FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
General inquiries:
In most cases we do everything from design right through to manufacturing.
We are very production oriented, so we generally do not take on design projects if there is no clear path to mass manufacturing within 1 year.
We are also interested in production-only projects, if there is potential for us to add value by lowering cost and increasing quality with our famous Design For Manufacturing.
We have 20+ FW engineers and we design the Firmware (FW) for most of the products we manufacture.
For most projects we make a quick connection with the cloud, our clients generally do the back-end and app design.
We rarely do Firmware or Software development if there is no manufacturing required.
We manufacture in China, Taiwan, and Colombia. In China we have been working with a trusted factory for 10 years now, we represent 45% of their sales.
In Taiwan we have long-standing partnerships as well.
In Colombia we have a team of 30 design engineers and manufacture in-house, mostly based on kits of components that have been developed and tested in China.
IP protection:
The suppliers and factories we work with are bound by the same Non Disclosure Agreement (NDA) that we sign with you.
On top of that, we have been working with them for 7-10 years and in all these years we have never had any IP issue.
Our clients pay for the design and the molds, and so you will own all Intellectual Property (IP), which is essential when talking to investors.
Unlike some, we never hold anybody hostage. If ever you would want to move elsewhere, you’re free to go.
This is our guarantee to you that you will be completely satisfied with our prices and quality for years to come.
Yes, no problem, we’d be happy to!
If you would like to sign ours, please click here.
Although it can be a good idea to apply for patent protection, this can take anywhere from 2 to 3 years for approval.
Developing a product for manufacture also takes time, so we recommend starting the development process after application has been made and during the patent pending stage. See our blog “Patenting electronics: What’s the cost and is it worth it?”
Manufacturing:
Component costs tend to make up some 80% of the total cost. To be competitive in today’s market you have to include Asian components into the design right from the start.
The rest of the cost is in housings and assembly, for which molds from China tend to offer the best value.
Assembly, we do in China, Colombia or Taiwan. Use our unit cost estimator for a quick quote.
We don’t work with an MOQ but rather with a Minimum Order Value of US$150,000.
This can mean 3,000 devices worth US$50 each, or 200 systems of US$750.
A full development cost, also called NRE, tends to start at US$150,000. This includes Industrial design, Mechanical Engineering, PCB Design, Firmware Coding, Prototype making and testing, Injection molds, Certifications, Packaging, Supply chain set-up, Production set-up, Training & optimization, Quality testing jigs & software, and Logistics.
Our blog “How much does it cost to develop a new product” gives the details.
Use our NRE calculator for a quick development budget cost estimate.
This really depends on the complexity of your product and what requirements are needed. We will be able to give you a better idea once you explain your requirements to us.
Our blog post titled “Product development China: Quick tips from the pros” and “Time to market: 5 ways to speed up product development” might be useful to you.
Nearly all electronic devices require some sort of certification mark. Most of the devices we develop are tested for CE (for Europe) or FCC (for wireless in the USA) or both.
In some cases, a device may require extra certifications such as in the medical, automotive or mining industries.
Take a look at our blog “UL certification – Do you need one or can you avoid it?”
Yes, we have worked with many product owners who have already had their product designed in-house or by a third-party design company.
We optimize the Design For Manufacturing: lower the cost and prevent production issues.
We also manage the whole NPI process: making the molds, the testing fixtures and optimizing the assembly process.
We often perform a paid economic feasibility study, where we design an architecture of the key components, and based on that a unit cost and a total development costs.
Some agencies will send you one bill after the other, we feel you need the total picture to make a solid investment decision.
For a quick preview of what that may look like use our NRE & unit cost calculator.
Some of the products we designed and manufactured you can see on our site, but many of the projects we work on cannot be shown due to confidentiality reasons.
Write to Bob.Moore@titoma.com and he’ll send you our presentation with our client roster.
