- This is an actual ●●●RAPID® development process case study from more than a decade ago. Shown below is the best selling table-top device of that era used to mix dental impression materials. The client wanted a small hand-held version of this device.
Previously, the client had hired another firm who developed a device that performed very poorly compared to the table-top unit. It was slow, noisy, and left voids in the mixed material. So it was unusable by a dentist. That is when the client came to us. We proposed developing just an Engineering Unit and the client agreed.
Shown above is our Engineering Unit which we built very quickly using many off-the-shelf components. At this early phase, we showed mastery of the technology. The Engineering Unit mixed very well, did it fast and was almost whisper quiet. Its performance equalled and exceeded the table-top unit. The client was ecstatic and commissioned the next phase - Demo Unit.
Why did the other firm get such poor results? Partly because they used a carpenter's drill as a design model and went straight to detailed design of a production unit. We performed the analysis first. We used a simulation model of the entire device and all of its operating parameters. We tested our model at each sprint and revised it if needed. We knew what our device's performance would be long before we reached the finish line.
Shown above is our Demo Unit. It was small and handheld and still used some off-the-shelf components. Like the Engineering Unit it too mixed very well, did it fast and was almost whisper quiet.
Shown above is our Production Unit. It was user friendly with a display, sensors and error detection. It was also styled for customer use.
Shown above is our Production Unit being used in a clinical test.