SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE, KNOWLEDGE PROCESS AND EXPLOITATION OF ECONOMIES OF REPEAT AND RECOMBINATION

Abstract

The dynamics of innovation are usually represented by a model that adheres to the reality of mass production systems characterized by a low variability of products and by large scale production. An alternative model, and an ideal one, has been developed to represent productive systems characterized by a high variability of products - meeting the specific needs of different sponsors - and by low scale production. This model represents the dynamics of innovation in complex systems. The project becomes a unit of aggregation, from which analyses are made. The Chandlerian economies of scale and scope, understood as the fundamentals for the growth of organizations, become economies of repetition and recombination, and they settle in project-based organizations. The main objective of this research is to show that the cycles of organizational learning are defined by system architecture and are crystallized through learning by use. The case study of PRODESP shows how, from the architecture of the Sintonia® system, the life cycle processes of the project are established, and learning by use crystallizes learning cycles in this product platform. Sources of primary data include interviews and documentation related to design processes. It is concluded that the ideal model of innovation that represents the dynamics of innovation in complex systems is adherent, at various points, to the reality of PRODESP.