From the different sources out there, it’s easy to get confused, but we’re here to debunk three common product development myths.
Myth #1: Let’s Eliminate Prototyping and Get to Market Faster!
Eliminating prototyping does not save time and money! Skipping the prototype stage will increase production costs and result in launch delays. It forces all the unknowns into later, more expensive stages of development.
People sometimes think that it's adequate to do makeshift proof of concept models that are quick and dirty and then rush through to get to market faster. Skipping early steps in the prototyping cycle might cause you to miss important factors and issues that you run into later on in manufacturing. Things quickly snowballs and causes more significant delays and expenses. The cost vs time curve jumps way up when you hit production. Adding unknowns in the middle can easily double the expense and delay customer deliveries.
Solid representative prototyping can be done very quickly. A well-defined rapid development process saves time. It's cost-effective and leads to creating a realistic proof-of-concept model to advance to production. All of the steps are important and they build upon each other to bring high-quality products to market on time and on budget.
Production and prototyping tooling are not the same. It's necessary to work through as many prototype issues as possible before getting to production (process and tooling) to prevent difficult, expensive, and time-consuming problems.
Once the production tooling is created (fabrication, assembly, inspection) each brings unique values to the stage, and they each have different risks, pros and cons. Choosing not to follow the rapid prototyping process can result in high costs and expensive delays.
Myth #2: It’s Too Early to Worry About Manufacturing.
It's never too early to get manufacturing partners involved in the product development process. Most manufacturing partners will talk through your project to learn what you're trying to do. They can be an underutilized resource on early engineering problems. At Fusion, we start the DFM and prototyping process from the get-go. We have a set of partners that we leverage to understand early design tradeoffs. We make sure that you have the right expert with you every step of the way.
Myth #3: Prototypes are supposed to be Lifelike.
Prototypes come in all shapes and sizes and only the final prototype needs to look like the final product. Different types of prototypes include proof of concept prototypes, mini models, fully functional prototypes, and factory first article parts / assemblies.
Avoid the Myths
For your next product development project, be aware of the myths out there. We understand how to implement the fundamentals, and our customers are delighted with the results. Be well!
