Engineering Configurators for the Retail Industry Experience Report and Challenges Ahead

Mass customization is a widely embraced paradigm through which engineers, sales people and customers can tailor products to specific needs. One typically achieves this task by using a configurator, i.e. a software application wherein a user can define the product she wants by selecting options and setting parameters. Given their importance, configurators must be dependable and evolvable. Yet, building configurators often constitutes a complex software engineering challenge. In this paper, we report on two configurators developed by a spin-off company of the University of Namur for the retail industry. We highlight the difficulties inherent to such developments and present solutions that can help overcoming them. Finally, we expose open challenges and discuss how future research can address them.