Help me develop my product

[Nathan24]

An idea was building in my mind for long now. It is not a really big model , but I think it's a good one. I have developed a machine that melts snow , and purify it to drinking water. It runs on electric power. I wish to make a prototype, but I don't have the means to develop it. Do you people know about any product and design development firms in Canada?

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Nathan24]

I was researching on and off-line to get help. Finally, I found a firm that can help me. I came to know about it through a friend of friend. She designed a new office chair through this product development firm. So, that part is almost done.

Before I proceed, I like to get some comments about my new concept for water purifier.

 

[Supa]

No offense, but you won't find someone to hold your hands here. Nobody will do the work for you, that's something you have to do yourself. And no one will be able to tell if your idea is good, not because of your idea, but because ideas aren't worth much, everyone has ideas and some of them sound awesome, but they are worth nothing without the proper execution.

That's why most people on here won't really care about another one of those "I have an idea!" threads. It doesn't matter if an idea is good or not, talking about it won't make it a reality, building it will.

 

[GIlman]

An idea was building in my mind for long now. It is not a really big model , but I think it's a good one. I have developed a machine that melts snow , and purify it to drinking water. It runs on electric power. I wish to make a prototype, but I don't have the means to develop it. Do you people know about any product and design development firms in Canada?

You asked for some comments on your product. Here is my take.

1) You are targeting the eco-green crowd here. But based on my understanding of physics the thermal capacity of water (and therefore snow) is very high. Meaning it's going to take a whole load of energy to reduce the snow to water. Will people percieve this as being an eco/green way to get water. I have no idea, just a thought. Electricity is pretty cheap, so I don't think this is a cost issue, just a perception of eco/greenness.

2) Does this solve a problem? Are you aiming to get water to a place that has limited water...presumably not since there is snow. This falls into the filtration category. People can already purify tap water with a filter. Will these people buy into this model of more effort and presumably size. Or will they just opt to buy a facet filter to get the same effect? Maybe for camping, but then the electricity bit is a problem? Not sure what your market segment is here you are going after.

3) Limited seasonality. You are asking people to buy into a product that has utility of < 6 months (probably more like 3-4). What do these people do in the summer time. Will people be willing to buy a solution that only works for a handful of months out of the year?

4) Is snow percieved as clean? Fresh fallen snow seems pretty clean. But When I think of snow I also think of nasty dirty snow that's around the majority of the time. This gets back to utilty. If it snows 20 days a year, then you have to consider how long people will have good snow substrate to start with.

Good luck, hope that helps.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[David Young]

You asked for some comments on your product. Here is my take.

1) You are targeting the eco-green crowd here. But based on my understanding of physics the thermal capacity of water (and therefore snow) is very high. Meaning it's going to take a whole load of energy to reduce the snow to water. Will people percieve this as being an eco/green way to get water. I have no idea, just a thought. Electricity is pretty cheap, so I don't think this is a cost issue, just a perception of eco/greenness.

2) Does this solve a problem? Are you aiming to get water to a place that has limited water...presumably not since there is snow. This falls into the filtration category. People can already purify tap water with a filter. Will these people buy into this model of more effort and presumably size. Or will they just opt to buy a facet filter to get the same effect? Maybe for camping, but then the electricity bit is a problem? Not sure what your market segment is here you are going after.

3) Limited seasonality. You are asking people to buy into a product that has utility of < 6 months (probably more like 3-4). What do these people do in the summer time. Will people be willing to buy a solution that only works for a handful of months out of the year?

4) Is snow percieved as clean? Fresh fallen snow seems pretty clean. But When I think of snow I also think of nasty dirty snow that's around the majority of the time. This gets back to utilty. If it snows 20 days a year, then you have to consider how long people will have good snow substrate to start with.

Good luck, hope that helps.

GIlman raises some excellent points. The headline idea sounds good but without a clear path to market it is difficult to evaluate properly. Define the target customer and the problem you hope to address. This will then help you understand the value your ideal will give and therefore if people will be prepared to pay for it.

 

[Nathan24]

No offense, but you won't find someone to hold your hands here. Nobody will do the work for you, that's something you have to do yourself. And no one will be able to tell if your idea is good, not because of your idea, but because ideas aren't worth much, everyone has ideas and some of them sound awesome, but they are worth nothing without the proper execution.

That's why most people on here won't really care about another one of those "I have an idea!" threads. It doesn't matter if an idea is good or not, talking about it won't make it a reality, building it will.

Thanks for the support.

And I'm planning on adding ice-water conversion as an accessory on the purifier. I know snow is not so clean, so, it'll require good filtering process.