The Study of Blockchain Technology in Engineering Development: The Case of the Clutch Lever Assembly

The Engineering Development Process as proposed by Eppinger and others is well established. The framework comprises of various stages, which upon realization ensures the customers' needs. In this paper, the development of the Automobile Clutch Lever Assembly is taken up. It is a small but critical assembly used in two wheelers. It functions in a demanding environment, and must be highly reliable. Hence, proper controls during the manufacturing process are critical. The Engineering Development of this assembly requires many manufacturing and quality qualifications and the use of methods such as Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEAs) and Quality Control Charts in order to meet the very stiff requirements. As is the case, such an approach requires the creation and storage of many development related documents and data. The traditional approach to data storage was availability of all relevant information with the Development Engineer on a standalone Personal Computer. A Blockchain approach is proposed to manage and store this data. The document structure is proposed to meet various requirements by the industry stakeholders who will use this data. Finally, the implications of using this approach are explored, along with the Analysis of using the Blockchain Approach.