Introduction
It should be well understood that people do not buy products or
services, they buy solutions to their problems. So you must first have
a clear understanding of the problem you want to solve. Only then you
can aim to solve that problem with a great product or service.
Once you know the problem, you need to determine how to solve
it. The solution to a problem might be straightforward, or it might
not. For example a straightforward solution is when engineers are
confident there is at least one obvious approach. However a non
straightforward solution is when engineers are confident there
isn't any obvious approaches, and instead its likely there will
be several attempts to solve the problem via trialing and testing. Non
straightforward solutions also might involve scientific methods using
existing and non existing research science.
The relative total project cost/timeline difference between
straightforward projects and non straightforward projects, is
significant. Simply because one does know how many attempts to solve
the problem are required. Each attempt might be completely
different strategies. Once at least one approach is found to work,
engineers are back addressing one obvious approach.
It should be also well understood that while engineers might have
at least one obvious approach to solving a problem. Engineers
are still innovating and integrating with 3rd party technologies to
develop a novel product for a target application. So your still
doing something that hasn't been done before, which will still require
trial and testing before commiting to production - this means the
approach might require rework, bug fixes, and overcoming setbacks,
along with unexpected or
unforeseen challenges. It is for these reasons, new product
development always has high uncertainty, high risk and is
considered R&D.
To put it all in a different way. R&D can be frustrating - setbacks
can occur and Murphy's law is
common. Estimating is hard - Hofstadter's
law is common. Some things can be affected by the Pareto
Principle - in terms of R&D, the last 20% of the project may take
80% of the time. There is much support out there for startups. The
development phase and initial sales is well known to be called the Valley
of Death. We'd suggest reaching out to some innovation support
spaces to share stories which maybe able to help with the stress. We
believe there is much merit in Thomas J. Watson quote - "If you want to succeed,
double your failure rate" and Thomas Jefferson quote "With great risk often comes great reward".
The next section outlines possible phases for a straightforward
projects. For non straightforward projects, the path forward is fuzzy.
So the first step is to proceed with bite-sized reviews. This allows
assessment of the problems/solutions against existing technologies to
propose the most feasible approaches for trial and testing. Then
propose ideal methods to do the trialing and testing, such as
mathematical calculations, computer modeling, computer simulations
and/or real-world scale modeling via rapid prototyping methods.
Project Phases
Once you have a idea for a product. Have confirmed
there is a market for your product. Then you are ready to start the
review, planning, designing and prototyping of a new product idea. This involves the following phases:
- Project Review - In general, the aim of this phase is to define "what"
the product should do (i.e. application and objectives). The is
done via closely coupled discussions with the customer to understand
the application and objectives to define the goal (e.g. targeting production, targeting demo unit to get more funding/feedback) and possible concepts. Once the goal is known and a concept is selected, we can start the planning process. In some cases, the client might already have a concept in mind - in that case, this process will review/refine the concept.
- Planning - In general, the aim of this phase is to define "how" the objectives might be achieved. And what the unit cost might be - allowing a "go" or "no go" decision based on target unit cost and target volume objectives. The scope of work might be:
- Provide rough draft illustrations of how the product (and/or components) will look and perhaps work.
- Rough idea of Bill of Materials (BOM).
- Rough idea of the unit cost.
- High level design.
- Proposed development path.
- Time & Material Estimations (if required)
We typically keep planning to a minimum, as it is not uncommon for a plan to change. We believe allowing the product to evolve is in the best interest of developing a good product to drive sales.
- Design - In general, the aim of this phase is to produce computer based designs with a strong focus on reducing unit cost. It is not uncommon the design/prototype might evolve, so initially we focus on optimising the design for prototyping (instead of production). We expect lower development costs this way. The scope of work typically involves producing designs optimised for prototyping, and getting a better feel of the unit cost, bill of materials, and unforeseen challenges.
- Prototyping - In general, the aim of this phase is to produce a
prototype, that best fits the project concept. Depending on the
project plan, we may need to first make a non working prototype,
before we can move to a working prototype. At the end of the day, a
working prototype is the goal, so that it can be reviewed by
end users (i.e. client and potential customers) to gather feedback to improve
the form and function. The scope of work for this phase is to
produce a prototype that best fits the plan and project
concept. Then pass to the client for end user feedback/testing. It
is not uncommon more then one prototype revision is required. And
it's typically recommanded to use a small set of prototypes for
field-testing with end-users.
- Production - In general, the aim of this phase is to produce large volumes suitable for resale. The scope of work typically involves optimising the designs for production, typically via processing Design For Manufacture (DFM) reports from the target production firm. Then gathering quotes from production firms, for our client to order direct, or we order on behalf. For multi-part products, we typically advise on a "big brother build" approach, so no single production firm has all the designs.
- Promotion - In general, the aim of this phase is to produce promotion
material for product marketing and sales. The scope of work may
include: product logo, product image renders, packaging material,
flyers, brochures, promo videos for youtube and/or TV.
