Using quality function deployment to design better marketing and demand-side management programs

Technical Report · Mon Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1996

OSTI ID:254529

Henneberger, T

EPRI conducts a considerable amount of work in the area of Quality Function Deployment (QFD). QFD, which originated in the manufacturing and automobile industries, is perhaps one of the most important program design processes in the electric utility industry. The manner in which demand-side management (DSM) programs are typically approached-and lighting is no exception-is that the utility begins with an inward look. It asks, {open_quotes}What sort of load-shape impact do I want to achieve?{close_quotes} and having answered that question it looks to a variety of technologies to help it realize its load-shape objective. Lighting is one of those technologies. The problem with this approach is that utilities don`t purchase the lighting systems; customers do, and the customers must live daily with lighting systems on their premises. This means the process is backward. Rather than looking inward, a better way of approaching program design is to look outward-to look first to the customer. That`s what QFD is all about. It is a planning and communication tool for translating customer requirements-the voice of utility customers-into appropriate product service or programming characteristics at each stage of the design and implementation process.

• Research Organization: Electric Power Research Inst., Palo Alto, CA (United States); Policy Research Associates, Inc., Reston, VA (United States)
• OSTI ID: 254529
• Report Number(s): EPRI-TR--105963; CONF-9312121--
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
ELECTRIC UTILITIES
ENERGY CONSERVATION
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
MANAGEMENT
PLANNING