In this paper, recent advances in the analysis of products for assessing the consequences of design decisions on quality of conformance are presented. The approach, called conformability analysis, uses estimates of likely process capability levels and likely failure severity to approximate the costs of failure in production and service, associated with non-conforming design characteristics. Improvements in estimating process capability are discussed and the correlation between the estimated values and shop-floor capability levels is reported. A case study is employed to illustrate how the analysis can be used in new product development and the benefits that may accrue from its applications.
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