The paper explores drawbacks of applying a “one-size-fits-all” approach when conducting concurrent engineering (CE). By combining the funnel analogy with considerations in terms of prioritising different requirements, the intention with our empirical study is to contribute to the prevalent understanding of managing the CE activities. The research mainly addresses CE activities at the architecture level. Two cases, each consisting of three embedded cases, present six CE projects. Each CE project involves a company located in a high-wage area and one of two captured manufacturing facilities; one is located in Eastern Europe, while the other is located in the Far East. Two projects are accomplished without significant drawbacks and only minor iterations occur. Significant drawbacks and major iterations occur in three projects; the involved companies are incapable of understanding the consequences of using “the standard integral product architecture” prior to starting up the manufacturing. Final, one project is terminated; mainly due to the applied product architecture turns up as being unusable to offer customization options, and partly due to the manufacturing- and supply chain architecture not being considered up front the development.