Developing a

New Product
Dr. Omer L Hageniers, P Eng.
February 2012
2011 MSCI Limited

Developing a New Product

What is the Process?

1 you need a
PLAN.
st

Idea

To

Product

Developing a New Product

Product Development Needs:

A Product Concept
Skilled, Qualified Staf
Necessary Prototype Materials
Resources Facility, $s, etc.
A Defined Customer Need to Fulfill
A Market
Sales Channels (Access to the Market)
A Development Plan

Developing a New Product

So; You Want to Develop a

New Product.
Why? How? When?
The Answers to These Three
Questions are Very Important
and Must be Answered Before
You Start.

Developing a New Product

Why Develop a New Product?
Potential Answers to This Question Include:
My Competition has One of These!
The World Needs This Product!
I Have a Great Idea!
Its Going to Sell Millions!
We Have the Cash to Spend!
Its Part of Our Strategic Plan!

Developing a New Product

If Your Answer is Anything Other Than

Its Part of Our Strategic Plan!

You Had Better Get Started on That
Strategic Plan.
All of the Other Possible Answers Could
be Part of Your Strategic Plan; But if You
do Not Have a Strategic Plan You Will
Never Know.

Developing a New
Product
Strategic Planning
Mission &
Objective
s

Who are You & What do You Want

to Do?
Environmen
Regulations, Competition, Economy,
tal
Market Size, Etc.
Scan
Strategy
Plan How to Achieve Your
Formulati
Goals
on
Strategy
Work Your Plan
Implementati
A Good Strategic Planning
on
Evaluation
Process Requires That You
&
Look at All of The Possibilities
Control

for Your Business. A Good

Guide to the Preparation of a
Strategic Plan is Provided in
the Books by Michael E. Porter

Developing a New Product

Developing a New Product

Risk Analysis
New
Technology Caution

Danger

Existing
Technology

Caution

Safe

Existing
Market

New
Market

Developing a New Product

Types of Products:
1) Improvement on an Existing Product
(Progress)
2) Replacement of an Existing Product
(Evolution)
3) A New Product in an Existing Market
(Growth)
4) A New Product in a New Market (Risky)
5) A Pioneering Product (Very Risky)
6) A Commodity Product (Cost is King)

Developing a New Product

How to Develop a New
Product.
Potential Answers to this Question
Include:
Copy an Existing Competitive Product!
Adapt One of Your Existing Products!
Build a Prototype & Test it in the
Market!
The Process Is Part of Our Strategic
Plan!

Developing a New Product

Making a Product Development Plan
First Establish the Following:
Functional Statement What is the
Product Supposed to do?
Design Requirements Specification,
Standards, Safety, Production Quantity,
Duty Cycle, Efficiency, Cost, Etc.
Evaluation Criteria How Will You Know
When the Product is Finished?

Developing a New Product

Example:
Functional Statement: A Small, Low Cost
Toy to Entertain Kids Under 5 Years Old
Design Requirements: Manufacturing
Cost < 5 per for 100,000 Units, Weight
<1 Oz., Shatter Resistant, Cannot be
Swallowed or Eaten by a 5
Year Old.
Evaluation Criteria: Child Appeal Testing
(>90%), Field Trial @ a Day Care (>85%)

Developing a New Product

Create the Step by Step Plan in the

Form of a Gantt Chart
- Each Step Should Represent a Task
- Each Task Must Have an Outcome
- An Outcome can be a Deliverable or the
Achievement of a Goal
Each Task has Resources Assigned and Has
its Cost Calculated
The Cost of the Individual Tasks are
Summed to get the Total Development Cost.

Developing a New Product

Development Plan

In Addition to the Gantt Chart, Create a

Written Document That Lays Out the
Development Plan Milestone by Milestone.
This Document Details Resources, Method,
and Objectives. Everyone Involved in the
Project Should Have Access to This
Document. It is a Roadmap Designed to
get You to Your Destination The Product.
Keep All Parties to the Project Informed of
Where You are in Your Development Plan.
Monitor & Report Progress or its Lack.

Developing a New Product

Intellectual Property (IP)
Prior To & During the Product
Development Project Make Every Efort
to Identify IP and Keep it Confidential.
When the Time is Right, File for Patent
Protection, it is a Strategic Advantage.
You Have Invested Heavily in Product
Development, Protect Your Investment.
Involve a Professional in Your IP Strategy
(Which is More Than Just Patents).

Developing a New Product

Comments on Development
Personnel
Do You Have Personnel With the
Required Skills on Staf?
You May Need to
Add Staf in the
Form of
Consultants or
University
Professors.
Specialists in
Areas of
Knowledge Where
Your Own Staf

Developing a New Product

The Role of Innovation in Product

Development
Innovation is an Overworked Word
What is Innovation?
My Definition is The Incorporation of
Technology From one Area of Endeavour
into Another Area.
A Product Break-Through Requires
Innovation
Inventors Trained or Experienced in MultiDisciplinary Product Development are

Developing a New Product

The Role of Product Knowledge

If Your Company is Selling a Product in a

Market Place You & Your Staf Have
Product Knowledge.
This Knowledge is Crucial to Successful
New Product Development.
This Knowledge Can Also be a Barrier to
Creating a New Product.
A Balance Between the Existing Product
Knowledge & An Improved Product Must
be Achieved.

