02Concept
Concept design and feasibility for new products
Several ways to meet the specification, sketched and backed by calculations, compared on performance, cost and risk. You choose one with the reasons written down.
The first idea is rarely the best one, and the cheapest time to find out is before detail design starts. We sketch several concepts, size them with calculations and compare them against the specification.
Feasibility questions get answered here: whether it fits, whether it can be made at the target cost, and which parts carry the risk. Where an early analysis settles a question, such as whether a section is stiff enough or a component will run hot, it is done now, so the chosen concept stands on numbers.
What you leave with
- Concepts compared side by side
- Each option scored against the specification, with its main risks and likely cost to make.
- A recommended concept
- The option we would take forward, why, and what still needs proving in detail design.
Questions this stage answers
How many concepts should we look at?
Enough to cover different approaches to the problem. Variations on one idea count as one.
Can you develop a concept we already have?
Yes. We can test your concept against alternatives, or take it forward as it stands if it holds up.
When is a concept ready for detail design?
When it meets the specification on paper, the parts that carry the risk have been sized, and nothing important rests on a guess.
Can a concept be protected?
Mechanisms can be designed with patent eligibility in mind. The filing itself is for you and your patent attorney.
Case study
Over 15% lighter than the original designs, with no loss of durability.
A lighter line of high-end fishing reels
A client in the fishing equipment sector wanted a new reel line with patentable improvements that would also be easy to manufacture.
Guides for this stage
Discuss your project
