionwithpayingforthings,notwiththeproduct.

Customersurveys:
Awrittenquestionnaireisbestusedforgainingopinionsabouttheredesignof
existingproductsornewproductsthatarewellunderstoodbythepublic.(Innovativenewproducts
arebetterexploredwithinterviewsorfocusgroups.)Othercommonreasonsforconductingasurvey
aretoidentifyorprioritizeproblemsandtoassesswhetheranimplementedsolutiontoaproblem
wassuccessfull.Asurveycanbedonebymail,email,telephone,orinperson.

Competitiveperformancebenchmarking involvestestingacompany'sproductagainstthebestinclass
thatcanbefoundinthecurrentmarketplace.Itisanimportantstepformakingcomparisonsinthedesign
andmanufacturingofproducts.Benchmarkingisusedtodevelopperformancedataneededtosetfunctional
expectationsfornewproductsandtoclassifycompetitioninthemarketplace.Competitiveperformance
benchmarkingcomparestheperformanceofacompany'sproducttothemarketsleadingproducts.
Benchmarkingisalogicalstartingpointindeterminingengineeringcharacteristicsforaproduct.

Inadditiontotheaboveinformationsources,additionalinformationcanbesoughtoutfromacademic
literature,patentsearches,andmore.Itisthedesignersjobtosynthesizedataintoproperuser
requirements.Belowisatableoutliningavarietyofinformationsourcesfordesigners [Dieter]
:

Whatcommondesignneedsdouserrequirementsneedtoaddress?

Oftentimes,stakeholdersmaynotcompletelyexpressalloftheirdesiredrequirementsduringtheelicitation
phaseofdevelopinguserrequirements.

Toensurecompleteness whiledevelopinguserrequirements,itishelpfultothinkaboutuserrequirements
intermsoftheframeworkdescribedbelow:

Garvinidentifiedtheeightbasicdimensionsofqualityforamanufacturedproduct.Thesehave
becomeastandardlistthatdesignteamsuseasaguideforcompletenessofcustomerrequirement
datagatheredinthePDP[productdevelopmentprocess].

Performance :
Theprimaryoperatingcharacteristicsofaproduct.Thisdimensionofquality
canbeexpressedinmeasurablequantities,andthereforecanberankedobjectively.

Features: Thosecharacteristicsthatsupplementaproductsbasicfunctions.Featuresare
frequentlyusedtocustomizeorpersonalizeaproducttothecustomerstaste.

Reliability:
Theprobabilityofaproductfailingormalfunctioningwithinaspecifiedtime
period.

Durability:Ameasureoftheamountofuseonegetsfromaproductbeforeitbreaksdown
andreplacementispreferabletocontinuedrepair.Durabilityisameasureofproductlife.
Durabilityandreliabilityarecloselyrelated.

Serviceability:
Easeandtimetorepairafterbreakdown.Otherissuesarecourtesyand
competenceofrepairpersonnelandcostandeaseofrepair.

Conformance: thedegreetowhichaproductsdesignandoperatingcharactericsmeet
bothcustomerexpectationsandestablishedstandards.Thesestandardsincludeindustry
standardsandsafetyandenvironmentalstandards.Thedimensionsofperformance,
features,andconformanceareinterrelated.Whencompetingproductshaveessentiallythe
sameperformanceandmanyofthesamefeatures,customerswilltendtoexpectthatall
producersoftheproductwillhavethesamequalitydimensions.Inotherwords,customer
expectationssetthebaselinefortheproductsconformance.

Aesthetics: Howaproductlooks,feels,sounds,tastes,andsmells.Thecustomer
responseinthisdimensionisamatterofpersonaljudgementandindividualpreference.
industrialdesigner
Thisareaofdesignischieflythedomainofthe ,whoismoreanartist
ergonomics
thananengineer.Animportanttechnicalissuethataffectsaestheticsis ,how
wellthedesignfitsthehumanuser.

Perceivedquality: Thisdimensiongenerallyisassociatedwithreputation.Advertising
helpstodevelopthisdimensionofquality,butitisbasicallythequalityofsimilarproducts
previouslyproducedbythemanufacturerthatinfluencesreputation.

