There are very many companies producing a vast range of products and services. Most of these companies work in supply chains, participating in teams to generate an end product that can compete nationally or internationally. It is impossible to have a grasp of all these products and suppliers. We can help you do this as we have a very large network of contacts and a huge amount of experience in engineering and materials. To see what we can do, call us or fill in an enquiry form.

The problem faced by companies is often that as margins tighten, the ability to seek out new products and innovate narrows through a lack of dedicated and available resource. Too often companies have to rationalise or outsource manufacture as a result. In that way native engineering skills are lost and the ability to effectively control product quality is eroded. This problem can be addressed at that point through impact consultancy but to stay ahead of the diminishing value curve Open Innovation can be applied to keep product developing, increase in-house knowledge and protect markets.  

Open Innovation is a process by which market research is focussed in such a way as to identify product innovations from the worldwide market. The internet has facilitated a revolution in the ability to identify new products from around the world, but the skills required to put the theory into practice are two-fold. Firstly, the practitioner must understand the product in enough detail to be able to identify prospect products that combing a high degree of improved functionality with a suitability to be adopted into the manufacturing process. Secondly the practitioner must enable that interaction to take place by making a suitable approach and moving the potential solution providers closer to the company innovating. The role is best performed by experienced business development staff who can the opportunities, trade-offs and mitigate the downsides of this type of innovation. 

More background on Open Innovation can be found through the Open Innovation community page. Several companies offer Open Innovation too, but a hefty price tag can also apply.