Convert your idea to a product

Figuring out how to convert an idea or invention to a real manufactured product can be daunting. You might ask yourself, “is this possible?”, “how do I design this?”, “how much will it cost to manufacture?”, or “does this product already exist?”…

Before you do anything, do a quick Google and Amazon search, using keywords to describe your invention or new product. Discover if this is really a new idea or if it is already a crowded market. The last thing you want is no return on your investment because too many comparable products already exist.

But let’s say you find no obvious competitors. Now you need to know if your new idea is financially viable. You need to confidently predict a future return on investment, because creating something new and designing it to a point where it can be manufactured is not something cheap.

Considering potential design costs

We often get asked – ‘how much does it cost to design a product ready for manufacture?” And the answer is always, “it depends”. Once you include all the aspects of 3D design, prototyping, tooling, and manufacturing assembly, costs can quickly grow to a few tens of thousands of pounds or more – depending on what you want to design. However, here’s a quick overview of the steps involved in taking your idea from a thought in your head or a rough drawing or model – to a fully costed and designed product, ready for manufacture:

Design project process

We’re committed to successful outcomes for all our projects and all our customers. Which means thorough planning and research at the outset, because smaller sums of money spent now avoid the risk of huge wasted investment further down the line. And we don’t start any design planning until we’re sure your product has the best chance of commercial success.

Here’a sample process we follow:

1. Competitor research

Depending on how complicated your product is, it can take several days to try to find your competitors, understand the market and try to find similar products.

2. Product research

• Does this new product fulfil the needs of the target market?
• Is this invention right for the moment?

3. Production research

• How can we make the product cost effective enough to maximize profits without losing quality?
• Is the return on investment good enough to pay back quickly?

4. Marketing research

• Who is the end user?
• Why do they need this product?
• How will the market receive it?
• Is it fit for purpose?

Product design process

Once we have answered all these questions positively, then we would start designing in CAD (computer aided design).

• We’d produce a 3D model of your product following the specifications and requirements you gave us.
• We would take into account the end user experience, how they will interface with the product, how easy is it to use, whether the manufacturing and material chosen are appropriate to meet specifications and the quality required.
• We would then meet with you to check the design and make sure you are happy with it; we would explain and review all aspects of the product. Only you can say if it is satisfactory and hits the spot.
• A new 3D model would be produced that would be fit for the manufacturing processes chosen, based on the strength, quality and finish required from the product.

These steps are basic and more could be added, if required, such as simulation, cost estimation, prototyping and so on.

Product design costs

Now you have seen the steps of the design, let’s consider the cost:

We usually charge around £400 to £500 a day, but that doesn’t really mean anything if you don’t know how much we can deliver in a day’s work, so let us look at some examples:

• If you take a quite simple product like the CouchCoaster designed by D2M, the cost of the design was circa £15,000 for the design of the product. This was from the initial idea to something that could be manufactured, including some prototypes.
• At the other end of the cost spectrum, a pipeline flow meter that we designed for one of our clients, was more around the £150,000 mark. The design was more complex, and the project included the management of suppliers, prototyping, and some testing.

The cost can vary greatly based on a few factors:

• Complexity
• Support required
• Specifications required
• Product market

Therefore, when we get asked “how much would it cost to design my product?”, there is no easy answer.

I hope we managed to give you an idea on how the costing works when designing a new product. If you want to find out the actual cost to design your product, contact us for a free consultation and we can help you convert your concept to reality.