Thechallengeforthedesignteamistocombinealltheinformationgatheredaboutcustomers
needsforaproductandinterpretit.Thecustomerdatamustbefilteredintoamanageablesetof
requirementsthatdrivethegenerationofdesignconcepts.Thedesignteammustclearlyidentify
preferencelevelsamongthecustomerrequirementsbeforeaddinginconsiderationsliketimeto
marketortherequirementsofthecompanysinternalcustomers. [Dieter]

Inadditiontothelistdescribedabove,toensurecompletenessofuserrequirements,keepinmindthata
singledesignneedcanalsoyieldmultiplerequirements[Makower] :

DesignNeed SpecifyasRequirement(s)

Goodimagequality Brightness
Granularity

Easytotransport Weight
Overalldimensions

Devicesetsupquickly Timerequiredtosetup
Numberofstepsrequiredtosetup

BacktoTableofContents

Section4:TranslatingUserRequirementsto
EngineeringSpecifications
Engagingstakeholderswithlittleornoengineeringorproductdesignbackgroundcanbechallengingin
settingswithlimitedmethodicalengineeringdesigntraditionandexperience.

Oncetheneedforanewproductisestablished,efficientandeasytoadministermethodsthatdirectlyand
systematicallyengagestakeholderstoelicituserrequirements,whichdefinetheirneed,arerequired.
Hence,qualitativeuserrequirements(URs)andtheirtranslationtoquantitativeengineeringspecifications
arethemajorbuildingblocksinanupstreamproductdesignprocess.

Whendesignedappropriately,theelicitationprocessofURsandtheirsubsequentmappingtoengineering
specificationsshouldensurecustomersatisfactionandwillingnesstochoose,adopt,purchase,orusethe
finalproduct.Toachievetheseobjectives,therearethreekeystrategiestopreventingamismatchbetween
customerneeds(requirements)andproductspecification:

1. identifyingtherighttypesofneeds
2. elicitingrealURs,whichmayinvolvequalitativeinformation,and
3. translatingtherequirementsintoeffectivequantitativeengineeringspecifications[5].

Utilizingqualitativeandquantitativeapproaches,engineersaddressthesethreekeystrategiesbyreducing
theambiguityinuserinputsandclarifyingtheobtainedURsthroughcarefulcommunicationwith
stakeholderstoachievecompletenessandconsistencyofURs.

Ethnography,freeassociation,openendedresponses,andclusteringtechniquesaresomeofthe
qualitativemethods usedtoelicitimplicitandexplicitURs.

Ethnography ,informedbyresearchinanthropology,investigatestacitknowledgeaboutthedesignsubject
[8,9].Toutilizeethnographyforengineeringdesignpurposes,amultifunctionaldesignteamobservesthe
actualbehaviorandenvironmentofthepotentialendusersandrecordstheirinteractionswiththeir

environment.Thismethodissuitabletoidentifyendusersproblemsandneeds,especiallyfordesigners
whoarenewtoanenvironment.

freeassociation
In ,elicitationstimulusprobesorcuesaboutrequirementsarepresentedtotheendusers,
whoareaskedtoverbalizetheconceptsthatimmediatelycometomind[10].Thisapproachissuitablefor
exploratorypurposesandtocaptureopenendedinquiries.

Openendedresponses askquestionstoelicitfeedbackaboutuserspreferencesasinformedbytheir
backgroundandprofessionalrole.Thisapproachissuitablewhenthedesignteamisnewtoanenvironment
orhaslimitedbackgroundofadesigntaskandisinterestedincapturinggeneralinformation.

Clusteringmethods identifyhowstakeholdersperceiveandrepresentURs,suchaswhichonesare
viewedassimilarandwhicharedissimilar.Thisapproachissuitableformakingcomparisonsacross
differentstakeholdergroupsaswellasindividualusers.

Whilethesemethodshavetheirmeritsandarerelativelysimpletoadminister,theiroutcomesareoften
subjective,colloquial,contextandlinguisticdependent,anddifficulttomaptoquantitativeengineering
specifications...

Therearethreekeystopreventingamismatchbetweencustomerneedsandproductattributes:identifying
therighttypesofneeds,elicitingrealuserrequirements,andtranslatingtherequirementsintoeffective
engineeringspecifications(i.e.,productattributes).Designengineeringhasdevelopedseveraltoolstomap
theacquireduserrequirementstoquantifiedengineeringspecificationsorattributes.Forexample, quality
functiondeployment(QFD)i satoolthatwasdevelopedinthe1970stoconvertpotentialenduserand
customerrequirementstoengineeringattributes.

