What's new

Every notable change to VAVEhub and the VE Academy, newest first. Maintained by Avinash Bhosale.

  • Four short animated videos, with subtitles: what VAVE is (Leaders Module 2, Academy Module 1), the FAST diagram (Academy Module 4), how a VAVE study runs (Leaders Module 3, Academy Module 2) and why cost is decided early (Leaders Module 1, Academy Module 1). They play from this site and load only when you press play.
  • Each video now has a "Read the transcript" panel underneath, and cleaner cover pictures.
  • VAVE for Leaders Module 2: the kettle chart now uses the same figures as the "What is VAVE?" video.
  • The function–cost matrix in the Function Analysis guide uses the same kettle figures too.
  • Corrections: the cost-commitment chart in Academy Module 1 and the Job Plan guide now runs across the product's life (concept, detailed design, production) instead of the workshop steps; Module 6 now explains how the roughly one-in-eight surviving ideas become about 15 proposals; the FAST diagram builder in Module 4 matches the video, with three all-time functions and a WHEN branch, and scrolls sideways on phones instead of overlapping; and "70–80%" is used consistently.
  • New charts and diagrams: a study scope card (Academy Module 2), a payback chart and testing ladder (Module 7), regional should-cost bars (Module 11), a programme dashboard and savings range chart (Module 12), return-on-investment bars (Leaders Module 4) and a course map (Leaders Module 0).
  • Five new scenario challenges in Academy Modules 1, 2, 7, 12 and 13. In every challenge the answers now appear in a different order each time you try it.
  • Four more short videos, each with a transcript: brainwriting 6-3-5 (Academy Module 5), should-cost (Module 9), teardown in five steps (Module 10) and target costing for an electric-car motor (Module 13).
  • The FAST diagram and "why cost is decided early" videos have been replaced with new versions with better-timed subtitles.
  • Both courses are now easy to find: the homepage shows VE Academy and VAVE for Leaders side by side, and the top menu links to each one.
  • Corrections: Module 6's sensitivity example (the spline still wins at 55/15 weights); Module 4 no longer uses the verbs it bans; Module 8's idea funnel now matches Modules 5 and 6; the "transmit torque" Value Index is 2.1 throughout; Module 7's worked example includes engineering hours (about 7 months' payback); Module 13 starts target costing from the price the maker receives, after VAT and dealer margin; SAVE certification is now shown as VMA and CVS (AVS was retired in 2016), with EN 12973:2020 and EN 1325; course length and video count corrected.
  • VAVE for Leaders: the Module 4 business case now uses the months-to-production figure and lets you choose £, $, € or ₹; the Samsung example in Module 5 has its sources.
  • Certificates: certificate pages now show whether the certificate is on record, and the list of certificate holders is no longer public. Text on the guides and in the Academy can be selected and copied again, with a source line added.

  • More diagrams and charts in Academy Modules 1, 3, 4, 8, 9 and 10 and VAVE for Leaders Modules 1, 2 and 3: three kettles, five ways to improve value, Miles' five questions, a Pareto curve, the kettle seen as jobs, a sample one-page proposal and decision log, a price-against-weight chart, the IBM Proprinter in numbers, a teardown comparison, "£100,000 two ways" and where ideas drop out of the savings funnel.
  • Fixed: on phones, the step buttons in the FAST diagram builder and the teardown lab no longer run off the edge of the screen.
  • Real photos and a video in the case studies: a Tesla giga-casting, the IBM Proprinter and the Tata Nano (with its cost decisions marked), and GM's generative-design video in Academy Module 11 and Leaders Module 4. Photos are openly licensed and credited on the new Credits page. The video loads from YouTube only when you press play.
  • New diagrams in eight modules that were text only: Academy Modules 2, 5, 6, 11, 12 and 13, and VAVE for Leaders Modules 5 and 6. They show the study team, the workshop week, brainwriting, the idea funnel, the effort–impact grid, where AI helps, how a programme runs through the year, and target costing worked through with real numbers.

  • VAVE for Leaders, improved: a one-minute summary at the start, charts for the key numbers, a comparison with lean, Six Sigma and supplier negotiation, a new section on managing risk, a new section on VAVE in the AI era with a generative-design case study, sources for the headline figures, two new quiz questions, and a printable one-page playbook.
  • New: VAVE for Leaders, a free one-hour crash course for senior managers. Seven short narrated modules cover why VAVE matters, how a study runs, what it delivers, why every department takes part and what leaders need to do in the first 90 days, with six interactive tools and a 10-question quiz. No account is needed to start; sign in to get the certificate.
  • A short introduction video on the homepage, in the "What VE is" section.
  • Clearer sign-in messages. If something goes wrong, the sign-in page now says what happened in plain English.
  • Fixed: a finished module could sometimes disappear from your progress on this device after you answered the next module's quick check. Your account copy was never affected.

