• by Ananth Satluri

Product Design for Future

New product development in business and engineering refers to the entire process of bringing a new product to market, updating an old product, or introducing a product into a new market. The nature of product design is rapidly changing with each passing season and your customers expect new and better more sophisticated customized products from your company. On the other hand, supply chains that have been disrupted will require alternative sources for the materials you will need to use to design your products.
 

Today, manufacturers are expected to capitalize on agility and minimize waste in the designing and manufacturing of their new products. This means that the overall concept of "product design" will always keep changing.
 

Additionally, as technology evolves, businesses must adapt their product designs to stay current and competitive. In this blog, get a real understanding of what product design for the future looks like with a case study.

What Did Design Look Like in The Past, And How Has This Transformed? 

The concept of design was heavily influenced by human experience and creativity. However, recent technological advancements have enabled technology and innovation to play a more central role in the current and expected future product design.

Using technology in product design requires the valuable input of consumer insight. Customer feedback can shape the product design process and significantly impact the final product. However, challenges may arise in getting feedback that is very current and highly relevant to a particular product.

Fortunately, and thanks to the advanced natural language processing (NLP) and knowledge graph-driven techniques, designers have been given the ability to capture the most relevant customer feedback with accuracies and data. The designers can also get real-time feedback from existing products. The implication is that this insight can be used as the basis for future product designs as well.

The Automotive Industry Is the Perfect Example!  

A quick look at the auto industry shows you just how technology and innovation are vital in the whole process of product design. It is common knowledge that most car buyers today are in love with the idea of having their vehicles customized according to their preferences. However, a lot of caution needs to be observed in ensuring that when these vehicles are customized, they will still meet the recommended safety standards and can offer the stated performance.

One of the best "tools" to emerge in the market and has made striking this balance a reality is an artificial intelligence (AI). Artificial intelligence (AI), supports generative product design that helps designers develop vehicle parts that are going to be regarded as both personalization and functionality. AI has also made it possible to manufacture vehicle parts optimized for weight and strength. In addition, AI has proven to be a precious tool that drives small-batch manufacturing through automation. It is a key tool for product design for the future.

How Are Emerging Technologies Disrupting the Product Design Lifecycle?

Product Design In Manufacturing

With the world changing rapidly due to innovation and technology, fresh approaches to manufacturing need to be embraced. Today, product design heavily combines the latest technological trends with new manufacturing concepts. The seamless fusion of innovation reduces the design cycle, and user experience forms the basis of modern product design.
 

The product design itself is heavily dependent on the latest manufacturing methods. These have lowered the production of smaller batches of a wide variety of products.

Emerging technologies have allowed the smooth transition from dependence on economies of scale and mass production to more efficient and highly personalized manufacturing processes. The integration of personalization into the manufacturing of products will enable new products to easily fit into our current lifestyles.

The Evolution of Product Design Is Set to Continue.

Product design involves a lot of research (R&D) cycles that require designers' expertise. However, the constant evolution of product design and its associated processes has made it possible for many more people to hop onto the design bandwagon!

Even an entrepreneur with an idea related to their area of interest can significantly contribute to product designs. For example, a mother who has seen the "cons" of the design of their baby bottles can give their "two cents" in the form of customer reviews and hope that future improvement are made. They may have come across details illustrating how plastic baby bottles can be detrimental to their baby's health and therefore proposed a new baby bottle made from different materials such as glass.  

In Software Systems

Today, product design processes increasingly incorporate the beneficial features of software systems for design. These systems come with impressive agility, flexibility, and speed. Back in the day, software systems for design and engineering were entirely closed, limiting the sharing ability across big teams. Even more significant, it discouraged sharing across the industry. Today, however, the sharing of mechanical and electrical designs implies that such elements are accessible to everyone wishing to engage in the design and manufacturing of products.

In addition, the shift to cloud-based software has accelerated product design significantly. One example is the use of CAD software for product design. Some years ago, this software presented challenges and barriers to entry for potential designers and startups because it was costly. However, the new generation of CAD software in the cloud has made product design and engineering more viable.

In light of the emerging and ever-changing trends related to product design, it is safe to say that product design in the future will involve the input of a variety of stakeholders. With AI driving these changes, product design is set to become even more dynamic.

Final Take Away

Immersive experiences and intelligent tools such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and others will play a significant role in product design in the future. To stay ahead of the competition, businesses need to be thinking about what products will be popular in the future and design them accordingly. At Assay, our experts on product development can assist you to improve your product design process. To discuss your innovation, call or contact us on the form below.