Improved New Product Development Process for Howden Joinery - Case Study Example

To keep pace with the today's dynamic global market, companies must introduce new products in line with the changing s lifestyles, demand and tastes. These can be realized through customer's relation study. Most companies are concentrating on developing its products and promoting the sales of these products to realize the highest sales volumes. The main purpose of this report is to come up with suggestions on modern and improved new product development process for Howden Joinery. Howden Joinery is a company that supplies small builders with kitchen; it has over two hundred depots. The kitchens are installed by the builders. The report also aims at ensuring that Howden Joinery identifies problems facing it thus becoming very innovative a thing that will ensure that old customers are retained with new customers joining the company. The study looks at the basic fundamental in new product development. For the implementation of a good and improved new product development process the report offers the main elements which include; anchoring the innovative process with top management in the company, splitting the innovation process in two distinct part assigning responsibilities to each, establishing a link between technological and business strategy, developing communication of the strategy to all employees in the company, corporate marketing, among others. Company's New Product/Service Development Process New product development (NPD) attempts to describe the whole process that involves bringing a new service or product in the market. (Ulrich and Eppinger, 2004) The new product development process involves; Generating an idea, designing a product and detail engineering Market research and analysis Most companies will view new product development as the most important stage in producing and marketing its products within the entire life cycle management process used in the market share expansion and growth. Ulrich and Eppinger (2004) argues that new products occur in various categories with some being new to the company , others are new to the market while others create new markets. Some concepts in new product process are slight modifications of those in existence when contrasted against a different measure; however some new product development processes are purely inventions from the companies. These new product development processes are; Idea Screening Howden Joinery should carry out idea screening with an aim of doing away with those ideas that are not worthwhile. This will save the company from allocating resources to such concepts. The company should evaluate whether its customers will benefit from the given product, this they can do by conducting a thorough research on the customer's tastes and references. (Ulrich and Eppinger, 2004) The company should assess the technical feasibility in the manufacturing of a given product. Here Howden Joinery will need to know the raw materials needed in production, their availability, and the cost of buying, transporting and processing. After which they will assess the marketability of the product. Lastly, the screeners should carry out a research as to whether their product will earn them some profit; this will incorporate the total cost of production labour and the selling price for the manufactured product. In evaluating the existing process it is important for the company to perform an Evaluation of the current development process. (Michael, 2004) Such an evaluation may touch on specific areas that need improvement. Examination can be in terms of both the performance and means applied. Howden joinery will discover the unemployed activities, streamlining opportunities and executing ones in order to trim down the general time of the cycle (Michael, 2004) Business Analysis According to Michael, (2004) Howden Joinery should carry out a business analysis so as to help in knowing the financial position of the business. This can be done through estimating the likely price tag of its products based upon the feedback from the customers and the prevailing market competition created by other companies. Estimating the expected sales volumes with reference to the market size and the scope of business operation lastly the company should estimate the expected returns and also the breakeven point. Idea Generation Howden Joinery should consider obtaining from its customers some ideas for new products. This can be done through involving the users in suggesting and making decisions on new products creation. It should also involve their employees particularly the sales people, organising for trade shows and exhibitions, comparing themselves with the competitors so as to run new developments, the focus groups, engaging the services of business spies, open innovation policies and information from its department for resource and development. Some discovery methods for example, Ethnographic can be very resourceful in coming up with good ideas relating to various product lines. (Michael, 2004) Lastly, Howden Joinery can apply formal technique in idea generating these will include; problem analysis, brainstorming, forced relationships and morphological analysis. Market and Beta Testing Market and beta testing will involve the production of a physical trial product to be tested in the diverse market under the typical situations of usage. Howden Joinery should conduct customer interviews on various focus groups and consider introducing trade show events so as to help in making the necessary adjustment to come up with high quality product. (Michael, 2004) The company should then conduct a market test over a given area so as to determine it's acceptance by the customers. This will mark as the initial product's run of. Concept Development and Testing Lehmann and Russell (2004) suggest that, Howden Joinery should come up with a developed marketing strategy for its new