To get your product mass produced efficiently, you really need to hire for engineering design. Finding the right engineer to design for functionality, ergonomics, look and feel, manufacturing, and assembly will not be easy. There are a lot of factors to consider. You might get lucky and find one person or firm who can do it all, but sometimes you need to hire a different engineer for each step. Here is a guide to help you through the hiring process.

Before You Start Looking for Engineering Design

We have interviewed some top engineers in the product development sphere, like Eric Haddad of Dimensional Fidelity and Nate Deschaine of Dragon Innovation, and they have given us some great information on how to work with them for the best results. Starting out on the right foot will help ensure a successful process. Here are your first assignments:

1. Prepare a basic NDA (nondisclosure agreement) to be signed by anyone who will be working on your product idea.
2. Have clear specifications of what your product is and what it should do.
3. Do some initial market research. Is this even worth pursuing? You can get more info and templates here on simple market research. (Link to market research articles on our blog here).
4. Prepare some basic sketches of your product that show how you think it should look and behave. These sketches should have some rough dimensions.
5. Take initiative: Join an inventors group, talk to manufacturers, and learn about possible methods for making your product.
6. Face the brutal facts: Learn and think clearly about what it will cost in both time and money to develop and manufacture this product. If there is a possible market, you might be able to find funding if you can’t fund it yourself.
7. Draw up a rough bill of materials, aka a BOM: Assemble a list of the materials you think your product will require. If you don’t know, start with a guess and then research and polish.
8. Draw up a rough product requirements document, aka a PRD: This could be as simple as “must be waterproof in up to 5 feet of water”; “must resist salt, water, and rust”; “must withstand up to 150 degrees of heat”; or “must be microwave safe.”
9. Think of yourself not as an inventor or product developer but as an artist. Artists never draw, sculpt, paint or film a movie all in one shot. They employ a continual process of doing and refining, again and again. Show possible engineers that you understand this and give them a head start. The clearer they are on what you want your product to do the better it will be.

What to Look for in a Design Engineer

An industrial designer and an engineer do not do the same thing. An industrial designer defines the usability and the look and feel of a product. An engineer defines how it is made to meet the product requirements. Depending on the market and complexity of your product, you might find engineers who can do both and who can even design for the specific manufacturing process you’ll need for your product to be made. Many design and engineering firms will have both industrial designers and mechanical engineers.  Just keep in mind that these are separate processes, and you may be frustrated in the future to find you need a design engineer, a mechanical engineer, and a specialist in a specific manufacturing process. We know a few all-in-one engineers and firms, but they are the exception, not the rule.

Below is a checklist of factors to consider and a list of questions to ask prospective design engineers. We’ve also created this list as an editable PDF file that you can take with you and fill out when calling or interviewing potential engineers. You can download it here.

Considerations and Interview Questions for Engineers and Firms

1. Will you sign an NDA?
2. What is your specialty-i.e., industrial design, mechanical engineering, design for manufacturing, all of the above?
   

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3. Do you bill for services hourly or for the completed project?
4. What are your deliverables? Note: A design engineer should at least offer complete DFM (design for manufacturing) 3D CAD files, a revised BOM, and a completed PRD. The DFM files should include detailed material suggestions, which should also be included in the BOM. Ask for specifics; as you know, not all 100-percent cotton sheets are the same. There are different grades and qualities.
5. Have you had experience designing similar products?
6. What manufacturing processes do you have experience designing for? Find out whether the engineer has experience designing products that will use the manufacturing process your product will need.
7. How available are you to answer questions and correspond about my project?
8. Can you state in writing that the final designs you produce are work for hire and will be 100 percent the property of the client?

After the Interview with Engineers: Questions to Ask Yourself

1. Is the engineer a good listener? Does he/she communicate clearly? Does he/she go the extra mile to explain every step of the process? Is he/she reasonably available to answer questions? Is he/she genuinely interested in your project?
2. Does the engineer seemed focused on designing for your target market, or is he/she more focused on his or her own ideas?
3. Did he/she ask about your initial market research? Your target market?
4. Check out the engineer’s website. Has the prospective hire designed products similar to yours?
5. From what he/she said and the website design, do you feel that this person has a good eye for aesthetics?

I hope this list helps when selecting and interviewing prospects for the engineering design of your project. Find and hire the right person, and you will be setting out on a path to a great product.