---
_id: '7035'
abstract:
- lang: eng
text: Technological progress, upcoming cyber-physical systems, and limited resources
confront small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with the challenge of complexity
management in product development projects spanning over the entire product lifecycle.
SMEs require a solution for documenting and analyzing the functional relationships
between multiple domains such as products, software, and processes. The German
research project FuPEP “Funktionsorientiertes Komplexitätsmanagement in allen
Phasen der Produktentstehung” aims to address this issue by developing an assistance
system that supports product developers by visualizing functional relationships.
This paper presents the methodology and results of the assistance system’s requirements
elicitation with two SMEs. Conducting the elicitation during a global pandemic,
we discuss its application using specific techniques in light of COVID-19. We
model problems and their effects regarding complexity management in product development
in a system dynamics model. The most important requirements and use cases elicited
are presented, and the requirements elicitation methodology and results are discussed.
Additionally, we present a multilayer software architecture design of the assistance
system. Our case study suggests a relationship between fear of a missing project
focus among project participants and the restriction of requirements elicitation
techniques to those possible via web conferencing tools.
article_number: '149'
author:
- first_name: Jan-Phillip
full_name: Herrmann, Jan-Phillip
id: '75846'
last_name: Herrmann
- first_name: Sebastian
full_name: Imort, Sebastian
id: '74291'
last_name: Imort
- first_name: Christoph
full_name: Trojanowski, Christoph
last_name: Trojanowski
- first_name: Andreas
full_name: Deuter, Andreas
id: '62088'
last_name: Deuter
orcid: 0000-0002-6529-6215
citation:
ama: 'Herrmann JP, Imort S, Trojanowski C, Deuter A. Requirements Elicitation for
an Assistance System for Complexity Management in Product Development of SMEs
during COVID-19: A Case Study. Computers. 2021;10(11). doi:10.3390/computers10110149'
apa: 'Herrmann, J.-P., Imort, S., Trojanowski, C., & Deuter, A. (2021). Requirements
Elicitation for an Assistance System for Complexity Management in Product Development
of SMEs during COVID-19: A Case Study. Computers, 10(11), Article
149. https://doi.org/10.3390/computers10110149'
bjps: 'Herrmann J-P et al. (2021) Requirements Elicitation for an
Assistance System for Complexity Management in Product Development of SMEs during
COVID-19: A Case Study. Computers 10.'
chicago: 'Herrmann, Jan-Phillip, Sebastian Imort, Christoph Trojanowski, and Andreas
Deuter. “Requirements Elicitation for an Assistance System for Complexity Management
in Product Development of SMEs during COVID-19: A Case Study.” Computers
10, no. 11 (2021). https://doi.org/10.3390/computers10110149.'
chicago-de: 'Herrmann, Jan-Phillip, Sebastian Imort, Christoph Trojanowski und Andreas
Deuter. 2021. Requirements Elicitation for an Assistance System for Complexity
Management in Product Development of SMEs during COVID-19: A Case Study. Computers
10, Nr. 11. doi:10.3390/computers10110149,
.'
din1505-2-1: 'Herrmann, Jan-Phillip
; Imort, Sebastian ; Trojanowski,
Christoph ; Deuter, Andreas:
Requirements Elicitation for an Assistance System for Complexity Management in
Product Development of SMEs during COVID-19: A Case Study. In: Computers
Bd. 10 (2021), Nr. 11'
havard: 'J.-P. Herrmann, S. Imort, C. Trojanowski, A. Deuter, Requirements Elicitation
for an Assistance System for Complexity Management in Product Development of SMEs
during COVID-19: A Case Study, Computers. 10 (2021).'
ieee: 'J.-P. Herrmann, S. Imort, C. Trojanowski, and A. Deuter, “Requirements Elicitation
for an Assistance System for Complexity Management in Product Development of SMEs
during COVID-19: A Case Study,” Computers, vol. 10, no. 11, Art. no. 149,
2021, doi: 10.3390/computers10110149.'
mla: 'Herrmann, Jan-Phillip, et al. “Requirements Elicitation for an Assistance
System for Complexity Management in Product Development of SMEs during COVID-19:
A Case Study.” Computers, vol. 10, no. 11, 149, 2021, https://doi.org/10.3390/computers10110149.'
short: J.-P. Herrmann, S. Imort, C. Trojanowski, A. Deuter, Computers 10 (2021).
ufg: 'Herrmann, Jan-Phillip u. a.: Requirements Elicitation for an Assistance
System for Complexity Management in Product Development of SMEs during COVID-19:
A Case Study, in: Computers 10 (2021), H. 11.'
van: 'Herrmann JP, Imort S, Trojanowski C, Deuter A. Requirements Elicitation for
an Assistance System for Complexity Management in Product Development of SMEs
during COVID-19: A Case Study. Computers. 2021;10(11).'
date_created: 2022-02-08T14:48:19Z
date_updated: 2025-06-26T13:37:00Z
department:
- _id: DEP7020
- _id: DEP7022
- _id: DEP1306
doi: 10.3390/computers10110149
external_id:
isi:
- '000727073200001'
intvolume: ' 10'
isi: '1'
issue: '11'
keyword:
- complexity management
- assistance system
- product development
- systems engineering
- design structure matrix
- asset administration shell
language:
- iso: eng
publication: Computers
publication_identifier:
eissn:
- 2073-431X
publication_status: published
status: public
title: 'Requirements Elicitation for an Assistance System for Complexity Management
in Product Development of SMEs during COVID-19: A Case Study'
type: journal_article
user_id: '83781'
volume: 10
year: '2021'
...