Description
Designing products, including prototyping and test manufacture or making one-off products
Major variations
Designing and making one-off/custom products, versus developing a product that is to be made repeatedly. Consumer products versus industrial products such as designing a machine.
Potential impacts
- Solving problems that need a bespoke solution
- Designing products to be manufactured locally will have long term economic benefits
- Promoting local culture and industry by making all kinds of one-off items like film sets, parade floats
- Supporting local employment including skilled trades
Advantages
- This work is often well suited to those who enjoy makerspaces – it is creative, involves prototyping and technical problem solving
Challenges
- Demand can be unpredictable, making it difficult to build a sustainable business around it.
- May require a large range of skills & expertise (which is why it can usefully be combined with something like XXX, allowing you to draw on skills available in your community)
- Project management and business skills are needed to ensure products can be delivered on time, to budget, and with a profit being made.
Business model canvas
Key partners
- Suppliers of materials & components
- Open source hardware & software communities
- Local events, forums, and industry associations
- Other organisations doing product development – you may join forces or sub-contract each other
Key activities
- Product design
- Prototyping
- Design for manufacture
- Advertising / Sales
Key resources
- Creativity
- Technical expertise
- Machines & equipment for prototyping or manufacture
Value propositions
- Creative or unique solutions
- Convenience of being able to bring multiple skill sets together to create an output
- Delivery speed may often be a concern
- You may be able to develop expertise in a particular area e.g. in making a certain type of machinery
Customer relationships
- Long term relationships which likely involve a degree of co-creation
Channels
- Build relationships with those in the communities you are targeting
- Publicise examples and case studies of your previous work
Customer segments
- People who want help to design a product for large scale production
- Those who want one-off creations such as film sets, parade floats, or artworks
- Organizations that have a particular problem that needs a bespoke solution
Cost structure
- Time
- Materials & components
- Machine usage
- Space where work is done
Revenue streams
- Fixed fee for a project (or for the product you make)
- Time & materials fees (charging for the time you spend and other costs incurred)
- Revenue sharing agreements for products that are to be manufactured in bulk
Complementary models
Creating shared access to a community and/or other assets (space and equipment)
