Background: Company had developed a new molecule and was investigating its application to a market segment in which it already participated. Not completely sure of its eventual acceptance by this segment, and facing the need to decide upon continued internal funding, R&D and business managers decided to search for other application and market potentials that could meet strict volume and pricing criteria.
Program Objectives
- Identify applications and markets for the new molecule or derivatives outside the company's initial focus.
- Determine if these directions warrant further investigation, in the opinion of key prospective customers.
- Determine if identified areas of application offer the potential to satisfy strict commercialization criteria, so as to justify continued R&D and commercial development.
- Methodology and Resources Employed
- Summit System plus Discovery investigative interviews with industry leaders
Start-up involved intensive workshops involving all team members. Started with broad project scope. Then, after evaluations, comfortably narrowed to 12 major target segments. Plans to conduct a Summit were mapped out.
The Summit involved participation of 12 Industrial Opinion Leaders, each representing a category leading company participating in an area where market intelligence revealed potential application. Each participating company was a potential market entry customer. The client's identity remained confidential until he chose to have us conduct post-Summit commercial development workshops with Panelist companies.
Summit Panelists Included:
- Leading health & beauty aid manufacturer - Director Skin Care/Personal Care R&D
- Leading "down-hole" chemicals company - Technical Marketing Manager
- Leading agricultural chemicals producer - Senior Research Manager
- Leading papermaking chemicals producer - Technical Manager
- Leading in mineral-based building materials - Senior Research Manager
- Leading consumer, institutional and industrial cleaning products company - Vice President R&D
- Leading adhesives and coatings manufacturer - Vice President R&D & New Business Development
- Leading lubrication and oil additives company - Manager, Technology Assessment and Commercial Development
- Leading water and waste treatment company - Technical Marketing Manager
- Leading textile chemicals producer - Vice President Technology
- Leading paint producer (architectural, industrial, specialty) - Vice President and Director of Research
- Leading producer of chemical intermediates to the chemicals industry - Vice President of Product & Commercial Development
Panelists evaluated the strengths and weaknesses of the client's technology and determined areas where cost-effective application appeared promising. Details of applications, volumes, pricing secured post-Summit, then all areas prioritized.
Client performed several preliminary technical studies, as outlined by Panelists, to develop additional data required to further explore target applications.
All data was assembled into a briefing document for review by participants of Post-Summit Workshops - face-to-face meetings between client technical and business managers, and counterparts from selected Summit Panelist companies.
Results
- The molecule's strongest technical property and positioning were determined and validated.
- Given this property, and other functionality, 3 application strategies were identified...each possessing 3 to 4 specific product applications where the new molecule could be substituted for current commercial products.
- In all, 10 target markets for immediate commercialization were uncovered with business potential in excess of US$150 million.
- For insurance, 11 other applications in 10 markets were identified by Summit Panelists, also possessing multimillion dollar potential.
- Product was first purchased by the Panelist representing the household cleaning products company and introduced to the consumer market within 18 months of the Summit.
Client Comments
At the outset, the client viewed the work as "new applications development." At the end the client perceived it as "market development."
The client remarked... "We couldn't have accomplished this much in 18 months...if at all." A wealth of market, customer and application direction resulted from this Summit System.
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