**3.2. Current product governance: field data and new products**

In the diesel engine company, the 'voice of the customer' (VOC) is captured in many ways: directly, through discussions, interviews and workshops with customers, and indirectly through analysing customer specifications, warranty data, and field reports etc. and through dealers and distributor channels. Quality Functional Deployment (QFD) is applied to identify critical technical requirements of the design which will need verification and validation by testing.

The company uses Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) to evaluate a potential design for possible failures and to prevent them by proactively changing the design rather than reacting to adverse events after failures have occurred. This emphasis on prevention may reduce risk of failure in field. FMEA is particularly useful in evaluating a New Product Introduction programme prior to implementation as well as in assessing the impact of a proposed change to an existing design. More details about FMEA and steps of FMEA analysis can be found in [21]. FMEA is one of the most widespread methods used in determining priorities for technical risks in the PD process especially during the testing phase [22].

To identify the potential effects, the company reviews documents, including historical data, warranty documents, field service data, and customers' complaints. The company rates the severity of the effects of a failure mode. Any failure occurring in the field is considered as a high risk. Issues identified in use significantly drive next generation product development and testing procedures. The company continuously monitors and captures a product's performance and durability when engines are used in a field. For a new product development, the company uses information from the 'use in the field' to assess how the product is performing and from the 'use of the customer' (how customers are using the product) to judge when a potential failure is likely to occur.

Field data is particularly valuable as it consists of information about failures and repair actions that have been taken place under real operating conditions. This enables the acquisition of statistically significant reliability and repair data [23]. Issues in recording field incidents are addressed by Smith [23] particularly how reliance on people means that recording is subject to errors, omissions and misinterpretation.
