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New product development processes within the UK medical device industry
1Department of Medical Engineering and Physics, King's College School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK.
Medical Engineering & Physics
|December 1, 1996
Summary
Design engineers in the UK medical device sector focus on small-scale, low-volume product development. Success hinges on addressing specific organizational and design process challenges, as formal procedures are infrequently used.
Area of Science:
- Engineering Management
- Medical Device Innovation
- Product Development
Background:
- The UK medical device industry is a significant sector with unique development challenges.
- New product development (NPD) processes in this industry require careful examination.
- Understanding design engineers' perspectives is crucial for improving NPD.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate UK medical device design engineers' perceptions of NPD.
- To identify key factors influencing the success of NPD in this sector.
- To analyze the prevalent types of design activities and procedural use.
Main Methods:
- An extensive survey was conducted among practising design engineers.
- Data collection focused on perceptions of NPD processes and activities.
- Analysis involved identifying common themes and reported challenges.
Main Results:
- The predominant design activity observed was small-scale development of low-volume products.
- Explicit formal procedures were rarely utilized in these small-scale developments.
- Respondents identified specific organizational and design process issues as critical for NPD success.
Conclusions:
- NPD in the UK medical device industry is characterized by small-scale, low-volume efforts.
- The effectiveness of NPD is significantly impacted by organizational and process-related factors.
- Future improvements should focus on enhancing these identified organizational and design process elements.