For some projects, is it hard to know if the product idea can even
be achieved in engineer terms (i.e. technically feasible), or in
cost terms (i.e. financially feasible). Or perhaps one needs to determine the possible size of the market. If we believe this is the
case, we might advise that two additional phases might be required after/during/before
phase 1:
- Feasibility Study - This phase will involve proving (or
disproving) on paper, and/or in a computer model, if a product is
technically feasible, and/or is financially feasible - for some
projects to determine if it is financially feasible may require
completing the project review. For more information see wikipedia
about "Feasibility
study" and "Phase-gate
model Feasibility Review".
- Proof Of Concept (POC) Development - If the product was
proven to technically work on paper or in a computer model during
the feasibility study, then a Proof Of Concept maybe required to
prove the product (or the questionable parts of the product) truly
do work in the real-world. A POC might also be created first to demo to end users to gather feedback. For more information see wikipedia about
"POC".
For more information on new product development (NPD) see wikipedia about
"NPD".
How can I fund the cost for New Product Development?
We appreciate the cost of development is a significant burden. It is important
to not worry too much about the development costs -
it is a one-time cost (i.e. fixed cost as opposed to marginal cost). As long as you have a good product to drive sales, the fixed development cost just moves your break-even point. We would advise that you focus on reducing your marginal costs (e.g. unit cost), as that directly affects your profit.
It is well understood that New Product Development (NPD) always has
uncertainty and is considered R&D. The total
cost is driven by the evolution of end user (i.e. client and potential customers) testing and feedback. It is for these reasons, we appreciate the actual total
project development cost is unknown. So depending on the size of the project
and/or its life cycle, further funding might be required,
before, during or after any of the project life-cycle steps.
Funding the development cost of a product is known as Seed money, and
can be raised in various ways.
Self-funding is the best option, but if you require external funding,
here are some options:
Government Grants
Seed Funding Companies
Equity Share
This funding option seems to be the most popular for new inventors.
Basically you could do a strategy like this:
- Self-fund the initial prototype (and/or product visualisation).
- Demo the initial prototype (and/or product visualisation) to an investor in the same industry as your target audience.
- Make a deal with the investor to:
- Reimburse you for all previous development costs.
- Get mentoring advise - they have years of experience with marketing, sales and contacts to get your product out there and selling like hot cakes.
- Go 50-50, or something like that, on equity share.
This way someone else pays for all the development costs, and you get a business mentor (and all their contacts).
Types of Investors:
- Angel Investors - generally invest before the working prototype stage
- Venture Capitalist - generally invest after the working prototype stage
Crowd Funding
You could use the prototypes, plus a promotional video on crowd funding platforms such as http://kickstarter.com
Additional info
Generally if you can not self-fund your project, you will need to
draw up a business plan and use concept design material
(e.g. life-like product visualisation as photos or 3D animations). Or
a early prototype to explain and demostrate the purpose of your
product. If this is the case, please let us know as we can provide you
with life-like concept design material, or an early prototype.
To help with grant applications, business plan, etc - we'd suggest
contacting the Gold Coast Innovation
Hub.
Here are a few great links to further information about raising funds for
your product:
Why choose us?
Our team is comprised of a small group of very talented unique
individuals, including robotics engineers and PhD scientists. Each
have been passionately learning and developing their technical arts
since childhood. Together we bring a wealth of experience and
cross-pollination of skills. This allows us to provide you with the
most ideal solution for your needs.
It is also important to understand that having a skilled team like
us, will not mean your project is going to cost more then a company
that does not have robotics and PhD scientists. In fact, because we
have these skills on the team, your project can be completed cheaper
and quicker then companies without such skills (e.g. companies that
specialise in just mechanics, or electronics, or software, or concept
artistic design). Furthermore, having our team on your project, means
the design can be optimised for minimum
viable product (MVP) - which is important for maximizing return on
investment.
For more information, please see our about us page.
Chief Methodology
Great products evolve through user testing and feedback from
bench/field testing. Because of this, it is very common that the end/final
product is very different then the initial concept/plan/prototype.
From our experience, th- best approach for NPD is agile-like
methods. That is: one tries to get an initial prototype very fast and
then show it to the end users, to get feedback and improve. The user
testing and feedback and improvement cycle should be short to minimise
risk. This also means NPD projects should not try to solve all the problems at once,
as this increases the development risk/cost/timeline.
It is for these reasons, the following terms best fit this type of work:
- We work under a time and materials (T&M) agreement (i.e. hourly rate + materials).
- We work on a best-efforts basis (i.e. no guarantees).
- We aim to work under approved billable hours.
- We charge in 15 minute increments.
- Pay-as-you-go via weekly invoices (which includes our
timesheet and materials). And/or advance payment deposits.
- All invoices are strictly 7 day terms.
How do I proceed?
To proceed, please contact us to advise us of your project brief, concept
and/or list of objectives, so that we can start the project review phase.
Information About Mount Bolton
Supporting Your Digital Growth in Mount Bolton, Ballarat, Victoria, Australia
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