"I am amazed when I see the same problem come up again and again."

Surely it would be nice if we didn't have to repeat old mistakes? Rohith Areth Koroth is inspired by the idea of ​​a technical platform that gathers knowledge from the entire value chain. In this way, the development of new products can be done in a sustainable way - environmentally, economically and socially. As a PhD student in GRACE, he has the chance.

It started at home in the parents' garage in Kerala in southern India. Rohith took every opportunity he got to tinker with the various tools. "I've always loved taking things apart - and putting them back together again. That I would study mechanical engineering was obvious," he says.

It started on the shop floor

After his bachelor's degree, he started working in one of the local engineering industries that was a subcontractor in the automotive industry.

"I had to start on the workshop floor, as a machine operator. If I close my eyes, I can still smell and hear the sounds of the machines. It was like Dad's garage, only on a bigger scale. My managers encouraged me to develop and I started working with quality development and lean management, eventually also some with product development. The job gave me good insights into production and production control and the path from raw material to finished product. It was also here that I first opened my eyes to what I am researching today; product platforms. There were many times that I stood there in production and realized how many problems could have been avoided if the product had been designed and engineered from the start to fit into the production flow. Could it really be that hard?”

A "tailor-made" doctoral position

When Rohith decided to study a master's, the choice fell on Sweden, and Chalmers. Based on his own experiences from the industry, he wanted to focus on product development and the design process itself.

"I wanted to investigate how the product development process can be better anchored at all stages, up to the finished product, in order to avoid those problems that I have seen in production. How can the machine operator's insights about how best to produce a part be captured by the product developer and designer at an early stage? Is it possible to collect the entire organization's knowledge and 'store it' so that it becomes available to everyone, not least new employees? So that you don't have to relearn every time - and thus make the mistakes again?"

Rohith did his master's thesis in collaboration with Volvo Cars. The starting point was the requirements of various stakeholders and how to translate this into product development to meet the expectations of experience and brand.

Actually, he had not intended to stay in Sweden. But then he got the opportunity to apply for a doctoral position at the Institute of Technology in Jönköping. He wrote his licentiate thesis within the framework of the IDEAL project and is now affiliated with GRACE.

“It's like tailor-made for me. Researching integrated and platform-based product development has been my driving force from the start."

Platforms can facilitate circularity

Rohith's licentiate thesis focused on how to improve collaboration between designers and production engineers in connection with production preparations.

Now he continues his research with the goal of finding a practical solution. Is it possible to develop a tool or a software platform that enables stakeholders along the entire value chain to share knowledge?

"In this way, you could avoid making the same mistakes over and over again. Nor would one look for the knowledge,” reasons Rohith.

The result would be more sustainable products optimized for environmental, economic and social sustainability. If the companies are to be able to face the green transition in a good way, they need help in developing the way they collect and organize data. How can you manage the technical requirements in a complex context that is affected by customer requirements, new legislation, a turbulent environment with uncertain supply chains and your own production capacity? And how do you develop and manufacture products that meet the requirements for producer responsibility and circularity?

"If we can standardize and streamline the work based on different platforms, it also means increased opportunities to work effectively with circularity. The decisions made in connection with product development affect the product's life cycle. If we have the right knowledge as a basis, we can also plan how the products should be handled when they have reached the end of their useful life."

Facilitates for Swedish companies

Doing research at the School of Engineering at Jönköping University has meant that Rohith has "found home", not just subject-wise. The region's many manufacturing companies – with many subcontracting SMEs – bear little resemblance to the structure back home in India, in Tamil Nadu, where he once began his career.

"Our regional companies have great demands on themselves to cope with the green transition. But many of the smaller companies do not have the resources to drive that change themselves. If we researchers can facilitate by identifying new platforms, it can be of great benefit. For our local businesses – and for the globe we live on.”