PEZY launches Define: first clarity, then development

A market opportunity, a new technology or an idea that has been on the shelf for some time often creates a great deal of energy within an organisation. Teams are eager to get started and begin designing, developing and testing. Yet at that stage, the most important questions have often not been answered. Do customers really want this product? Can the critical function work? What may it cost? How will it be certified, and can a factory manufacture it reliably?

When those answers only emerge during development, changing course becomes increasingly difficult and expensive. That is why PEZY is launching PEZY Define: an approach that helps companies make a clear product decision first and then invest in development with focus.

From product opportunity to product decision

PEZY Define brings customer value, technical feasibility, costs, certification and production together from the outset. This allows assumptions to be tested early, risks to be made visible and decisions to be taken in line with the business case.

The aim is not to slow down good ideas, but to help organisations invest in the right ideas with greater confidence. By the end, it is clear which customer problem the product must solve, which functions have priority, whether the critical technology can work and what is needed to develop and manufacture the product. This provides a sound basis for deciding whether to continue development, change direction or stop in time.

Everything comes together in the Product Decision Pack

Separate studies and recommendations do not yet amount to a product decision. That is why all insights, choices and recommendations generated within Define are brought together in a single Product Decision Pack. It is not a report that disappears into a drawer afterwards, but a practical foundation for the development team, management and potential investors.

The Product Decision Pack contains:

• Validated customer insight: evidence of the problem the product solves and of what customers genuinely value.
• A clear product specification: well-defined priorities based on customer value, technical feasibility and costs.
• Proof that the critical function works: where necessary, the key technical assumption is tested early with a Proof of Principle.
• A target cost and business case: a realistic view of materials, components, assembly, tooling, volumes, margin and the investment required.
• A route to certification and production: clear choices regarding regulations, product architecture, manufacturability, assembly and suppliers.
• A development plan and a clear decision: a substantiated approach for the next phase, with a realistic scope, budget and schedule.

As a result, an organisation knows not only what can be made, but above all which product is worth the investment and what is required to bring that product successfully to market.

One Product Lead keeps everything together

During Define, a PEZY Product Lead works as part of the client’s team. The Product Lead does not take over product decisions, but ensures they can be made properly. Choices are prepared, dependencies are made visible and all disciplines involved continue to work from the same principles.

Depending on the questions surrounding the product, specialists in customer research, design, engineering, plastics, electronics, costing, certification and production are involved. They may be PEZY experts, specialists within the client’s organisation or external parties. The Product Lead ensures that their insights do not remain separate recommendations, but converge into one clear product direction.

The Product Lead also remains involved during Develop. This ensures that the principles established in Define continue to guide the designers, engineers and other specialists as they develop the product further.

Not just envisioning, but proving

From the outset, PEZY considers the complete product. Customer value and design are directly connected to technology, target cost, certification and production. Critical functions can be tested early, while production costs are investigated before the first factory quotation arrives. Decisions about materials, assembly and manufacturability are also made before changes become costly and time-consuming.

The Product Lead is supported by PEZY’s designers, engineers and production specialists, the Pilot Factory in Groningen and the team in Singapore. This combination of knowledge and practical experience makes it possible to go beyond a convincing product concept. PEZY helps companies prove that a product can work, can be manufactured reliably and fits the business case.

First understand, then invest

With Define, PEZY aims to make the first phase of product development clearer and more manageable. Fewer assumptions, fewer surprises during development and greater confidence in the decision to invest.

Because a good product does not start with the first drawing. It starts with understanding which problem you are solving, who you are making the product for and what is required to bring it successfully to market.

Do you see a market opportunity, but not all product questions have been answered yet? Discuss it with PEZY.

About PEZY

PEZY helps companies turn product ideas into reliable products that can be manufactured at scale. Since 1995, PEZY has brought together product strategy, industrial design, engineering, prototyping, industrialisation and production.

From the Netherlands and Singapore, PEZY guides products from their initial definition to reliable production in Europe and Asia. With a multidisciplinary team, its own Pilot Factory and an international production network, PEZY keeps design, technology and production connected from the outset.