Product Development
When it comes to getting new products onto the market it pays to get it right. With resources such as CAD software and two 3D printers, SATRA’s research team can help you to maximise product design right from the start. Once an initial prototype has been designed and produced, bespoke and tailored testing packages are available, to specifications agreed between SATRA and the manufacturer. A whole range of flexible, realistic testing, outside of the constraints of standard testing can be used to assess whether the new product is fit for purpose, or whether improvements can be made to get the most out of the design. Testing can be tailored and adjusted to accurately reflect the conditions of intended end use, no matter how novel, to ensure realism, and to generate hard test data that can be relied upon either to verify and support marketing claims or to suggest areas in which the product can be improved.
With a background in testing not only footwear but also items such as embedded electronics, gloves, safety products, seating, and innovative footwear for the medical and assisted products department, the research team at SATRA can help with product development across a range of industries.
A well-equipped laboratory means that we can develop testing solutions to help assess and develop a whole range of consumer products. Pressure-mapping equipment is available to explore force and pressure distribution between the user and the product with sensors covering hand and glove, seating and bedding, as well as foot and shoe. High-speed video cameras with accompanying analysis software can be used to examine product performance in minute detail, even during the quickest and most destructive tests. Thermal imaging cameras, biomechanical walking simulators, force plates, and data loggers (accelerometers, temperature, humidity) can all be used for the evaluation of novel or innovative products, giving hard data which can be used to verify marketing claims or to guide future design.