Feasibility study services

Depending on the Client's needs, EnCata does a narrowly focused market feasibility study to help identify the competition in the market, or conduct a feasibility analysis of the Client's idea. Business feasibility study helps to determine the viability of the project.

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Business feasibility studies with Encata is worth it

EnCata specialized in hardware product development. Our approach to testing business ideas is different from feasibility study companies. We match business goals with our understanding of the manufacturing requirements. In order to verify whether the product concept and technical level meet the market expectations and the Client's business model,we provide feasibility study consulting including financial and economic parts. Using such an in-depth process helps to determine the factors that will lead a project to success or failure.


60+ Engineers

We act as your extended R&D team which is faster than hiring engineers locally. The breadth of our technical expertise is unique.

Development Speed

Our dedicated team is ready to scale up quickly. We utilize AGILE lean development process that leads to 30-50% faster delivery.

Burn rate

Cost-effectiveness

Our development location enables us to be cost-effective and deliver premium R&D and engineering services at 1/3 of the price compared to that of in N-W Europe and USA.

Design Engineering

An engineering approach to the Feasibility study

The technical analysis of a business idea or new product influences all other stages of development. EnCata’s feasibility study consultants help with technical analysis including financial and economic feasibility regardless of the stage of the business development. It means we work with already produced products or even with new product ideas. 


We provide feasibility study consulting, which performs several tasks:

1. examines the conceptual solution chosen by the Client from the perspective of end-user benefits;
2. clarifies product requirements on the basis of user experience and translates them into technical requirements;
3. allows you to assess the technical level of the product idea and make the device concept;
4. provides information on the viability of the business.

Industrial Design

The industrial design of a new product must be appealing and user-friendly. Industrial design must sell. Often we get projects with a design that makes the product uncompetitive in price in its market segment. The business feasibility study helps find a balance, and gives guidelines and limitations for industrial design. This stage does not override design studies or focus groups, it provides information on how decisions made can affect the development and production process. EnCata is one of few companies providing services in this sphere.

mechanical engineering DFM

Mechanical Engineering

Functional and structural analysis at the feasibility study stage allows you to get rid of redundancy. It helps to decide which functions are useful and necessary for the user. As a result, it will help develop a competitive product. Only the parts that perform these functions will be left in the manufacturing process. This can shorten the development time and reduce risks. Also, product development is directly related to the Client's business model. It is important that their lifecycle corresponds to it.

Enclosure Design

Most modern products have electronics that need to be protected by enclosures. User interaction with the device is another important function of the enclosure.  It often happens that at different stages of the product lifecycle, it needs different enclosures made with different technologies. Sometimes, it is possible to start sales with a standard enclosure of the device. This decision should be made based on an analysis of the product, business model, user expectations, and manufacturing capabilities - something EnCata's feasibility study consultants can be connected to.

Proof-of-Concept Prototyping

By performing a feasibility report we get a roadmap of prototypes. We determine at what stage of the development and in which prototype we will test certain functions or technologies. Of course, in the process of development, something may change, but we will at least have a reference point. The feasibility economic assessment of a project gives us an introduction to what function is the main part in the product and what technology is needed to provide it. This is what will be put into the First Prototype - Proof-of-Concept. 

Mold Manufacturing & Tooling

Sometimes our Clients turn to us with an already developed product and with several prototypes. However, they can not start selling because of the very high cost of molds and other tooling. In such cases, we deal with the consequences of a poorly executed Feasibility Study. At the very beginning of a development, it is very important to estimate the capital investment to start mass production and sales, or to determine the limit at which a business is possible. This will be a very important constraint for manufacturers.

Manufacturing Support & Sourcing

The technical feasibility report provides information that can draw the Client's attention to thinking about how he or she can organize a mass production. We study how different approaches will affect the business profitability and cash flow. The choice of location for mass production depends on it. In general, such information can be useful when looking for investments and preparing business plans, since producing one-off prototypes is not the same as starting mass production.

Design Engineering

EnCata provides feasibility analysis consulting to avoid project difficulties in the future

It is important to have a full understanding of how a certain feature or design solution will affect the product competitiveness. Testing by real users is the best way to find the answers. Hardware products have a long time-to-market cycle. For this reason, it is difficult to understand how the first version of your product should look like, how the selected technologies will affect the development and manufacturing costs of this first batch. Technical analysis at the beginning helps to build the product roadmap, but it does not cancel out communication with end users, analysis of competitors, or building business models.

For a product team, the simplest and most valuable result after the technical feasibility study consulting can be the list of components, their costs and time of delivery. When we create a device concept, we tie together all the features, requirements and business limitations of the new product. This allows us to formulate top-level requirements for standard components: motors, batteries, piping, screens, communication modules. Sometimes, it may turn out that a very powerful and expensive motor must be used to achieve the desired speed, or that it takes a lot of energy to transmit data over the desired distance. This can make the battery heavy and expensive. The project team can then start adjusting their expectations from the product or business strategy. The team will be provided with the valuable data even before the design stage or prototyping.

