BD

Mobile Med Prototype

The market need that BD had identified was clear: the ability to rapidly administer and track vaccinations or drugs delivered to many patients at a time in a mobile setting.   BD recognized that a Lean Startup approach to rapidly develop a functional prototype would allow them to immediately test the injector concept viability.  Enter Key Tech.

We were given three months to develop a one-handed electromechanical injector for use in marketing demonstrations. The injector loads a pre-filled syringe, identifies the vaccine automatically, injects, and discards upon completion.

What are some key principles for developing a functional prototype in a short period of time?

1. Find “Unicorn” Users. To save time, find a small sample of users who can provide user inputs from many perspectives: clinician, patient, business, etc.
2. Be a Maker. Start prototyping immediately and be scrappy: use AA batteries, buy parts from Amazon, and test often.
3. Prove Core Functionality. Focus on features critical to performance and form to “de-risk” the concept. Extraneous features can wait for later.
4. Evaluate Form. For marketing demos, form is just as important as function. Get your early concepts in users’ hands to inform the design.
5. Integrate.  Leverage off-the-shelf electronics such as Pololu and rapid prototyped enclosures in your final prototype.

For more information about how to move quickly to working prototypes, or a deeper conversation about your product development challenges, get in touch.

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Alexis McKenzie

Alexis coordinates Key Tech’s marketing and business development efforts alongside Andy. She is also active corralling the undergraduate recruiting process at Key Tech. Alexis previously worked for an AM 100 law firm in marketing communications where she specialized in event planning. She received a BA and MA from Shippensburg University in Applied History.

A history nerd at heart, Alexis fits right into the quirky culture at Key Tech (though she still can’t speak binary). Weekends are spent chasing her two boys and spending time on her boat.

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