During the prototype design process, there are instances when part features can be manipulated to make manufacturing more efficient without sacrificing the intent of the designed part. Proficient designers & manufacturing partners will likely ask to see the assembly or environment the part will be used in order to better understand the application and what features are truly necessary.
The big challenge for most product developers today is getting a product on the market as fast as possible. After all, for a company to be perceived as a true innovator in their respective industry, they need to be the “first” to do it. However, quality is sometimes sacrificed for fast time to market, which is problematic, as getting it “right” is just as important as getting it out fast.
How can product developers do both? It all starts with design intent during the prototype development stage. Paying close attention to how products are designed early on not only helps contribute to a quality-made product, but can reduce time to market as well. Here are four reasons why design intent is so crucial in the prototype development stage.
1. It creates a long lasting product.
For your customer's sake, you want your product to be high-quality and long-lasting. That’s why designers need to collaborate with engineers before the product goes out for that initial prototype run. Plastic engineers have a different highly valuable skills and they can help you validate your designs and suggest alterations to ensure that the product is quality and long-lasting. They can also help product designers understand how to efficiently manufacture plastic parts in high volumes.
2. It allows you to modify your design.
Another important reason why design intent is so important is because modifications are likely going to be made along the way. While it’s possible to prototype in a trial-and-error type of pattern, (where you send a part out for prototyping, analyze it, make changes, then repeat) the process can be tedious, expensive and isn’t exactly conducive to fast time to market. That’s where qualified engineers or product development consultants enter the picture. They can help reduce material usage, production time, and costs when it comes to prototyping and development.
Engineers can run the product design through simulation software to see how well it will hold up in various conditions, which can often identify design flaws. During this process, they will need to know:
The importance of design analysis and modifications cannot be overstated. Think of it this way – should a faulty product design be green-lit for manufacturing and costly tooling be created, only to call the product back once the flaws are realized, you’re not only losing money, but you’re delaying the release of your product.
3. It can give your marketing department a head start.
One benefit to paying close attention to design is the type of marketing it can do for you. You can position yourself greater as an industry leader if you can show potential end users how thoroughly your products are considered before they go into production. This is ideal for marketing at industry trade shows and in any marketing materials.
4. It will get your product on the market faster.
Last but not least, there’s the aspect of fast time to market that truly highlights the importance of careful design analysis. As mentioned previously, not carefully analyzing the design of the product prior to the prototype stage can lead to a time consuming cycle of prototyping and making modifications. Worst case scenario, it can force you to call back a production run and have to create tooling all over again. However, if careful design analysis is done prior, the number of prototype runs will likely be reduced and the product will go into production quicker.
As you can see, design intent is crucial to the product development cycle. And that’s why collaboration is so important after an initial design has been created. Changes and modifications made before the prototyping phase can simplify the rest of the product development cycle, helping to craft a quality, long-lasting product that hits the market fast.
What challenges have you faced when considering design intent for a prototype development project?
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