Abstract
The engineering economics of the hard disk drive industry is unique in the realm of engineering and manufacturing. The result of hundreds of millions of dollars and years of effort is a product life cycle that is only six quarters, not years, long. Hundreds, if not thousands of disk drives are consumed during the rigorous qualification process with server and other storage customers as they strive for ultimate reliability in the performance of their systems. Hard disk drive manufacturers have strong project management and transition processes. The product portfolio is modeled financially over a three year forecast period. The greatest opportunity in the financial modeling can be the generation of reports that minimize indecision that causes delays at the start of projects.