Developing a New Product

The Role of the Customer

Your Customer (Existing or Potential) is

the only One Who can Judge the Value
of Your Product.
Knowing or Learning Your Customers
Needs is Critical to New Product
Development.
For Small Production Volume Products it
is Easier to Determine Customer Needs.
For Mass Produced Products, Customer
Needs May be Very Difuse and

Developing a New Product

When to Develop a New
Product
Potential Answers to this Question
Include:
When we need one!
Next Week!
When Our Strategic Plan Tells Us!

Developing a New Product

Comments on When
Since Product Development is a Process That
Takes Time Development Must Start Long
Before the Need for a New Product is Clear.
Product Development Outcomes are Often Not
Certain Remember Thomas Edisons
Statement to Shareholders I have not failed.
I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.
We will sell no wine before its time. The
slogan of a famous Paul Masson winery
advertising campaign.

Developing a New Product

Further Comments on When
Having a Product Development Pipeline
is Essential to the Steady Creation of
New Products.
Introduction of New Products Must be
Paced to Prevent Consumer Confusion.
If a New product is Being Planned to
Replace an Existing Product, it Must be
Discernibly Superior.

Developing a New Product

Product Development
Examples
From My Experience

Developing a New Product

New Product New Market
New Laser Cladding Nozzle

Traditional
Designs Cannot
Control Size of
Laser Spot or
Powder Spread.

Developing a New Product

2D Nozzle Testing

No Vacuum

With Vacuum

Developing a
New Product
Computer
Simulation of
Particle Flow and
Pressure
Distribution at
the Exit of the
Nozzle.

Developing a New Product

Product Concept was for a new Nozzle
That Used a Vacuum Port to Control
Powder Spread
Government
Funding
was Used IRAP
Computer
Simulation Study &
2D model Study
Showed Idea
Worked.
US Patent Has Been
Issued.
Nozzle will be
Integrated With a
Variable Spot Size
Laser Beam

Developing a New Product

Variable Spot Size Optics

Custom Optics

Commercial Product

The Next Stage in This Project is to

Combine the New Nozzle with Variable
Spot Size Optics.

Developing a New Product

Applications of a New Material

To Self Limiting Heating Applications

The New Plastic Formulation is a Conductor
that has its Resistance Increase as it Heats up
Thereby Limiting its Upper Temperature
This Material Is Injection Mouldable
The Company in Question Has a License to
Use the Material
The Company is a Seat Heater Manufacturer
New Product Existing Market

Developing a New Product

6 Provisional US Patent Applications
Were Filed for Various Products
Including Heated Steering Wheel.

Developing a New Product

Sensor Evolution Goal Cost Reduction
Existing Product Existing Market

From Generation I to Generation III

Manufacturing Cost Reduced from $5,000
to $800 No Performance Impact!
Continuous Improvement in Action!

Developing a New Product

Car Body Being
Measured in VigoSpain.
Two Competitors
Share Market
50/50.
Technological
Improvements
Were Continually
Carried out By
Both Companies.
Annual In-Line
Vision Gaging
Sales $20M to

Developing a New Product

Skate Sharpening Project Consumer
Product
Company Manufactured Professional
Skate Sharpening Equipment
Wanted to Make a Consumer Skate
Sharpening System Issues: Cost
(<$1000), Ease of Use (Wheel
Dressing Too Complicated)
New Product - Existing Market
Government R&D Funding Used - IRAP

Developing a New Product

Original Concept for Wheel Dressing
Failed!
Modified Concept Worked so Well that
it is Now Retrofitted to all Company
Products!
4 US Patents Have Been Granted, 2
more in the Pending File, 2 Canadian
Patents Pending
Two Whole New Shapes Invented: The
FBV, and the A-Trap
Competition is Playing Catch-Up and is

Developing a New Product

Traditional
Circular Arc

FBV

A-Trap

Two New Shapes Have Been

Developed to Replace the Traditional
Circular Arc

Developing a New Product

Black Stone X-02

Consumer
Portable Ice
Skate Sharpener

Spinner
Magazine In Use

Developing a New Product

Programmable Airfoil Contouring
System- PACS
New Product New Market
Only 8 Systems Were Ever Sold
High Price Tag $300K
Traditional CMMs Large
Entrenched Companies
Development Cost Never
Recovered

Developing a New Product

D Sight
This is a Technique for Visualizing
Surface Defects
New Product New Market
This Was a True Inspirational Discovery
3 US Patents, A Canadian Patent, A Euro
Patent
Euro Patent was Contested by Siemens
Based on Prior Art. Siemens Lost Their
Objection.

Developing a New Product

Total Sales Volume - $8M.

The Audit
Station Was
Developed for
the Auto
Industry 45
Units Were Sold.
A Less Capable
Portable System
was Also
Developed 40
Units Sold. A
Specialized Unit
was Developed
for the Plastics
Industry to do
Test Plaques. An
even more
Specialized Unit
DIAS was

Developing a New Product

D Sight
Images of the
Sides of two
Diferent Cars.
This Tool Was
Very Useful in
Die Try-Out
Prior to
Acceptance by
the Customer.
The Ultimate
Goal was to
Convert the
Image into
Surface
Dimensions.
This Goal was
Never Really
Achieved.

Developing a New Product

Two Pertinent Sayings for

Product Development
Programs:
Plan Your Work & Work Your
Plan.
OTooles Commentary:
Murphy was an Optimist.

Developing a New Product

Any Questions?