New product ideas are beautiful but fragile creatures – the brutal realities of developing them into commercial products mean that most ideas never make it.
The difficulties and expense of producing physical prototypes can make it financially prohibitive to take an idea forward. At the same time, investors will often be reluctant to back the development of your product without getting a clear idea of how it will look and function.
Design can be the key to turning a concept into a successful reality. It can also help to attract investors at the vital early stages by giving them a virtual version of your product. Researching potential markets and using computer-aided design (CAD) technology to visualise and guide development are often fundamental to a new product’s early success.
Andrew Lang was sure he was onto a winner with his innovative new concept for home bicycle storage. As an experienced designer, however, he knew how important a coherent design-to-manufacture strategy was if his brainchild was going to become a viable commercial product.
Like many city cyclists, Lang was faced with the problem of storing his bike inside his flat. Frustrated that no appropriate commercial solution existed, he set about devising his own. His eureka moment arrived when he realised a universal wall mounting could be created from a relative simple form. His first improvised prototype – a polystyrene cup and a pencil – was enough to convince him it would work, but he knew there was a long way to go.
By committing to an end-to-end CAD-based design strategy at an early stage, Lang was able to progress smoothly from concept sketches through detailed design to manufacturing drawings. The central CAD model was used for engineering analysis, visualisation and prototyping, all of which, in turn, informed the evolving design. The resulting product, the Cycloc was completed within Lang’s tight self-imposed deadline. Since its recent launch, it has picked up several prestigious design awards.
The latest design technology offers opportunities for you, your customers and your investors to see and use your concept products in a virtual space, long before they exist in the real world. Building virtual models of your existing products can also be a useful way for potential customers to explore them online.