How to make a product prototype, from first model to first run

The steps

1. Write down what the prototype has to prove. Most products raise three separate questions: does it work, do people want it as it looks and feels, and can a factory make it at a price that leaves you a margin. One model rarely answers all three, so decide which question each prototype is for before you spend on it.
2. Build a rough proof of concept. Use cardboard, foam, off-the-shelf parts or an existing product cut apart and modified. It should be ugly and quick. Put it in the hands of people who would buy the product and watch how they use it; a change is cheapest at this stage.
3. Protect the idea before you show it widely. In the US, a provisional patent application is the low-cost way to hold a filing date, but provisional applications may not be filed for design inventions^[1], so it does not cover a product whose novelty is only how it looks. File with the drawings from your prototype work: a drawing needed to understand the invention cannot be introduced into an application after the filing date^[1]. Ask a patent practitioner which route fits, and use a non-disclosure agreement with every workshop and sample maker that sees the design.
4. Split it into looks-like and works-like models. A works-like model proves the mechanism, circuit or fit and can look rough. A looks-like model shows the final size, shape, colour and finish but may not function. Build and test them in parallel, then merge them once both are settled.
5. Choose a method for each part. 3D printing is quick for shapes and fit checks. CNC machining gives strong, precise parts in real metals and plastics. Silicone moulds with cast resin give a short run of look-alike parts for testers or a campaign video. Soft goods are sewn from a pattern by a sample maker, working from a tech pack.
6. Design for how it will be made. A printed part can have shapes an injection mould cannot produce cheaply, such as undercuts or walls of uneven thickness. Before you pay for tooling, ask for a design for manufacturing review: which features drive the tooling cost, what it would change, and what that does to the unit price.
7. Turn the prototype into a spec a factory can quote. Send CAD files and drawings with dimensions and tolerances, a bill of materials, finishes and colour references, packaging and labelling, the quantities you want priced and your target cost. Photos and a short video of the working prototype help; a physical unit helps more.
8. Sample, then approve a pre-production sample. Expect the factory's first samples to need changes, and budget for more than one round. How long a round takes varies a great deal: one manufacturer told the US International Trade Commission that new sampling software cut the time to approve samples with a buyer from 35 to 40 days to 3 to 4 days^[2]. Ask how sampling works and how long a round takes. Approve a pre-production sample made with production materials and methods, and keep a signed one.
9. Plan the first run. Ask for the price at two quantities, near the MOQ and at the reorder quantity you expect, and book a quality inspection before you pay the balance.

From prototype to a first run for a crowdfunded or preorder launch

Crowdfunding and preorders let you sell before the first run exists, which also means promising a product and a date you do not yet control.

• Show the prototype as it is. Kickstarter's rules say a design and technology project's prototype demonstration should reflect a product's current state and should not include any CGI or special effects to demonstrate functionality that does not yet exist^[3]. Have a working prototype before you film.
• Set the delivery date from the factory's timeline, not the campaign's. On Kickstarter, the month and year you give for a reward is only the creator's estimate and not a guarantee they will fulfill by that time^[4], but backers still plan around it. Work backward from the date: sample rounds, pre-production sample approval, production, inspection, ocean freight, customs and fulfilment, plus a buffer for a second sample round.
• Preorders on your own store follow the FTC's mail order rule. You need a reasonable basis for the shipping date you state; with no date stated, you need a reasonable basis to ship within 30 days^[5]. If you learn you cannot ship on time, you must seek the customer's consent to the delay, and without it you must promptly refund all the money the customer paid you for the unshipped merchandise^[5]. Put a realistic date on the preorder page.
• Children's products carry testing rules even at small volumes. The CPSC offers registered small batch manufacturers relief from some third party testing. To qualify, a firm's gross revenue from consumer products in the previous calendar year must be $1,480,296 or less^[6], and the relief covers only products with no more than 7,500 units^[7] of the same product made in the previous calendar year. Registration is required every year^[7]. An importer qualifies only if both the importer and the manufacturer of the covered product meet the criteria^[7], so the overseas factory must meet the same limits as you. Even then, small batch manufacturers are always required to third party test for compliance with certain children's product safety rules (Group A requirements)^[7], which include lead in paint and similar surface coating, and small parts^[7], and the relief is not an exemption to any applicable requirements^[7]. Plan the lab testing into the timeline.
• Let the pledges set the quantity. Get quotes at your funding goal and at a stretch quantity before you launch, so you know your cost per unit at either outcome.

What a first run really costs per unit

The prototype and sample costs are paid once. Tooling is too, but on a small first run it can add almost as much per unit as the product itself, so price the product on landed cost with the tooling included.

Development and a first run of 1,000 units

Line	Cost
Proof of concept, materials and printing	$400
Looks-like and works-like prototypes	$3,500
Factory samples, two rounds, including courier	$900
Pre-production sample	$300
Tooling, one simple mould	$6,000
First run, 1,000 units at $7.40	$7,400
Ocean freight, insurance, broker and port fees	$1,450
Duty at 5% (assumed) of the goods price	$370
Pre-shipment inspection	$330
Landed cost of the first run	$9,550
Landed cost per unit, before tooling	$9.55
Landed cost per unit, with the tooling spread over the first run	$15.55

Illustrative figures, not a quote. Real prices depend on the spec, quantity and factory.

In this example the tooling adds almost as much per unit as the factory price of the product, and lifts the landed cost per unit by more than half. If a campaign's reward price only covers the lower figure, the first run loses money. Ask whether a factory can build the first run on a cheaper soft tool, and at what cost per unit, or price the first run to recover the tooling.

Getting quotes

When the prototype works and the spec is written, you are ready to request quotes. Send us the spec, and we introduce you to factories that fit it, overseas first, each one named; introductions are free for brands. The factories quote you directly, so set each per unit price, with the tooling included, against your target cost and your reward or preorder price.