Product design and Manufacture
Discussion
Guys
I have an idea for a product.
So what do I need to go and get it made? Its nothing spectacular, just pretty basic to be honest.
Do I need to see a dsign consultant? Any idea of costs?
After they have created a prototype or whatever I then suppose I need to take it to a factory to get the product made. Presumably China or somewhere else cheap..
I imagine design companies have these links anyway...?
Can anyone recommend a decest design company in the South of England?
I have an idea for a product.
So what do I need to go and get it made? Its nothing spectacular, just pretty basic to be honest.
Do I need to see a dsign consultant? Any idea of costs?
After they have created a prototype or whatever I then suppose I need to take it to a factory to get the product made. Presumably China or somewhere else cheap..
I imagine design companies have these links anyway...?
Can anyone recommend a decest design company in the South of England?
You need to see a patent solicitor before you speak to anyone or you could have your idea ripped from under your feet.
You need to think long and hard about it, is it really a good product? Rose tinted glasses could cost you everything mate.
A design consultant will get you a prototype made and will be able to advise you of changes to make to keep manufacturing costs down.
If your going to go into manufacturing, the consultant can also put you in touch with the best person for the job. Its a new product so your going to have to buy in bulk, if you can get orders off your prototype, show these orders to your bank and they can issue a letter of credit but its hard to get orders nowadays from prototypes they all want to see a proven track record of sales.
The quicker your product takes off the more working capitol your going to need, this is where most good products fail, its not that they are crap they just cant meat demand quick enough and it fizzles out.
Be careful and try and see your product for what it is, as your probably going to venture in one of the highest risk businesses. It does pay the best though, but for every good idea there's a million bad ones. Not saying yours is crap just trying to get you to have a good look at your product so you dont get stung.
I cant give you an idea of costs without knowing what your product is, you might think its finished but a design consultant will want to optimise profit for you and retailers so he might want you to make a lot of changes.
You need to think long and hard about it, is it really a good product? Rose tinted glasses could cost you everything mate.
A design consultant will get you a prototype made and will be able to advise you of changes to make to keep manufacturing costs down.
If your going to go into manufacturing, the consultant can also put you in touch with the best person for the job. Its a new product so your going to have to buy in bulk, if you can get orders off your prototype, show these orders to your bank and they can issue a letter of credit but its hard to get orders nowadays from prototypes they all want to see a proven track record of sales.
The quicker your product takes off the more working capitol your going to need, this is where most good products fail, its not that they are crap they just cant meat demand quick enough and it fizzles out.
Be careful and try and see your product for what it is, as your probably going to venture in one of the highest risk businesses. It does pay the best though, but for every good idea there's a million bad ones. Not saying yours is crap just trying to get you to have a good look at your product so you dont get stung.
I cant give you an idea of costs without knowing what your product is, you might think its finished but a design consultant will want to optimise profit for you and retailers so he might want you to make a lot of changes.
well 300 of most things 'simple from china' would be about 90% the cost of 10,000 of the same, assuming you are talking plastic injection moulded something-or-other
The setup costs are huge, unit costs tiny. It REALLY depends on what the product is, but I Can't see 300 being a china affair really when just starting out.
Do you know the material it will be made from / what process will be required?
I'll go out on a limb here. Do you expect to make more than £1million off the idea? If not, forget patenting, it would be a waste of time, IMO. WAAAAY expesnive, and if you have a good product, at a good price, even if someone does rip you off you'll still be able to sell if you get cust service / website rigth
The setup costs are huge, unit costs tiny. It REALLY depends on what the product is, but I Can't see 300 being a china affair really when just starting out.
Do you know the material it will be made from / what process will be required?
I'll go out on a limb here. Do you expect to make more than £1million off the idea? If not, forget patenting, it would be a waste of time, IMO. WAAAAY expesnive, and if you have a good product, at a good price, even if someone does rip you off you'll still be able to sell if you get cust service / website rigth
So a couple of plastic parts?
