The consumer product development industry can be such a cutthroat playing field that rewards success only to industry players who are brave and innovative enough to challenge the norms. These mavericks have used emerging technologies, some of them were even yet to prove their mettle but already showed tremendous promise.
These groundbreaking technologies have made it possible to launch some of the century’s finest consumer products that have made the world so many times better. Even with the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic to the product development and manufacturing industry, the most fiercely driven manufacturing companies managed to stay afloat and actually make commendable strides in terms of their success in developing products amid a challenging situation.
Here’s a quick run-through of five of today’s game-changing product development technologies and techniques:
Prototyping and testing
Among the most effective techniques used by many product developers are prototyping and testing. These involved using machines and techniques that flesh out the details contained in a product’s blueprint or design.
For example, companies that offer prototype PCB assembly services can translate the product specifications from a client into a working model that the company’s research and development (R and D) team can then test as many times as needed. The results from these tests can then be fed back into the prototype maker for the necessary adjustments. This labor-intensive process may take as fast as a few days and as long as a few years, depending on the complexity of the design and the success of the tests done.
3D modeling device and software
The advancements in 3D modeling meant that for the first time, companies developing products could produce highly detailed and accurate models. Additionally, the availability of both 3d modeling machines and collaborative tools meant that products can be developed by different key players remotely. This set-up is perfect considering the current pandemic where face-to-face interactions are discouraged to prevent COVID-19 transmissions.
Moreover, these tools and techniques allow for a rapid product development phase that is perfect for applications where time is limited. During the height of the pandemic when ventilators were lacking, there was a start-up that developed in less than a month a model that is cheap to produce in large quantities. Thus, to say that 3D modeling technology saves lives is not overstating its capabilities.
Industrial IoT
The Internet of Things (IoT) technology is now deeply embedded in a lot of industries, including product manufacturing. This tech involves interconnected devices that essentially ‘talk’ to each other through the Internet, thus making collaborations effortless and processes easier, safer, and more productive.
Industrial IoT can be used in designing, planning, manufacturing, and servicing products, thus serving as a one-stop-shop type of solution to different manufacturing challenges. The typical devices and gadgets used in this tech include smartphones, smart glasses, and sensors. These manufacturing tools offer unmatched benefits and advantages to manufacturers who use them, thus making them among today’s top product manufacturing technologies.
Data analytics
Many of today’s highly successful manufacturing companies rely heavily on their data analytics capabilities. With the tools in place, these companies collect, analyze, and just generally make efficient and smart uses of the minefield of data that’s sitting in front of them.
The pieces of information generated from these data sets are carefully integrated into the company’s manufacturing processes, thus facilitating positive results from product conception to rollout. In short, it’s hard to expect a high level of success for any company that doesn’t exploit the potential benefits of consumer- and product-related data that they have.
Cloud computing technology
Cloud computing is by no means a recent tech innovation since it has been used by a lot of companies, government agencies, educational institutions, and private individuals. Cloud computing offers the freedom to access files from just about anywhere on any internet-connected electronic device such as laptops or smartphones. With this, collaborative efforts can be made in real-time without requiring all team players to be physically inside one room.
Among the biggest perks of using this ground-breaking technology in your business is having all your vital company data stored in cloud servers that don’t require pricey upkeep, unlike physical data storage facilities. Moreover, you can expect scalable operations, secure data, and 24/7 accessibility to all your needed manufacturing-related files. These benefits would guarantee successes in developing products that could well be the next big thing for consumers to spend their money on.
Truly, the products manufacturing business just got more serious and tech-driven. If you want to gain an advantage as a product manufacturer, then be sure to integrate all these technologies into your unique business model and processes.
