In the year 1971, design to cost (DTC) was defined by the Department of Defense (DOD) of the United States. This technique became mandatory for army contracts over 10 million dollars, so that high costs in the army could be eliminated. The main objective of this design method is to converge on costs rather than design, even in the early stages of the project [1].
Its fundamental idea is that the cost is “designed” into the product in the early stages of development, and one those are over it becomes embedded in the design, making it hard or impossible to lower the cost later on. By taking the right design decisions as early as during the initiation and concept phase of the product life-cycle, unnecessary costs at later stages can be avoided. [2] By taking into account concerns such as material specification, packaging, shipping, logistics, manufacturability and labor, the designer can impact the final cost by up to 70%. [3]
