We caught up with Robert Nappi of FIGO to discuss the importance of prototyping and the need for many prototyping iterations during product development.
He has been through a 6-year journey to bring a very interesting and innovative product to market, so who better to share thoughts on product development than someone who’s been there and done it?
Introducing the Figo
FIGO is the first all-in-one high-tech sous vide cooking and refrigeration device. FIGO cooks—and cools—your food even when you’re not around. Best of all, the entire system is controlled from your smartphone. Imagine having a fantastic meal ready to plate when you walk in the door after a long day.
You can cook ‘at home’ even while you’re on the road, using the healthiest and safest methods on the market.
Robert says about the product’s concept:
The concept stayed the same from the start. My vision was to keep the food fresh like a fridge until it’s time to prepare it, then cook the food automatically as decided by the user. We use the sous vide cooking approach because of its superior cooking results. It produces tender, flavorful, and simply delicious food, not to mention it retains more nutrients, making it healthier.
FIGO is an affordable and modern countertop appliance set to start a food revolution!
Prototyping and its importance: Q&A
Robert is bringing an innovative product to market and has first-hand experience with the rigors of product development. We asked him some questions to get his thoughts on prototyping in general.
3 Key challenges FIGO faced
Robert faced a few key challenges when taking FIGO from concept to market.
1. Getting the product to work as intended
Since this is an innovative product, and there was no other product to study for direct inspiration, our focus was first on getting the product to function well. That’s where Dyson spent most of his time—getting his cyclone technology to actually work.
We wanted our FIGO device to cool faster than most refrigerators on the market. Our device can cool from an 80°F room to under 40°F in one hour, using only 90 watts of power.
Q: What type of test was used?
We tested using resistive waterproof heaters and various cooling components.
Q: What were a couple of pivotal moments where you noticed you had to change the approach? For example, getting the water to transfer with a pump, etc.
Some design constraints on the production line started to dictate the overall design while ensuring cost-effectiveness and reliability.
2. Focusing on the user experience and delight
A product that looks and feels nice is much more likely to be successful in the marketplace, so this was a very important step and one reason why we created so many prototypes.
This led us to a product redesign done by industrial design experts after getting the prototypes to function well and to share a vision of a successful, effective assembly line. The product required a look and an artistic touch that would make people excited to use it.
Q: How many prototype iterations did you go through with the FIGO?
Over the past seven years, it took a few thousand design iterations to get from the initial concept to a product that looks nice, works well, and is ready for manufacturing. It took so long (6 years) because we wanted to create something innovative that had never been done successfully before.
Q: Do you have a few photos of the prototypes in what you described as a “white box”?
We struggled to get a nice-looking outside metal shell!
You can see how the prototypes evolved here going from basic white boxes to production standard metal bodies:
3. Making the product ready to manufacture
Q: Sometimes, developing the manufacturing process is harder than developing the product itself. What were your main obstacles?
The key for us is that making a working prototype is definitely not the end of the road. We also found the following challenging to get to grips with:
- Cost-efficient assembly and competitive value
- Consistency of performance, including all technical challenges to reach top performance
- Customer experience (visual, UI, weight, etc.)
- Reliability and compliance testing (UL and FCC)
The good news is, the product made it all the way to successful production and you can buy it here.
How does Robert’s experience compare to high-profile stories of Apple, Tesla, and Dyson
We ended our discussion by asking Robert to share his thoughts on some insights from Apple, Elon Musk, and Dyson regarding prototyping and production based on his own experiences.
Q: Elon Musk said that manufacturing is much harder than getting to a prototype. Do you agree?
On a Joe Rogan podcast, Elon Musk said it’s anywhere from 100 to 1,000 times harder to get a product into production than it is to create a prototype. Each comes with its own unique set of challenges. What do you think, Robert?
Robert said: Designing a manufacturing assembly line for a product can influence the whole process and cause a domino effect of required changes. I didn’t understand this until we actually started designing our assembly line for FIGO.
After six years of research and development, we are finally in production with an innovative product that has not been successfully done before.
Q: Why do you think it took Apple 7-8 years, and probably tens of billions of dollars, to develop the Vision Pro?
Apple declared that they filed for more than 5,000 patents during the Vision Pro development, and a lot of those patents certainly have to do with making the product easy and as comfortable as possible to use. It took them seven or eight years to develop the product and bring it to market, and they had to jump many technical and design hurdles, such as hand-tracking precision, heat dissipation, and integrating iPadOS limitations. (Source)
Does this track with your experience, Robert?
Yes, I totally agree. As I mentioned above, industrial design experts did a product redesign. We needed a look and an artistic touch that would make people excited to use the product.
As for the budget dedicated to the development, innovation takes time and money. It certainly helps to have Apple’s deep pockets—but you can change the world with the right team.
Q: Why do you think it took Dyson 5,000+ prototypes to develop his first vacuum cleaner?
James Dyson famously went through 5,127 prototypes over five years before finalizing the design of his bagless dual cyclone vacuum cleaner. Dyson has shared in multiple interviews that he learned from each of the 5,126 unsuccessful attempts, considering them steps toward innovation rather than setbacks. He views failure as a critical part of the creative process, emphasizing that it often leads to breakthroughs. This mindset ultimately helped him to launch his innovative and successful vacuum cleaner in 1993. (Source)
What do you make of Dyson creating this many prototypes before he settled on the final product?
Testing and validating prototypes ensures you make a product that works and delivers on its promise, rather than just selling features that don’t actually work properly. Dyson clearly did this thoroughly.
Summary
Like many innovative products, even from giants like Apple and Dyson, Robert went through thousands of design iterations and prototypes before finally reaching the point where he could launch his product. At around 6 years or so, it was a long journey, but that time was required to bring out something that had never been done before.
If you’re interested in purchasing the FIGO, get your own here.
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