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EMS handbook

3 . New product introduction & industrialization

Transitioning a product from a design lab to a high-volume SMT line is the most high-risk phase in manufacturing. If the industrialization process is loose, design flaws will scale exponentially.

This chapter defines the role of Customer Success during New Product Introduction (NPI). We outline the project management necessary to enforce stage-gate reviews, manage prototype iterations, and validate mass production readiness before signing off on final release.

  • 3.1 NPI stage gates: commercial & technical

    New Product Introduction (NPI) is the highest-risk phase in the manufacturing lifecycle. It is where margins are engineered or destroyed. A failed NPI phase results in "unstable equilibrium"—a product...

  • 3.2 PVT / pilot run readiness: tooling, test & yield

    PVT (Production Validation Test) is not a "practice run"; it is a stress test of the manufacturing system. The objective is to prove that the **process**—not just the product—is capable of volume prod...

  • 3.3 SOP readiness & transfer to volume

    Start of Production (SOP) is the specific moment where the project transitions from an Engineering Cost Center to an Operational Profit Center. It is not a date on a calendar; it is a certified state...