Engineering Feasibility & Prototyping for Founders

🚀 Lesson Plan: Transitioning from Ideation to Prototyping

Module 5: Product & Prototyping Validation
Tagline: From Concept to Creation—How First-Time Founders Can Effectively Test and Improve Their Prototypes

🚀 Module Overview

This module explores the essential steps early-stage founders should take when moving from ideation to prototyping and validation. Founders will learn how to align their prototyping methods with product goals and available resources, test whether a prototype effectively addresses a problem, and understand the relationship between scale and manufacturing decisions. Additionally, this module will highlight the trade-offs between in-house development and outsourcing, helping founders make strategic choices that align with their long-term vision. By the end, participants will adopt a sustainable and iterative approach to engineering and technical validation, ensuring their products evolve efficiently based on real-world testing and feedback.

💡 Key Learning Outcomes

"The rougher your prototypes, or the uglier your prototypes, the more feedback you end up receiving from people. Because they see that you're in the process of making something and they don't feel like it's precious." - Jules Sherman

✅ Align prototyping methods with product goals and resources to ensure early-stage development is cost-effective and strategic.
✅ Understand the relationship between scale and manufacturing decisions, recognizing how early choices impact future production.
✅ Evaluate the trade-offs between in-house development and outsourcing to determine the most efficient path for development.
✅ Adopt a sustainable and iterative approach to engineering and technical validation, continuously refining a product based on user feedback.

🎙 Special Guests

👤 Jules Sherman – Director of the Biodesign Program at Children's National Hospital and Adjunct Professor at the University of Maryland's Fischel Department of Bioengineering
👤 Seema Vora – Product Manager at Microsoft and former student founder with a background in software engineering

"When you're designing, you're always learning. And so there's no need to feel imposter syndrome. I mean, that's ridiculous, really, because design is learning, right?" - Jules Sherman

📌 Key Discussion Topics

1️⃣ Aligning Prototyping Methods with Product Goals and Resources

• Identifying the core function and requirements of a prototype before development.

• Choosing appropriate prototyping materials and methods based on technical and financial constraints.

• Understanding when digital vs. physical prototyping is the best approach for early-stage development.

• Using university makerspaces, industry grants, and accessible tools to reduce costs.

2️⃣ The Relationship Between Scale and Manufacturing Decisions

• Recognizing how early design choices impact the scalability and manufacturability of a product.

• Exploring low-cost prototyping techniques before transitioning to high-fidelity models.

• Understanding short-run manufacturing for pilot testing and gathering real-world data.

• Balancing quality, cost, and speed when transitioning from prototyping to small-scale production.

3️⃣ The Trade-Offs Between In-House Development and Outsourcing

• Evaluating when to prototype in-house versus leveraging external fabrication partners.

• Understanding the benefits of retaining control over development versus leveraging external expertise for efficiency.

• Managing the risks associated with intellectual property, production timelines, and cost control.

• Identifying industry resources for small-batch production and specialized prototyping materials.

4️⃣ Adopting a Sustainable and Iterative Approach to Engineering and Validation

• Establishing a cycle of testing, feedback, and iteration to continuously refine a product.

• Implementing structured user testing to gather actionable feedback.

• Recognizing when to pivot or refine product-market fit based on validation insights.

• Integrating scalable design principles to ensure future product modifications don’t require complete redesigns.

🏆 Lesson 1: The Mindset Shift – From Idea to Action

🔍 Overcoming Perfectionism & Focusing on Progress
✅ Shift from conceptualization to tangible prototypes without overanalyzing details.
✅ Test early, simple versions of a product rather than waiting for a fully polished version.
✅ Implement an iterative mindset, making small improvements based on real-world usage.

📌 Action Step: Develop a simple, low-cost prototype using readily available materials and share it with three users for feedback.

🏆 Lesson 2: Prototyping Methods & Tools for Any Founder

🔍 Exploring the Right Tools for Product Development
✅ Identify physical prototyping tools (e.g., 3D printing, CAD modeling, hardware components).
✅ Use software prototyping tools (e.g., Figma, wireframing software, AI-generated design).
✅ Understand hybrid prototyping methods for integrating both digital and physical product testing.
✅ Leverage affordable prototyping resources available through university and incubator programs.

📌 Action Step: Select one prototyping method and create a first iteration of a design based on available tools.

🏆 Lesson 3: Moving from Prototype to Manufacturing

🔍 Understanding Scaling & Production Considerations
✅ Define the key design elements that will remain consistent through iterations.
✅ Research cost-effective short-run manufacturing options for pilot testing.
✅ Understand biocompatibility, regulatory needs, and quality control when developing hardware and medical devices.
✅ Prepare for scaling challenges by anticipating supply chain constraints and material sourcing.

"For the work that I've been doing, you know, early validation comes through testing rough prototypes in an iterative fashion and receiving feedback from the people you're trying to serve from each iteration." - Jules Sherman

📌 Action Step: Identify at least two potential manufacturers or fabrication resources that can help scale your prototype.

🛠 Actionable Takeaways & Frameworks

✅ Prototyping & Validation Checklist
📌 Have you identified the core purpose of your prototype?
📌 Have you tested a low-cost version of your product before investing in advanced models?
📌 Have you gathered feedback from at least five users?
📌 Have you outlined a clear next step for improving your prototype?

✅ Manufacturing & Scale Considerations
📌 Have you assessed the feasibility of mass production?
📌 Have you researched material costs, durability, and supplier availability?
📌 Have you tested different manufacturing techniques to determine efficiency?

✅ Sustainable Engineering & Iterative Development
📌 Are you regularly refining the product based on user input?
📌 Have you established a structured feedback loop with real users?
📌 Have you documented technical learnings and design revisions for future reference?

🎯 Founder Challenges: Apply What You’ve Learned!

📌 1. Validate Assumptions: Conduct five user interviews and assess how well your prototype meets their needs.
📌 2. Iterate & Improve: Make at least one meaningful revision to your prototype based on collected feedback.
📌 3. Plan for Production: Identify at least two production or manufacturing methods that fit your scaling needs.

🚀 Next Steps & Resource Map

🔹 Follow & Connect with Our Guests:
👉Jules Sherman
👉Seema Vora

RESOURCE MAP