Product Development Process

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

Product Development Process

A product development process is the entire set of activities required to bring a new concept to a state of market readiness.

A design process is the set of technical activities within a product development process. It does not include business, financial, or marketing activities.

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

Product Design Process

Understanding the Opportunity

Develop a Concept

Implement a Concept

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

Understanding the Opportunity

Characterized with four activities

Develop a vision Market opportunity analysis Customer/user need analysis Competitive products analysis

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

Develop a vision
The first step in product development is to have a vision.

What product do we like to be out there?

Why does it not do something we want it to?

What is difficult with the current product we use?

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

Develop a vision
Visions are a dime a dozen

Every user has thoughts on how they wish their device would work. Every research scientist has a vision for how their technology can be applied. Every manager has a vision for command of a market.
The question is whether any vision can be transformed into a successful realization.

Can it be developed and implemented into a profitable product?

Ken Youssefi Mechanical Engineering Department

Market opportunity analysis

Go/No-Go decision on a new product

S-Curves Technical questioning Mission statement Product development economic analysis

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

Determining What to Develop

Should a completely new product be designed (original design or invention)? Should the existing product be redefined and modified to better satisfy the customer (adaptive design, evolving a known design)? Should the product be expanded to variant forms to more comprehensively cover the market (variant design; involves varying parameters, size, shape, materials,. )?

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

S-Curves
Technological innovations typically manifest themselves into a market along an S-curve timeline behavior.
The S-curve displays the performance of a product over time with respect to one variable.

Stage I - characterized by relatively low performance, not much innovation.

Stage II rapid growth due to many innovations, many products introduced into the market.
Stage III technology tops out, product may become obsolete
Ken Youssefi Mechanical Engineering Department

Comments on S-Curves
S-Curves show the market behavior of most technologies A switch to a better technology is known as jumping the S-curve. The newer S-curve is a disruptive technology that requires changes in the market system to succeed (VHS, DVD, HDTV, .) The industry is constantly jumping the S-curve Design team should consider the technology environment in introducing new product.

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

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Comments on S-Curves and Technology Forecasting

Although most technologies follow this path of market behavior, there are exceptions. Moores Law (transistor density on microprocessors doubles every 18 months).

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

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Technical Questioning and Mission Statement

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

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Product development Risks

Any new product development project faces risk from two independent sources.

Is the product technically feasible? Can we make it in a reasonable time? Is the product economically feasible? Will people buy it at a reasonable profit to us?
Technical Questioning and Mission Statement are two processes used to answer these questions.

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

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Technical Questions
Technical questions are needed to clarify the task.

To keep focus, one should question the current understanding of the development.
Questions should be asked and answered, not once, but continually through the life cycle of the design process.

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

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Example Design a new fingernail clipper

Existing fingernail clippers in the market

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

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Technical Questioning fingernail clipper example What is the problem really about?
Clumsy operation of a typical clipper, nail clippings all over

What implicit expectations and desires are involved?

Remain a manual clipper that can be operated by oneself, collect clippings, .

Are customer needs, requirements, and constraints truly appropriate?

Consumer studies have noted clumsy operation. A detailed assessment will be made post-consumer interviews

What avenues are open for creative design?

Can modify any and all parts, use different materials besides metals. Add functionality, such as the ability to store and dump nail debris
Ken Youssefi Mechanical Engineering Department

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Technical Questioning fingernail clipper example What avenues are limited for creative design?
No electrical power, size, weight, cost

What characteristic/properties must the product have?

Durable, safe, easy to use

What characteristic/properties must the product not have?

Should not be heavy and bulky

What are the technical conflicts inherit in the design task?

Compact size vs. large surface area for grasping and large mechanical advantage.
Ken Youssefi Mechanical Engineering Department

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Technical Questioning fingernail clipper example What aspects of the design task should be quantified now?
Customer needs analysis, fingernail characteristics; size and strength, human hand and finger size and strength, required profit to cover development cost. Research, estimates and simple calculations should be performed to understand these issues.

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

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Mission Statement
The tangible result of the technical questioning should be a precise and clear statement of the design teams mission. Also called, Product Plan, Market Attack Plan, Vision Statement

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

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Mission Statement Template

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

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Mission Statement Example

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

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Homework #2 Due Wed. Sept. 13

Create a formal Mission Statement for one of the individual products you came up with in HW #1. This should include a Product Description, Key Business Goals, Primary and Secondary Markets, Assumptions and Constraints, and Stakeholders. Please follow the format discussed in the class. The Mission Statement is very much like a resume for your product. It should be typed and look professional. Bulleted format is finekeep everything clear and concise.

Ken Youssefi

Mechanical Engineering Department

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