Key Research Findings:
Modularity: How Matters!
In product design, modularity provides valuable options for easier redesign, upgrade, substitution, etc.
Having more modules creates more options, but it also increases the interface and coordination costs among them.
Therefore, the optimum number of modules (M*) lies between the extremes of M =1 and M = N.
Too little and too much modularity are bad.
M* maximizes a product’s architecture adaptability value (AAV).
Models help to estimate M* and AAV*.
The value of modularity depends not only on M but also on how the product’s components are grouped into the modules.
Components exhibiting fast rates of technological change should be assigned to different modules than components exhibiting slow rates of technological change.
Key Publications: P37, P16, C24
Modularity Value Space
This figure exemplifies a stylized view of the AAV of allocating N components to M modules (M ≤ N).
Each dot exemplifies the AAV of a particular allocation of the components to the M modules.
Note that it is possible to have a low AAV even with M*.