Areviewoftheliteraturealsorevealsfurtherchallengeswithinadequatemethodologiesforcapturing
complexrequirements,thelackofexpertguidanceinelicitingandanalyzingtherequirements,andthe
applicationofquantitativeevaluationforqualitativeitems.Theseproblemscompoundwhenthecaptured
requirementsaredifficulttodefineandintangible.Forinstance,whilethecustomermaybeabletoexplain
andquantifysomeoftheessentialrequirementssuchaslowcost,theymayrunintodifficultyexplaining
otherrequirementssuchasaestheticallybeautifuloruserfriendly.Thedifficultiesstemfromaterms
subjectivenature,basedasitisuponeachcustomersdiverseperspectives(knowledge,responsibilities,
gender,experience,culture,etc.).Followingisadescriptionofafewsubjectiverequirementsandthe
methodsusedtoestablishtheassociatedengineeringattributes.

Forinstance,tounderstand environmentalfriendliness itneedstobebrokendowntosubrequirements.

Reidetal.
evaluateusersenvironmentalfriendlinessperceptionintheautoindustrybasedonvehicles
twodimensionalappearances.Ersal etal.
,quantifyperceptionof craftsmanship invehicleinteriordesign
usingafunctionaldependencetableandstatisticalanalysismethodssuchasclusteranalysisof
craftsmanshipsperceptionsandmultidimensionalscaling.Inanotherstudy,evaluating closeness to
customersisquantifiedandtestedusingmultiitemscales.Witel etal.
usequalitativemethodologiesto
evaluatetheperformanceofaneserviceandits attractiveness usingtaxonomymethods.

Somedesignersusethe Kanomodel tounderstandandanalyzeuserneedsandtheirimpactsonuser

satisfaction.Thismodelconsidersboththeasymmetricandnonlinearrelationshipsbetweenproduct

performanceandusersatisfaction...[theKanomodelisdescribedinSection5:PrioritizingUser
Requirements]

10

However,theKanomodeldoesnotprovideasystematicandmethodicalquantificationapproachtotranslate
userneedsintomeasurableengineeringparameters.Hence,recentattemptstoassessandestimate
engineeringparametersbasedontheoutcomesoftheKanomodelhaveledtothedevelopmentofan
analyticalKanomodel,whichiscombinedwithQFDinsomecases.ThisanalyticalKanocreatesaseries
ofcriteriatoclassifyuserrequirementsandaconfigurationindexthatprovidesadecisionfactorforselecting
thefunctionalrequirementsthatcontributetoproductattributes.EventhoughtheanalyticalKanomodel
attemptstoquantifytheelicitedrequirements,thedesignerssubjectiveevaluationcanstillaffectthe
quantificationprocess.

Althoughrequirementscanvarydependingonthetype,experiencelevel,knowledge,andinterestsof
stakeholders,andtheusercontext,purelyquantitativemethodsofelicitingURsmayfailtothoroughly
engagestakeholdersinordertoresolveconflictinginput,revealnuanceddifferencesamongstakeholder
input,andinadvertentlypromotelimitediterationswithstakeholderstoestablishaccuratetranslationsof
requirementstoengineeringspecifications.[Sarvestani]

Therefore,qualitativemethodsshouldbeusedinconjunctionwithquantitativemethodstopromoteaccuracy
andthoroughnessofURs.Inaddition,manyofthesametechniquesusedtoelicituserrequirements
(interviews,literaturereviews,benchmarking,etc.)mayalsobeusedinidentifyingengineering
specifications.

Forexample,safetyisoftenauserrequirementcitedforvariousapplications,butitisaverybroadterm
whichcanhavemultipleinterpretations,subrequirements,andspecifications.Thedesignerislikelyto
encounterconflictingviewpointsastowhatconstitutesasafeproductfromtheirvariousstakeholders.A
reviewofrelevantliteraturemaypresentyetanotherviewastowhatconstitutesasafeproductfora
certainapplication.Technicalstandards,suchastheISO( InternationalOrganizationforStandardization),
areoftenausefulreferencetodeterminehowsafety,amongotherrequirements,canbedefined
objectivelyinvariousapplications.Itiscriticaltothoroughlyutilizeallavenuesofdata,whetherthatbe
qualitativeorquantitative,inordertohaveenoughinformationtomakeaccuratejudgmentsonwhat
engineeringspecificationswillfulfilltherespectiveuserrequirements.

