Our Process

The goal of Phase 0 is to understand the problem at hand. We are essentially asking ourselves, “What is the product we’re developing?”

This phase is all about product definition. In this phase, thorough research allows us to carefully frame our products’ attributes and key performance indicators. The success of many great products has relied on a detailed product definition. Thoroughly defining the product allows us to easily move into the next phase: ideation and conceptualization.

The goal of Phase 1 is to generate initial ideas and develop them into viable concepts.

Developing successful products starts with a number of brainstorming sessions to create a broad range of innovative concepts. These concepts will include multiple use cases and mechanisms to help realize a broad group of feasible ideas. At this point, the developed concepts can be put into a Pugh Chart for selection and further refinement. We will often develop “proof-of-concept” prototypes at this phase to prove the ability of the concepts to function at a basic level in the real world.

The goal of Phase 2 is to transform select solutions into complete designs.

At this point in the process, potential designs begin to take shape. The concepts and designs will be turned into working Alpha prototypes. These prototypes are not refined but help prove that the core functions of the product can be achieved with an approximate form factor. These models are also used to get initial user feedback for further refinement. These early prototypes help drive the selection of the final mechanisms, forms and functions.

The goal of Phase 3 is to finalize the design and engineering of the chosen concepts.

The final concepts are selected and some level of refinement is applied. As a result of the Alpha prototype testing and user feedback, we will develop a Beta prototype. This prototype will look and perform like the final product. At this point, a larger number of prototypes should be made for more thorough testing to verify the operation and performance of the system and its individual components.

The goal of Phase 4 is to prepare for manufacturing.

The product is now finalized, but some of the most important engineering efforts are still to come. The final CAD databases and drawing packages are complete. Now the process of vetting and selecting a manufacturer must be performed. Working with the chosen vendor, the tolerance drawings along with the assembly and process instructions are reviewed and revised according to the vendor’s capabilities. At the end of this phase, initial manufacturing will begin.

After manufacturing has been validated, only sustaining engineering is needed.

The final product is ready for production. To start the first article pieces, parts and components need to be reviewed and proven to meet quality and tolerance requirements. Next, the assembly and production process must be qualified and refined. Once the process and quality targets have been met, the process can conclude with only limited on-demand engineering support as-needed.