Define the acceptance criteria early
Document the customer use case, specifications, tolerances where applicable, inspection process, and delivery expectations. Clarify which requirements are confirmed and which still need specialist review.
- What makes the product acceptable to the customer?
- Which materials and suppliers are critical dependencies?
- Where do rework, waiting, or quality issues occur?
- Can the process be repeated by the operating team?
Plan the prototype-to-production handoff
Capture the process steps, equipment needs, skills, and exception handling before increasing volume. A small production trial should examine consistency and the ability to document failures, not only whether one unit works.
Use domain expertise for the real constraints
Relevant help may include production engineering, quality systems, sourcing, distribution, or customer qualification. Product standards, certification, and safety requirements need a current specialist assessment for the actual product and market.
Questions, answered.
Can a successful prototype establish production readiness?
No. Production readiness includes repeatability, quality controls, supply dependencies, capacity, and applicable requirements. A prototype demonstrates only a limited part of that picture.