ADDITIONALRESOURCE:
Chapter6fromUllmansTheMechanicalDesignProcess(4thedition)
covers
QualityFunction
theimportanceofdevelopingengineeringspecificationsalongwithaclearexplanationof
Deployment(QFD) oneofthemostcommonwaysusedtogenerateengineeringspecifications.

BacktoTableofContents

Section5:PrioritizingUserRequirements
Sofar,wehavecoveredthebasicpropertiesofuserrequirements,howtoobtainthem,andhowtocreate
userrequirementsthatareclearandunambiguous.However,thelistofuserrequirementsisntcomplete
untiltheyareorganizedandprioritized.Itisimportanttoprioritizeyouruserrequirementssuchthat
resourcesneededfordevelopmentcanbeplanned,distributed,andusedappropriately. [Maguire]

Inaddition,prioritizinguserrequirementsisessentialtothesuccessofthedesignbecauseusersatisfaction
isimpactedbyhowwellthedesignteamaddressestheuserrequirementsthatthestakeholdersdeemtobe
basicandimportant.Iftheteamputstoomucheffortandresourcesintoaddressingafeatureofthedesign

11

thatisnicetohaveversusafeatureofthedesignthatauserdeemsessential,thesatisfactionofthe
productcanbenegativelyaffected.Thefollowingexcerptsgiveanindepthanalysisofprioritization:

Notallcustomerrequirementsareequal.Thisessentiallymeansthatcustomerrequirements...have
differentvaluesfordifferentpeople.Thedesignteammustidentifythoserequirementsthataremost
importanttothesuccessoftheproductinitstargetmarketandmustensurethatthoserequirementsandthe
needstheymeetforthecustomersaresatisfiedbytheproduct.

Thisisadifficultdistinctionforsomedesignteammemberstomakebecausethepureengineeringviewpoint
istodeliverthebestpossibleperformanceinallproductaspects.AKanodiagramisagoodtooltovisually
[Dieter]
partitioncustomerrequirementsintocategoriesthatwillallowfortheirprioritization.

[TheKanomodel]considersboththeasymmetricandnonlinearrelationshipsbetweenproductperformance
andusersatisfaction...Generally,theKanomodelclassifiesproductattributesintofivecategories:

1. Mustbe:Attributestakenforgrantedbycustomerstheirpresencedoesnotcreatecustomer
satisfaction(CS),buttheirabsenceorpoorperformancewillresultinhighlevelsofcustomer
dissatisfaction.
2. Onedimensional:CSispositivelyproportionaltothefulfillmentleveloftheseattributesthehigher
theleveloffulfillment,thehighertheCSandviceversa.
3. Attractive:Attributesnotgenerallyexpectedbycustomerstheirpresencewillcreatehighlevelsof
CS,buttheirabsencewillnotresultincustomerdissatisfaction.
4. Indifferent:Customersdonotcareabouttheseattributestheirpresenceorabsencewillnotaffect
levelsofcustomersatisfactionordissatisfaction.
5. Reverse:Theirpresencecausescustomerdissatisfaction,buttheirabsencecreatesCS.

KanoclassificationsareidentifiedviaaKanoquestionnaire,whichcontainsapairofquestionsforeach
productattribute.Thequestionpairincludesafunctionalquestionthatcapturestheusersperceptionifthe
producthasacertainattribute,andadysfunctionalonethatcapturestheusersperceptioniftheproduct
[Sarvestani]
doesnothavethatattribute.

[Witell]
AnexampleofaKanoquestionnaireisillustratedbelow :

Q:Ifyoucanordercinematicketsonline,howdoyoufeel(functionalform)

1. Ilikeitthatway
2. Iamexpectingittobethatway
3. Iamneutral
4. Icanacceptittobethatway
5. Idislikeitthatway

Q:Ifyoucannotordercinematicketsonline,howdoyoufeel(dysfunctionalform)

1. Ilikeitthatway
2. Iamexpectingittobethatway
3. Iamneutral
4. Icanacceptittobethatway
5. Idislikeitthatway

12


Figure1:
IllustratingagenericKanomodel,showstheimpactsofthefiveattributesonaproducts
[Sarvestani]
twodimensionalaspects(functionalityandCS).

