Growth & Jobs | Improve the quality of local products through prototyping – JBDC

“IN ORDER for you (your business) to stand out and really make a difference, innovation as a strategy needs to be important to you,” stressed Colin Porter, technical services manager at the Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC). He added, “Innovation speaks to improvement, efficiency, driving sustainability, introduction of new and better techniques, and impact competitiveness. The world of entrepreneurship is very dynamic and there are new players every day, so your products need to stand out and make a difference.”

While Porter noted that Jamaica does not have an innovation deficit, he observed that several clients seeking product development assistance from the JBDC skip the prototype development step. A prototype is a preliminary version of your product that embodies your core ideas and functionalities. It serves as a tangible model that allows you to test, refine, and improve on your concept based on real-world feedback and observations.

This step, Porter said, is critical to developing high-quality products and breeding innovation in the manufacturing industries. Skipping the prototype development phase can prove quite costly for manufacturers. “Prototype development impacts by providing a valuable opportunity to identify and resolve potential issues before mass production. By iterating on a prototype, businesses can make data-driven decisions to enhance product functionality, aesthetics, and overall market fit,” Porter added.

He explained that prototypes enable businesses to assess market fit by exposing the preliminary product to a sample of their target market. This exposure helps determine if there is a real demand for the product, and if it meets the customers’ needs and expectations. Assessing market fit early in the development process can lead to tweaks that make the product more competitive.

Continuing, he pointed out that innovation often requires multiple iterations of design and testing. Each iteration of the prototype can lead to new insights and refinements that result in a superior final product. This iterative process promotes continuous learning and improvement, essential components of innovation.

Producers can also save money through prototyping. Identifying flaws and areas for improvement during the prototyping phase is far less costly than making modifications after mass production has begun. Prototyping saves resources by ensuring that the final product is as close to perfect as possible.

The JBDC’s Incubator & Resource Centre, located at 76 Marcus Garvey Drive in Kingston, houses incubators equipped with recent technology and a team of experts to guide entrepreneur’s product development, which includes prototype development. To this end, in 2023 the JBDC assisted over 300 micro, small and medium-sized enterprises with the development of innovative, research-driven products across several industries spanning agro-processing, fashion, craft and essential oils.

As the fiscal year progresses, the JBDC remains dedicated to its mission of driving business innovation and success through proactive support and resource provision.

The JBDC is an agency under the Ministry of Industry, Investment & Commerce.