New Product Design and Development

New product design has to be a combination of experience, know how technique hard work and flair.

New products

The start of a project to develop a new product must from be the need to create a product which fulfils a need which the current products do not satisfy.

This newness could be as simple as updating a product with improved appearance or aesthetics, reducing the manufacturing costs, improving the functionality and the utility of the product.

The new product might be the creation of a completely new product which has never been seen before, a unique device or process or product which performs new and different and useful functions.

The Hoola hoop and the Rubik’s cube and the incandescent light bulb and the vacuum flask might be thought of as completely new products in this area.

Most new products are however improvements to existing products, examples the bagless vacuum cleaner or the brushless dc electric motor.

Steps in development.

The development of a new product should always start with a specification.

To clarify the idea and to decide on its scope and performance.

The specification

The specification sets down the design of the product and is a clear, agreed, description of what the product is, what it achieves, how it operates and how it is to be made.

All other requirements are included at this sage.

If the client company manufactures plastic mouldings then manufacture on the existing plant may be a feature of the product.

A low production cost to allow competition in a given market place might be a feature.

The avoidance of infringement of existing patents may be required or it may be necessary to have a patent for the new product.

Development Plan

Only when the specification is finalised and agreed then the development of the product can begin.

All the facets of the design can now be planned and actioned.

All the options for alternative aspects of the design can be considered.

Patent searches can be carried out.

Indeed the project can be planned and its timetable and costs accurately decided.

Any changes to the specification can be agreed and the development plan can be started.

Development

Drawings and assemblies can be created, and the work in creating the prototypes or models can be started. Collecting component details and costs

Sub contracts can be instigated and all the aspects of the development can be actioned.

Milestones

The clearly identified stages for the development identified in the development plan will start to be satisfied and the progress of the project monitored.

Deliverables

The out come of the project defined earlier will start to come to fruition as the development continues.

Sample will be produced, rapid prototypes or prototypes will be created, and drawings will be finished and so on.

These will be approved tested, evaluated and modified as the project nears its conclusion.

Pre production parts may be needed for field trials and customer evaluation, industry standard tests mat need to be carried out and patents applied for before the project is completed.