At 300 of, I'd have thought CNC would be best, although, even if the parts are simple you'll be paying £10 for 2 parts in that volume - you'd then need to probably hand polish and package etc.etc.
If you require injection moulding to make them, then to pay someone to set the tooling up would normally be around 3K or so a part, assuming it's simple. So you'd best make no mistakes in your design!
At 300 of, I'd have thought CNC would be best, although, even if the parts are simple you'll be paying £10 for 2 parts in that volume - you'd then need to probably hand polish and package etc.etc.
If you require injection moulding to make them, then to pay someone to set the tooling up would normally be around 3K or so a part, assuming it's simple. So you'd best make no mistakes in your design!
LeeThePeople said:
You need to see a patent solicitor before you speak to anyone or you could have your idea ripped from under your feet.
Unless you have to use a patent then don't. Patents are the most awkward and tricky ways to protect your IP and often fail to do this. The vast majority of patents filed fall into two categories:- Those filed by companies just to put stumbling blocks in the path of competitors
- Those filed by inventors who find that the patent wasn't worth it
Consider cheaper and easier to defend alternatives such as:
- Registered design
- Trademark (some aspect of the design)
If possible just keep some critical aspect a secret. This is the way Coke does it, a secret recipe with no other protection.
Even if there is no possibility of a secret process then just making something immediately stops any competitor from patenting your invention as it is in the public domain. You will be first to market and your brand may become a generic name for the product (how many people call a vacuum cleaner a "Hoover" even when it isn't a Hoover product?). By the time others catch on you will be well on the way to version two which you may then have the funds to surround by a ring of awkwrd patents.
A risk? Yes. But so is depending on a patent at the start.
I've just done this with a product that launches in the USA this month and launches in UK at the NEC on 15 May. Product is landing in both countries now.
300 is very low volume, most factories in China will need runs of 10,000 or more to enable them to source materials at the right price point, and to even be interested.
A good design consultancy can help with a lot of the things you need, they will design in profit and process. I saw three and settled on one. Like all agencies they need a lot of managing and you need to be hands on.
A patent attourney is essential if you have a novel product - if you are making something they are also there to check that you're not infringing someone else's patent, that would cost you dearly.
There are a couple of low cost stages that you can go through to check and/or protect your idea - less than 6K - but then you will have to file specific patenets in key countries. This should not hold you up. Copywrite and other protection is up to you and a relatively low cost, with relatively low protection.
Tooling is expensive and you will have to ensure that your factory will source and use specific materials (depending on what the product is for) and you will need a local laboratory to ensure that this compliance is adhered to, especially for USA.
Oh and don't forget packaging, barcodes, insurance, shipping, pricing, advertising, promotion, distribution.
As someone said earlier cash is the issue at all stages. It will have taken me exactly two years from idea to shelf.
I have loved eveymoment of doing this, but you do have to be prepared to invest heavily in both money and time.
300 is very low volume, most factories in China will need runs of 10,000 or more to enable them to source materials at the right price point, and to even be interested.
A good design consultancy can help with a lot of the things you need, they will design in profit and process. I saw three and settled on one. Like all agencies they need a lot of managing and you need to be hands on.
A patent attourney is essential if you have a novel product - if you are making something they are also there to check that you're not infringing someone else's patent, that would cost you dearly.
There are a couple of low cost stages that you can go through to check and/or protect your idea - less than 6K - but then you will have to file specific patenets in key countries. This should not hold you up. Copywrite and other protection is up to you and a relatively low cost, with relatively low protection.
Tooling is expensive and you will have to ensure that your factory will source and use specific materials (depending on what the product is for) and you will need a local laboratory to ensure that this compliance is adhered to, especially for USA.
Oh and don't forget packaging, barcodes, insurance, shipping, pricing, advertising, promotion, distribution.
As someone said earlier cash is the issue at all stages. It will have taken me exactly two years from idea to shelf.
I have loved eveymoment of doing this, but you do have to be prepared to invest heavily in both money and time.
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