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The increasing number of product artifacts (e.g., mechanical or electronic components, software functions, documents) confronts small and medium-sized companies with the challenge of assessing change effects. The lack of knowledge of artifact relationships causes problems, such as outdated documentation, lack of coordination with affected disciplines, or delayed changes. The Design Structure Matrix (DSM) can clearly represent the elements and relationships of complex systems. This paper presents an assistance system for intuitive visualization of engineering change effects using existing DSM-based methods for complexity management. The implemented algorithms compute graph layouts, cluster analyses, and change predictions in the form of change risk, time, and cost. An application example of a 3D-printed intelligent lamp demonstrates the approach's viability. The paper concludes with a discussion of the benefits and future activities.

Keywords:

Graph-based Visualization, Assistance System, Engineering Change Management, Complexity Management