products. These will include identifying the target market and decision makers in the whole process of purchasing. The company should know the product features to incorporate in its new products and the associated benefits emanating from the new products. These benefits should be for both the customers i.e. in terms of usage and for the company itself in terms if profits realized from its sale. Concept development and testing will involve testing the consumers reaction to the new product, if the reactions are positive the company can go ahead and produce the product otherwise, the company should do away with the new product and invent another that suit the customer needs (Lehmann and Russell ,2004) This process will also involve the assessment of the most cost effective method to be used in the production of the new product. This will include coming up with suggestions that will minimise costs of the raw materials, manufacturing and the entire production costs. The process will help in carrying out a computer aided feasibility study on the requirements in producing the new product. The process will incorporate evaluation of the whole concept by a group of customers their views regarding the new product idea. Technical Implementation Technical implementation will involve initiating a new program to be used in line with the new product development process Howden Joinery should carry out the resource estimation to know the required resources in developing a new product so as to know the viability of the project. It should also have the necessary requirements in the publication; operations planning that are of engineering in nature and scheduling it's departments in away that will allow a free flow of operations. Howden Joinery should collaborate with various Suppliers for the technical implementation of the process, should adopt a publication for the resource planning, reviewing and monitoring of programs and the incorporation of contingencies. In designing the new process the company's team behind the process should come up with flexible and a logical workflow process which will be in line with the companies technological level, markets of the products and the general products in the company. This will help in determining on how to involve the suppliers and customers in the technological, operational, marketing and manufacturing processes. (Lehmann and Russell 2004) Commercialization Smith and Reinertsen, (1998) views commercialization as a post new product development, it involves organised product launching to help in creating awareness of the new product to the customers to be. The launch should be held in the region that has a bigger population of the target group of the future potential customers. Howden Joinery should further the awareness campaign by placing and producing advertisements and other promotions on strategic points near customers reach. The company should consider filling the distribution channel with new products putting more emphasis on essential path analysis. (Smith and Reinertsen, 1998) Protecting New Products Howden Joinery should have provisions for the legal questions when developing new products. It should know how to guide its own innovations by protecting it from the imitators who will produce products that are similar to theirs. This will involve thorough knowledge as to whether the innovations can be protected under the legal framework, the time frame that the protection can take and the total cost involved in the protection process. (Ulrich and Eppinger, 2004) However, various legal concepts can fit and apply in any invention, creativity work, process or product. These include logos, trademarks trade secrets and patents a thing that complicates the entire legal framework though it varies from one authority to the next. Fuzzy Front End The Fuzzy Front End as defined by Ulrich and Eppinger (2004) is the disorganized period in the new product development processes. It is in the front end where Howden Joinery will devise a concept of the product to be developed and will decide on investing resources in the further development of an idea or at the same time do away with the idea. This is a stage of considering a product and judging when ready to enter the new development process. The company's approving and starting formal development of the concepts helps in ending the fuzzy front end. Though not expensive Fuzzy Front End consumes fifty percent of the time taken in new product development process. This will involve the five different front end elements which include; Opportunity Identification, Opportunity Analysis, idea Genesis, Idea Selection and Concept & Technology Development Measuring the Success of the New Product/Service Process To measure the success of new product development process Howden Joinery should use the historical data comparing the past with today's effectiveness, the later should be easy to comprehend and apply recording high effectiveness. Conclusion By applying the above suggested recommendations Howden Joinery will move a step ahead in its new product/ service development process. Incorporating suppliers and customers as suggested I the report will keep the company ahead of others in terms of quality products and services. References Kahn, Kenneth B. (2004); PDMA Handbook of New Product Development, Second Edition, New York, John Wiley Lehman, R. and Russell S. (2004); Product Management, 4 edition, New York, McGraw-Hill/Irwin Michael, E. (2004); Next Generation Product Development: How to Increase Productivity, Cut Costs, and Reduce Cycle Times, New York, McGraw-Hill Smith, G. and Reinertsen, G. (1998); Developing Products in Half the Time, 2nd Edition, New York, John Wiley and Sons Ulrich, T. and Eppinger, D (2004); Product Design and Development, 3rd Edition, New York, McGraw-Hill Urban, G., Hauser, J. and Dholakia, N. (1987); Essentials of new product management, Englewood Cliffs, Prentice Hall Read More