Customer interaction and customer integration

This proceedings book presents recent advances in mass customization research. It consists of the papers accepted for presentation at the Joint Conference of International Mass Customization Meeting 2006 and the International Conference on Economic, Technical and Organisational Aspects of Product Configuration Systems (PETO'06) which is organized in cooperation between the Hamburg University of Technology, Germany, the Technical University of Denmark and the University Klagenfurt, Austria. The papers are selected according to a rigorous, two-stage procedure based on a double-blind review in order to guarantee a high quality of scientific research. Mass customization is a business strategy that aims to join the benefits of custom manufacturing and efficiency. The successful implementation of mass customization largely depends on the perfect understanding of customer needs and preferences. Therefore, the IMCM'06 seeks to advance the scientific discussion in the fields of customer interaction and integration. The goal-oriented use of customer knowledge makes it possible for companies to continuously align their capabilities with changing customer requirements. Furthermore, the cost pressures and the high relevance of the interaction phase in mass customization make it necessary for companies to automate the order acquisition process and also to offer customers with convenient ways so that they can find the optimal product alternative in a fast-paced manner. To achieve these objectives, product configuration systems are of paramount importance. The main topic of PETO'06 is how to build and implement product configuration systems effectively and efficiently. By reading this book, researchers, practitioners, and students will learn about state-of-the-art, new developments and future trends in mass customization.