The food industry is constantly evolving, faced with the constant need to renew its products to remain competitive in a saturated market.
The Research and Development (R&D) teams, at the heart of this dynamic, juggle multiple innovation and renovation projects. However, many of these initiatives face major challenges along the way, such as unforeseen cost overruns. This is where the concept of Fail Fast presents itself as a strategic solution. By allowing projects to be rigorously selected from the first sentences through precise simulations, this pre-feasibility approach offers an effective way to save valuable resources and reduce development times.
THE défis and eFail Fast games in theafood industry
In such a competitive industry, companies must not only meet consumer demands but also meet strict regulatory standards and distributor demands.
R&D teams, particularly those working on private label brands, face constant pressure to respond to an incessant flow of briefs and calls for tenders. Too often, these teams dive headlong into R&D projects without fully evaluating critical criteria such as cost price, which can lead to costly inefficiencies and significant delays. The major challenge therefore lies in the ability to accelerate the innovation process while minimizing risks.
Fail Fast allows precisely this by offering companies the opportunity to quickly test new ideas and different formulas. This proactive approach helps to quickly identify and abandon unviable projects, thereby optimizing the allocation of human and financial resources. However, implementing rapid and accurate simulations remains a challenge due to the complexity of the development processes and the variability of the ingredients used. Adopting a corporate culture focused on Fail Fast also requires a change in mindset.
Fail Fast Strategy: select the pprojects from dstart
Fail Fast, which therefore represents an essential method in the development of new products in the food industry, makes it possible to reduce financial risk by quickly assessing the feasibility of a product from its first phases. Thanks to advanced simulations, companies can ensure that the product meets the requirements of the specifications, particularly with regard to the cost price (PRI), before committing to more costly and time-consuming development phases .
A development manager at a private label manufacturer of elaborate products testifies to the effectiveness of this approach: “Being able to select projects based on criteria such as price saves us weeks! Before, we launched tests which ultimately revealed that the production cost exceeded our expectations.
Solution proposed by Keendoo: Implement Fail Fast with an expert agri-food PLM
The successful implementation of Fail Fast relies on the use of reliable and structured data. The first step is to centralize key information such as raw materials, packaging and recipes in a robust and integrated product lifecycle management (PLM) system.
Keendoo PLM, with its formulation module, allows companies to run detailed simulations to evaluate the impact of different formulations on crucial criteria such as PRI, mandatory labeling information (INCO) and nutritional claims. All simulation data, current projects, finalized products and their history are stored and managed efficiently in PLM. This creates a valuable knowledge base that facilitates organizational learning and helps avoid duplication of effort on abandoned or forgotten projects.
By integrating Fail Fast using an expert food industry PLM like Keendoo, food companies can optimize their product innovation process, thereby reducing time to market and maximizing return on investment. . This allows teams to focus on the most promising projects and respond agilely to changing market requirements.
To summarize, Fail Fast is much more than a rapid product development method; it is a fundamental strategy for effectively navigating the complex landscape of the modern food industry.
By adopting this strategic approach and leveraging advanced technological tools like Keendoo PLM, companies can not only improve their competitiveness but also ensure optimal use of their resources, thus ensuring sustainable growth in a constantly evolving market. .
Learn more about Keendoo and its solutions: HERE