BacktoTableofContents

Section6:WritingQualityUserRequirements
andEngineeringSpecifications
Nowthatyouhavedevelopedaclearerideaofhowtoobtainuserrequirementsandengineering
quality
specifications,itistimetoconsiderhowyouwillwriteanddocument statementsthatsatisfythebasic
propertiesofuserrequirementsandengineeringspecificationsdescribedinearliersections.

Someusefulquestionstoaskyourselfwhencreatinguserrequirements:

Istherequirementessentialtothesuccessoftheproduct?
Istherequirementclear?
Ifigavetherequirementtoadesignerorengineer,wouldhe/sheknowwhatImeantbyit?
Istherequirementselfcontained(i.e.,canitstandaloneandbeunderstoodwithoutadditional
information)?
Iseachrequirementactuallyasinglerequirementandnotactuallymultiplerequirements?
Istherequirementsolutionneutral(i.e.,doesitnotimplytheuseofonesolutionoveranother)?
Istherequirementprecise?
Doestherequirementhaveonlyoneinterpretation?Isthisinterpretationobvious?
Doestherequirementavoidusingpotentiallyambiguouswordssuchas:
Vaguesubjects:itorthey
Doestherequirementspecifyawhatratherthanahow?
Iseachrequirementconsistentwiththeotherrequirements?Aretheredirectconflicts?

13

 Doeseachrequirementdescribeauniqueaspectorarethererequirementsthatdescribethesame
thing?

[Makower]

Outsideofthinkingaboutthecontentofyouruserrequirements,itisalsoimportanttomakesureyour
uniform
collectionofuserrequirementsare thatis,theyarecorrectandconsistentintermsofgrammarand
tense.

Thefollowingareacoupleofexamplesofpoorlywrittenuserrequirementswitharationaleforwhytheyare
notsatisfactory:

A. Thedeviceshouldcleanthefloorbysuckingdebrisoffoftheground
Thisrequirementclearlyspecifieshowthesolutionshouldcleantheground(bysuckingdebris),
ratherthanwhatthesolutionshoulddo(cleantheground).

B. Thedesignshouldbeeasytocarry
Thisrequirementcanactuallybebrokendownintomultiplerequirements.Easytocarrycanmean
anumberofthings,includingweightordimensions.Abroaduserrequirementsuchasthiscanbe
brokendownbyspendingadditionaltimeunderstandingwhatthestakeholder(s)meansbyeasyto
carry.

Whencreatingengineeringspecifications,itisimportanttomakesurethespecificationsarenot:

Ambiguous
Incomplete
Inconsistent
Incorrect
Infeasible
Unusable
Unverifiable

[Makower]
Someusefulquestionstoaskyourselfwhencreatingengineeringspecifications :

Doeseachrequirementhaveavalue/number(engineeringspecification)associatedwithit?
Doeseachengineeringspecificationhaveunitsassociatedwithit?
Cantheengineeringspecificationbevalidatedthroughtesting?
Canyouimagineawaytotesttheengineeringspecification?
Ifalltheengineeringspecificationswerefulfilled,wouldtheproductbeasuccess?Ifpotentiallynot,
thenwhy?
Iftheconceptsolutionis[insertengineeringspecification(s)],isitnecessarily[correspondinguser
requirement]?
i.e.Ifthesuitcaseis
2lbs.isitnecessarilyeasytocarry?

BacktoTableofContents

14

Section7:OrganizingandDisplayingyourUser
RequirementsandSpecifications
Thetemplatesandexplanationsbelowaretwoexampleofmanywaystoorganizeuserrequirementsand
specifications:

UserRequirementsTemplate:

Column1:Prioritylevelyoumustranktheuserrequirementsinorderofmostimportant(rankedas
1)toleastimportant.Userrequirementswiththesamelevelofimportancemayhavethesame
priorityleveldesignation.
Column2:Userrequirementprovideacleardescriptionoftheuserrequirementthatyouhave
developed.
Column3:Justificationintheformoffullsentencesexplainwhytheuserrequirementwas
included.
Column4:Userrequirementinformationsourceslisttheinformationsource(s)thatcontributedto
theuserrequirementdeveloped.