  • Tell us what you think — each Academy module now ends with "Was this module helpful?" You can add a comment if you like. It's anonymous: no name, email or account is attached.
  • Labs work with screen readers — charts and diagrams have a text summary, results are read out as they change, and the quizzes move focus to the next question for you.
  • Behind the scenes: every change to the site is now checked automatically before it goes live. The checks cover accessibility, broken links, whether the narration matches the text, and the course and exam from start to finish.

  • Everything rewritten in plain English — the homepage, all ten guides, the Value Diagnosis quiz and all 13 Academy modules now use everyday words. Technical terms are kept where you'll meet them at work, with a short explanation the first time they appear. No figures or facts have changed.
  • New Academy voiceover — every module's narration has been re-recorded to match the new text, word for word.
  • A fairer final exam — answer options are now shuffled on every attempt, three repeated questions have been removed (the bank is now 65 questions), and one question on a topic the course doesn't teach has been replaced. If you've saved missed questions for review, they still point to the right ones.
  • The should-cost calculator in Module 9 now opens with the same £1.42 breakdown as the worked example.
  • Faster homepage — no more loading screen, lighter fonts, and the sign-in library only loads when you need it. On a phone the homepage is about half the size and its main content appears straight away.
  • Better on phones — opening an Academy module now takes you straight to the lesson (the course list folds away), and buttons and links are easier to tap.
  • Easier to read and find — larger text in the course and guides, Toolkit and Glossary in the top menu, an "On this page" bar on long guides, and a more helpful page-not-found screen.
  • Calmer motion — fewer effects running at once, and animations pause when they're off screen. Narration highlighting now keeps pace with the voice exactly.
  • Keyboard friendly — a "Skip to content" link on every page, clear focus outlines, and the phone menu closes with Esc.
  • The certificate exam now opens once all 13 modules are finished, so the certificate reflects the whole course. Fixed: the savings calculator's euro option, a few words in case studies that jumped onto their own line, and the exam-bank count on the sign-in page.

  • The playbook now has its own pages — the job plan, function analysis, cost levers, ideation, technology, benchmarking, industries and governance each have a dedicated guide you can bookmark and share, plus new Toolkit and Glossary pages.
  • Every guide opens with an “In 30 seconds” summary and ends with the template to try and the Academy module to learn it properly.
  • The homepage is now a short overview — about a third of its previous length — and loads faster. Old links to homepage sections still work and take you to the right guide.
  • The glossary merges the course's key terms, and every term can be linked to directly.

  • Faster, more polished site — fonts now served from VAVEhub itself (quicker, and no requests to Google), and a quicker headline animation.
  • Works properly on every phone — no more sideways scrolling on the Academy, certificate and toolkit pages, down to 320-pixel screens.
  • Better link previews — sharing the Academy or your certificate on LinkedIn now shows a proper preview card.
  • Toolkit templates are versioned — each shows its version, date and the module that teaches it.
  • Course at a glance — a catalogue of all 13 modules with durations and outcomes, plus a certificate pathways note.
  • New pages — Terms of Use and this What's new log. Accessibility fixes for colour contrast and form labels.

  • Wording tidy-up so professional bodies are named only where describing the field factually.

  • Seven modules rebuilt in depth — Modules 1–3, 7–9 and 11: VE history timeline, a 5-day workshop agenda, a live business-case builder, a scroll-driven should-cost waterfall and an AI-era toolkit.
  • Module 10: Teardown & Benchmarking rebuilt, with an exploded-view SUV teardown using real part photography.
  • Exam bank grew to 68 questions; narration grew to 122 minutes across all 13 modules.

  • New certificate design — classic guilloché layout, calligraphic name, gold seal; renamed Certificate of Completion.
  • Modules 5 and 6 rebuilt — SCAMPER explorer, TRIZ navigator, idea sprint and a weighted-matrix sandbox.
  • Security hardening, a Privacy Policy, installable app (PWA), course search and a review mode for missed questions.
  • All prices and examples switched to pounds sterling.

  • Studio narration — every module narrated with a neural voice, with text highlighted as it plays.
  • Module 4 rebuilt — an animated, step-by-step FAST diagram lab and a 50-function library.
  • Custom domain valueengineeringhub.com, free accounts with cloud-synced progress, and Module 13 on target costing.
  • Editable Excel versions of every toolkit template.

  • Launch — the VAVEhub knowledge portal: job plan, FAST, 36 cost levers, ideation, should-cost, benchmarking and industry playbooks.
  • VE Academy — a free certified course with worked examples, quick checks, a randomised final exam and public certificate verification.
  • Free toolkit, lever selector, savings estimator and a Value Diagnosis questionnaire.