Building a product can involve several specialists. Designers shape its appearance, while engineers develop the parts, circuit boards and device software. Prototype shops and manufacturers then help build it. Each comes with their own contract, schedule and file formats, and you sit in the middle, passing files and questions between them.
Managed product design is the alternative. One partner coordinates the agreed design and engineering work, including manufacturing suppliers where required, so you have one point of contact.
Where the usual route goes wrong
Hardware projects can run into problems at the handover between disciplines. The enclosure is finished before the circuit board, so the ports don’t line up. The prototype shop builds what the drawings say, not what the designer meant. The manufacturer quotes a part that was never designed for their process. Every vendor did their job, yet the product is late and over budget, and it’s left to you to find out why.
Without anyone owning the whole build, you become its project manager by default.
What “managed” means
In a managed engagement, design, engineering, prototyping and manufacturing sit with one team that answers for the result. In practice, that gives you:
- One point of contact. You explain the product once, to the team coordinating the agreed stages.
- Disciplines that work together. Our designers and engineers work together on the parts, electronics, device software and controls. They check how each change affects the rest of the product.
- Agreed milestones and fees. We agree each stage’s deliverables and fee before it starts, and discuss changes to scope before proceeding.
- Suppliers handled for you. The team finds and manages the vendors for prototypes, pilot runs and production: the quotes, the files, the quality checks and the schedule.
How it works at TezRow
We work in three steps. First, you talk to us about your idea: why it matters to you, who will use it and how quickly you want to reach the market. Then we coordinate the agreed design, engineering, prototyping and supplier work. Finally, we hand over the agreed files and documentation, with ownership and any ongoing support set out in the project agreement.
The Sim4Stem driving simulator shows what this looks like. One team handled the mechanical design, a custom plug-and-play circuit board, the firmware, 3D printing, laser cutting and the assembly manual. The kit was designed and developed in Pakistan and is manufactured in the USA by trusted vendors.
Who it suits
Managed product design can suit founders without an in-house hardware team. It also helps established companies develop products alongside their daily work. One team coordinates the agreed stages for you.
In short
Managed product design gives you one point of contact across the agreed design, engineering and manufacturing stages. Have a product in mind? Tell us about it, and we’ll reply within two working days.