PriorityLevel UserRequirement Justification UserRequirementInformationSources

***Addasmanyrowsasneeded

EngineeringSpecificationTemplate:

Column1:Userrequirementstatetheuserrequirementforwhichtheengineeringspecification
wasdeveloped.
Column2:Engineeringspecification(s)statetheengineeringspecification(s)thatwasdeveloped,
multipleengineeringspecificationscanbeusedforasinglerequirementifneeded.
Column3:Justificationindicatewhythisengineeringspecificationisneededtosatisfytheuser
requirement.
Column4:Engineeringspecificationinformationsourcesindicatewhatinformationwasusedto
developthespecification,provideasmuchdetailaspossiblesothatfuturedesignengineerswould
knowexactlywhatinformationwentintotheengineeringspecification.[Mohedas]

UserRequirement EngineeringSpecification Justification EngineeringSpecification

InformationSources

***Addasmanyrowsasneeded

Thefollowingtemplateisanotherwaytoorganizeyourrequirementsandspecificationsinrelationtohow
youwouldvalidateyourspecifications:

15

BacktoTableofContents

Section8:CommonPitfallsWhenDeveloping
UserRequirements
The[requirementselicitation]processrepresentsasignificantchallengefornovicedesigners,asonemust
bepreparedtousebothtechnicalandnontechnicalskillsets.Priorstudiescomparingnoviceandexpert
designershaveemphasizedthischallengeanditseffectonfinaldesignquality.Forexample,astudyof
novicesandexpertsperformingadesigntaskshowedthatnovicesspendlesstimegatheringinformation
andlesstimedefiningthescopeofthedesignproblemthanexperts.Ithasalsobeenshownthatnovice
designerswhospendmoretimerefiningthescopeoftheirdesignproblemstendtoproducehigherquality
designs.Previousworkhasshownthatnovicesunderstandthevalueandbenefitofinformationgathering
andsynthesiswhiledevelopingrequirementshowever,duringexecutiontheytypicallygatherless
informationandperformlesssynthesisthanoriginallyplanned.Inaddition,whilenovicesunderstandthe
benefitsofincorporatingstakeholdersinputandfieldbasedobservationsintotherequirements
developmentprocess,theyencounterobstaclesandusestakeholderinteractionstogainonlysuperficial
benefits.

Researchhasshownthatnovicesdonottendtoassessthequalityand/orvalidityoftheinformationthey
obtainpriortoapplyingittotheirproblems.Similarresultshavebeenfoundforengineeringstudentsuseof
internetsourcesthroughstudiesofdesignreportbibliographies. [Mohedas]

DifficultiesinRequirementManagement
Customerrequirementsarenormallyqualitativeandtendtobeimpreciseandambiguousduetotheir
linguisticorigins.Inmostcases,requirementsarenegotiableandmayconflictwithoneanother,andthus
tradeoffsareoftennecessary.Frequently,customers,marketingpersonnel,anddesignersemploydifferent

16

setsofcontexttoexpresstherequirements.Differencesinsemanticsandterminologyalwaysimpairthe
abilitytoconveyrequirementinformationeffectivelyfromcustomerstodesigners.Distinguishing
requirementsintermsofCNs[customerneeds]andFRs[functionalrequirementsorproductspecifications]
isofpracticalsignificance.Anorganizationshouldputconsiderableeffortintocapturingthegenuineorreal
needsofthecustomers(CNs),ratherthantoomuchfocusonthetechnologicalspecifications(FRs)during
theearlystageofproductdevelopment.

Second,thererarelyexistsanydefinitivestructureofrequirementinformation.Variablesusedtodescribe
requirementsareoftenpoorlyunderstoodandexpressedinabstract,fuzzy,orconceptualterms,leadingto
workonthebasisofvagueassumptionsandimplicitinference.Anumberofresearchershaveenforceda
hierarchicalstructureoranAND/ORtreestructureforthearticulationofcustomerrequirements,for
example,therequirementtaxonomy,thecustomerattributehierarchy,andtheFRtopology.Nevertheless,
thenonstructurednatureofrequirementinformationitselfcoincideswiththosefindingsinnaturallanguage
processing.

