Method of Engineering Cost Reduction: A Case Study of Low Production Volume, High-Temperature Fuel Cell Non-Repeating Components

It will be demonstrated that a design focus on three parameters will facilitate the utilization of existing value added and value engineering techniques, resulting in a streamlined pragmatic method to achieve large cost savings. This method will help the costs to be engineered out of the product, regardless of commercial issues in which the engineer has no direct control. By focusing on three critical parameters that can be optimized through the use of innovative engineering techniques, low-production precision fabricated components for use in high temperature fuel cell applications can be significantly cost reduced while maintaining or improving performance. The real world application of this technique will be demonstrated on the redesign of two major fuel cell module sub-systems to showcase the impact of these three parameters alone on final cost, regardless of other commercial factors. The three parameters are as follows: 1. Weight. 2. Part count (total and unique parts). 3. Labor and Processing. These three parameters are treated as “Rules” in this study. The effectiveness of this technique will be demonstrated by quantifying how well the rules were followed and the resulting cost savings.