Finish Line Product Development Services offers product development services to help small companies reliably manufacture prototypes at a reasonable cost. They recommend: 1) conducting design verification testing with an independent engineering team to identify issues; 2) ensuring documentation is complete for manufacturing; and 3) doing field testing with customers to identify early issues that can be addressed before large-scale production. Finish Line has experience helping over 300 small companies through the prototype to production process.

1. Finish Line Product Development Services
A Better Way for Small Companies to Develop Products
Prototype to Production Process

2. The prototype is all done and it seems to work
well. Now, how do you get the prototype
manufactured reliably and at a reasonable cost?
If you’re like a lot of small companies, this is not
something you do all the time.
Finish Line has done more than one thousand
projects for more than 300 small companies and
we have learned a few things in the process.

3. *Do a Design Verification Test (DVT). Just turning
your prototype on and seeing the lights flash is not
good enough.
Each requirement (you did complete a
requirements document, didn’t you?) should be
verified through a test, inspection, or analysis.
Request Our Requirements Document Template

4. You should use an engineering team that did NOT
do the design to do the DVT because “group think”
often blinds the team from looking in the right
places.

5. *Make sure your documentation is in order.
Manufacturing can/should only do what is
documented—so called “drawing compliance.” If it
is important, it should be written down.
Don’t expect your CM to design the product for you.
If you’re in doubt about your documentation, call us
and we will be happy to review it for you.

6. *Do some field testing. Show it to customers, let
them use it to run it through its paces in an as real
world environment as possible. We are always
amazed at the learning that comes from early field
trials, and the earlier this happens, the sooner these
issues can be resolved

7. Choose the right CM. There are lots of great CMs
out there, but that does not mean they would be
great for this product. Do your due diligence and
understand what makes a good partner for you.
This will be a long-term relationship that each side
will have to make an investment in.

8. *Do not ignore red flags. Any failure, issue, oddity, etc.,
should be fully vetted in the early stage of product
launch. Find the root cause of failure and implement
corrective action before you go any further.
working prototype is a great first step, but it takes
careful planning and a lot of work before your
prototype turns into a product that can be
manufactured successfully.

9. Finish Line PDS 94 River
Road Hudson, NH 03051
info@finishlinepds.com
Tel: 603-880-8484
BTW, if you find yourselves being pulled into
the next project before you have time to
finish this one, give us a call—we can help.

10. Our White Papers
• Top 10 Reasons Why Product Development Projects Fail
• Invention Versus Engineering
• Keys to Successful Product Development
• What Every Contract Manufacturer Should Know About
Product Development
• Why Product Development is Different in a Lean Start-up
• Product Development in a Small Company
• https://www.finishlinepds.com/resources/whitepapers/

11. Thank you!