Third,themappingrelationshipsbetweenCNsandFRsareoftennotclearlyavailableatanearlystage
ofdesign.Customersareoftennotawareoftheunderlyingcouplingandinterrelationshipsamongvarious
requirementswithregardtoproductperformance.Itisdifficult,ifnotimpossible,toestimatethe
consequencesofspecifyingdifferentrequirements.Clausingdiscernscustomerneedsandproduct
specificationsandpointsoutthatthemappingproblembetweenthemisthekeyissueinthedesignfor
customers.

Fourth,thespecificationofrequirementsresultsfromnotonlythetransformationofcustomerrequirements
fromthoseofendusers,butalsoconsiderationsofmanyengineeringconcerns.Inpractice,product
developmentteamsmustkeeptrackofamyriadofrequirementinformationderivedfromdifferent
perspectivesoftheproductlifecycle,suchasproducttechnologies,manufacturability,reliability,
maintainability,andenvironmentalsafety,tonameafew.[Jiao]

10RequirementTrapstoavoidbyKarlWiegers)
Thefollowingarticle( alsodescribesmajorpitfallswhen
developinguserrequirements.Althoughthefocusisonsoftwareengineering,themainpointsthatWiegers
makesinhisarticlecanbeapplicabletoanymajordesignproblem.

BacktoTableofContents

Section9:Conclusion
[Makower]
Insummary,userrequirementsandengineeringspecificationsshoulddothefollowing :

confirmstheproblemdefinition
prioritizesstakeholderwants/needs
providesdatafordecisionmaking
conceptselection
providesdesigntargets
engineeringanalysis
validation

BacktoTableofContents

17

References
1. Mohedas,I.,Daly,S.R.,&Sienko,K.H.(2015).Requirementsdevelopment:Approachesand
behaviorsofnovicedesigners. JournalofMechanicalDesign .137(7):071407.
2. Makower,J.,Yock,P.,&Zenios,S.(2010).Biodesign:TheProcessofInnovatingMedical
Technologies.Cambridge,UK:CambridgeUniversityPress.Retrievedfrom
http://mirlyn.lib.umich.edu/Record/013601217
3. Gottesdiener,E.(March2008).Goodpracticesfordevelopinguserrequirements. TheJournalof
DefenseSoftwareEngineering .1317.
4. Hsieh,H.C.,Holland,R.,&Young,M.(2009).Atheoreticalmodelforcrossculturalwebdesign.
HumanCenteredDesign .712721.
5. Clemmensen,T.(2011).Templatesforcrossculturalandculturallyspecificusabilitytesting:Results
fromfieldstudiesandethnographicinterviewinginthreecountries. InternationalJournalof
HumanComputerInteraction .27(7):634669
6. Dieter,G.E.(2009). Problemdefinitionandneedidentification. Engineeringdesign4thed.USA:
McGrawHillCompanies,Inc.
7. Sarvestani,A.S.(2015). Designingtaskshiftingmedicaldevicesforlowresourcesettings .
(Doctoraldissertation,TheUniversityofMichigan).
8. Mohedas,I.,Daly,S.R.,&Sienko,K.H.(2014).Designethnographyincapstonedesign:
Investigatingstudentuseandperceptions. InternationalJournalofEngineeringEducation. 30(4):
888900.
9. Maguire,M.,&Bevan,N.(August2002).Userrequirementsanalysis. Usability
.ProceedingsofIFIP
17thWorldComputerCongress. SpringerUS .133148.
10. Tran,E.(1999).Requirements&specifications.Retrievedfrom
http://users.ece.cmu.edu/~koopman/des_s99/requirements_specs/#traceability
11. Jiao,J.,&Chen,C.(2006).Customerrequirementmanagementinproductdevelopment:Areview
ofresarchissues.ConcurrentEngineering:ResearchandApplications. 14(3):173185.
ManagingServiceQuality:An
12. Witell,L.,&Lofgren,M.(2007).Classificationofqualityattributes.
InternationalJournal .17(1):5473.

SomeAdditionalResources:
Culturalinfluencesonglobalhealthtechnologies

Softwaredevelopmentarticlethathighlightsalistofuserrequirementmodels

Additionaltipsforuserrequirementdevelopment

18