Albers, AlbertAlbertAlbersLüdcke, RobertRobertLüdckeBursac, NikolaNikolaBursacReiß, NicolasNicolasReiß2024-05-272024-05-272014-05Preface, invited papers, cyber-physical systems, product and system engineering, engineering methodologies and approaches (Part 1): 393-402 (2014)978-94-6186-176-4978-94-6186-177-1https://hdl.handle.net/11420/47603This paper reports on a current research project that aims to support companies in optimization of their information flows between different departments. The development of complex engineering products takes place in numerous interconnected activities. Especially in the early stages of productdevelopment-processes (PDP), it is important to manage the available knowledge within a company. Research for the paper is drawn from observing product development processes of five project partner companies. As a basis for recording and analyzing these processes, an integrated modeling technique for the representation of information flows in product development processes (PDP) is presented. It allows to simultaneously consider engineering, knowledge and method management activities in one common representation. The resulting models provide information about the use of methods and the state of the art on Knowledge-Management-Systems (KMS) in the considered companies. Research results indicate that particular departments within the same company use very individual methods and KMS to carry out their engineering activities and to document their results. Due to these isolated systems, an inconsistency between product models of different departments arises. It was pointed out by the project partners that a uniform product-structure, as a meta-model, which is used at different levels degrees of detail at different times within PDP and in different projects, could facilitate the use of consistent product models and enable a continuous information flow between the KMSs. This is discussed taking Dr. Ing. hc F. Porsche AG as an example.enSocial Sciences::330: EconomicsConference Paper10.13140/2.1.4612.9447Conference Paper