Product Information Systems Engineering: a methodological approach focused on re-use of patterns

In industrial organisations, product information systems (PIS) support technical data management of products and their design/production processes. The current economic context makes these PIS strategic for these organisations. Currently, these organisations have many difficulties in developing these systems. The purpose of this research is to define a methodological framework adapted to PIS engineering and allowing these difficulties to be reduced. In this paper, first, we identify these difficulties and show the need of a re-use approach for a “deviation” development of these systems. Second, we distinguish different forms of re-use already introduced in software engineering, with particular emphasis on design pattern re-use. The proposed methodological framework is mainly based on the re-use of patterns throughout the PIS development process. These patterns are used to define reoccurring development problems in these systems and to allow re-use of associated solutions already defined. The paper illustrates this approach by defining and specifying a pattern adapted to a mechanical design problem.