Product Development Technology Stack

Market Research Board layout: mixed signal / high speed / high layer count
TRIZ

User stories
Use cases

Business Model Canvas
Financial modeling

iora wan

Procurement analysis
Competitor analysis

Patent search
Value engineering

Custom electronics design

Technical benchmarking
Supply chain analysis

Engagement Models

We focus on the entire product/service lifecycle, from concept to implementation to market launch.  EnCata’s knowledge, resources and innovation development expertise allow our Clients to develop and expand their businesses faster and leaner.

Some hardware Projects we delivered

Work that highlights the incredible technologies, solutions, and products EnCata developed.

Industries We serve

Our hardware engineers are focus on the entire product/service lifecycle, from concept to implementation to market launch.  EnCata’s knowledge, resources and innovation development expertise allow our Clients to develop and expand their businesses faster and leaner.

FAQ related to Product development

At EnCata, what kinds of contracts do you use? Is it a fixed-term or an agile contract?

EnCata works with both fixed term and agile contracts.

What should I do now that I've approached you with my project idea?

1. Once you have approached us with the project, we conclude the NDA and send the information to the Sales Manager for further evaluation and project planning.
2. The Sales Manager or Sales Engineer will contact you to clarify your goals, requirements and tasks to accomplish. This process is very close to business analysis. When the details are agreed with you, a cost estimate and a quotation are prepared.
3. If you accept the quotation, we will prepare a Technical design specification to document scope of work and requirements and conclude an agreement.
4. After we've signed the agreements, we'll assign you a Project Manager who will gather a project team and report on the project progress.


Can you provide me with a certification of competence?

EnCata employs around 30 engineers with Master's and PhD degrees in electrical and industrial design, mechanical engineering, prototyping and manufacturing from European universities. Each employee is an expert in his or her field.

What level of training do your specialists have?

The majority of specialists are of middle or senior levels. Their range of influence is broad enough to encompass the entire new product lifecycle. Our specialists resolve legal and certification difficulties during the concept stage, optimize production costs during the 3D model development process and create necessary documentation for firmware support. Juniors make up only 15% of the team. They constantly upgrade their qualifications under the supervision of seniors.

Is it possible for us to cooperate with EnCata’s team?

EnCata is always willing to work with its client. We have everything we need to create a collaborative site. Both parties can work on the project simultaneously. The Customer, for instance, and his/ her team designs the electronics while we work on the enclosure. When teams work together to achieve a fantastic result, it is always a win scenario.

Is it possible to discuss the project with your technical team?

EnCata’s team is always willing to discuss all the necessary details about the project proposed. Our full-fledged team of professionals will interrogate you until both parties are satisfied with the procedures necessary to complete the job.

Can EnCata facilitate mass production?

It certainly can. For any product, EnCata creates a design documentation package and a process documentation package that is suited to the production. It should be noted, however, that the technologists at the customer's chosen plant may make changes or impose their own requirements on the documentation design. EnCata, in turn, makes it easier for the client and the technologist to communicate. EnCata does not mass produce, although it can undertake small-scale production at the request of customers.

Do you sign NDAs?

Yes. As a highly professional design and engineering firm, we make sure that all discussions with our clients and all information regarding your invention, idea and other proprietary information are kept confidential.

Patent or Develop first?

We follow a LEAN approach in product and business development and thus we strongly recommend patent filings only after you are  at least part-way through development. This is because patenting is expensive and early patents can already become obsolete or irrelevant later in the development phase. Typically, EnCata's work generates many patentable opportunities for our clients  and the best strategy is to file patents at TRL-7, i.e. when early beta prototype is ready and when a startup is ready to start batch production and marketing.There is, however, another strategy, which is to use provisional patents which can be loose and are not to be disclosed to the public for 18 months. These are much less expensive and time consuming, generally costing below $500.

EnCata will always sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement and keep your intellectual property confidential during the development phase and then we can recommend several third-party patent attorneys when the time is right.

Does EnCata outsource electronics services?

Our in-house professionals handle almost all electronics work, including interface design, protocol development, communication design, schematic design, PCB Design, Firmware design and battery management. If the Customer requires a service that Encata does not supply, we have partners that can meet that need.

Do you write program code, either software or firmware?

We certainly do. EnCata employs electronics specialists who deal with low-level firmware. We also have experts on staff who can implement high-level software code.

Are there hardware engineers in your team?

EnCata employs 12 mechanical and industrial designers and 10 electrical engineers with experience in hardware and firmware. Our team consists of middle and senior level engineers, who have 5+ years of field expertise and have already completed more than 300 projects.

Can EnCata help me with fundraising?

We do indeed help with fundraising through our large business network. However, we typically recommend startups to our partner VCs after we have done some work for the startup and learned more about the team and their core technology. This feedback and recommendation is of great value to all of the friendly VCs as it saves them much time and effort for due diligence.

Have a project to do? Reach out to EnCata team

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