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Virtual manufacturer calls for hardware product creators to participate in definitive report on hardware development
SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 23, 2019 – Today Fictiv issued a public invitation for hardware development stakeholders to participate in its State of Hardware Survey on hardware development and manufacturing. The insights gained from this survey will form the foundation for Fictiv’s fourth annual State of Hardware Report, the industry’s definitive collection of detailed data-driven insights into the most critical product development challenges and opportunities. The survey is open until February 22, 2019.
“The State of Hardware Report is an important tool in making hardware development easier, faster and more accessible,” said Dave Evans, co-founder and CEO of Fictiv. “This year we are hoping to grow participation to ensure that even more people have a voice, helping engineers and designers deepen their understanding and accelerate the shift to a more modern tech-enabled global manufacturing process.”
The 2018 State of Hardware Report polled 1,136 developers across 72 industries. It uncovered a growing reliance on nearshoring for earlier stage projects that ran up against limited capacity for American manufacturers. It also revealed a wide gap in perceived manufacturing knowledge, with only 13% of developers receiving consistent feedback on part manufacturability. Further, it found that an overreliance on outdated communication channels like email contributed to further slowdowns in production times.
This year’s survey will seek to poll even more developers spanning hundreds of industries. It will focus on questions within three distinct areas that most impact product teams and highlight their most common pain points. They include:
- Supply Chain Management & Global Trade: In 2018, product companies were significantly impacted by the drastic increase of tariffs on global trade. From supply chain redistribution to downsizing due to material/component cost increases, this year’s survey aims to add clarity to what teams are facing and how they’re responding to ensure supply chains remain stable.
- Bridging the Production Gap: One of the greatest challenges teams face in bringing a product to market is bridging the manufacturing gap between prototyping and high volume production. For new products, it’s risky to invest large amounts of cash upfront to produce thousands or millions of units based on less-than-accurate forecasts. The 2019 survey will dig into how product creators think about minimizing risk in this critical stage, average production volumes for initial launch by industry, and how time-to-market forecasts ultimately match up with reality.
- Careers & People: In order to gain insight into how careers in engineering, product design, and supply chain management are evolving, a new addition this year will be to break down the most common roles by degree, salary and geography and also dig into ways people are building new skills to advance their careers.
To be a part of Fictiv’s 2019 State of Hardware Report visit https://fictiv.com/2019-state-of-hardware-survey and register to take the survey today.
About Fictiv
Fictiv is democratizing access to manufacturing, transforming how hardware teams design, develop and deliver physical products. Its virtual manufacturing platform pairs intelligent workflow and collaboration software with Fictiv’s global network of highly vetted manufacturers. From prototype to production, Fictiv helps hardware teams work efficiently and bring products to market faster. www.fictiv.com
