Dear fellow startup entrepreneurs, hoping someone can point me in the right direction! I have been reading countless articles about going “from prototype to production” for hardware products, but they all cover such basic, high level topics.
What I haven’t been able to get details on is how to actually conduct the step of going from a working prototype (e.g. arduino, 3D printed parts, motors, etc) to optimized part selection for mass production (e.g. custom PCB with just the microcontroller, picking the right voltage converters, the wires, cheaper motors, etc.)…
I have a rough idea of steps such as Design for Manufacturing (DFM)/Injection molding/FCC Certifications/etc… but what I don’t get is how to go from off the shelf parts I’m getting off Amazon to better scalable and cost-effective versions for mass production?
My thought is that I should ideally have a pretty much final prototype of the final parts that will go into production before I pursue any sort of manufacturing.
Is that something I can do myself, or who do I look for with that sort of help?
If you know an industrial engineer in the field of special machine construction, talk to him. For us, this is part of everyday life. For all these parts, there are simply manufacturers and stores that you should know where such parts are ordered or made.
Not really complex, but you simply have to know these processes and companies.
Thank you! That’s helpful…by the way are industrial engineers usually a part of an industrial design firm, or are they separate?