Strategic Integration for Hardware and Software Convergence Complexity

Ever-increasing digitization of the physical world and products is driving the growth of software content in manufactured products that requires higher performance in product development and operational excellence to manage the higher project, product, and system complexity. Failure to effectively manage the growing complexity has undermined even companies with best-of-breed quality systems, denting brand equity and depressing sales. Unmanaged complexity is a risk factor for product development and manufacturing supply chains, threatening growth potential of the Internet of Things (IoT) that depends on products becoming smart and connected. Traditional product development organizations plan for a linear increase in the number of components and modules but not an exponential increase in possible interactions due to software. Complexity due to increasing software content in traditionally hardware products is analyzed from the perspective of innovation demand (such as the growth of IoT). Hardware/software convergence complexity is then modeled to determine the basis for strategic product integration. Component interaction coverage is found to provide strategic leverage for managing integration effectiveness. © 1973-2011 IEEE.