Product Development FAQ
Find Answers to Common Questions We Receive.
Vertex PD provides industrial design, engineering, prototyping and production preparation. We support medical and laboratory equipment, semiconductor equipment, industrial products and machinery, and consumer hardware when it's in scope. Programs can run turnkey from concept through manufacturing transfer, or as a single phase. For medical work, we design to the compliance requirements you provide. We don't run FDA testing or submissions. Details are on our medical, semiconductor, industrial design, turnkey, engineering and prototyping pages.
Earlier is usually better. In some cases we recommend holding off on patent filing until design work can strengthen the application and cut later revisions. That timing decision is yours and your patent attorney's. We can start at any stage: idea only, rough prototype, or a near-production redesign.
There is no fixed typical cost. Complexity, part count, electronics and the expertise needed drive the estimate. Simpler programs may finish in weeks. Programs with electronics and complex plastics often take months. We estimate by phase.
We divide the program into phases based on goals and complexity, then estimate cost per phase. Billing is based on hours invested in each task. Phase estimates show the likely total before work continues.
Before engagement we sign a mutual non-disclosure agreement. We treat client designs, documentation and business information as confidential and limit access accordingly.
Typically no. Marketplace success depends on many factors outside design and engineering. We complete design, engineering and production readiness, then provide support as needed.
Vertex PD designs medical and laboratory hardware to the compliance requirements you provide. We don't run compliance testing or FDA submissions. Those steps belong to the client and third parties. Vertex was founded in 1998. Medical examples include the Direct View Retractor and an adjustable universal surgical vaginal speculum. For more detail, see the medical and laboratory equipment page.
We scope work in phases, estimate each phase, then bill by hours. When it's in scope, design for manufacturing and material choices can lower manufacturing cost. Vertex has done this work since 1998. We don't promise a fixed percentage of savings. Results depend on the product and its constraints.
We help inventors by refining concepts and prototypes so patent filings reflect a stronger, more buildable design. We often recommend waiting to file until key design improvements are in place. We work under a mutual NDA and collaborate with your patent attorney. Vertex is not a law firm and does not prosecute patents or file applications.
1 Elm Street Suite 1, Great Neck, NY 11021. Long Island / NYC metro. About 30 minutes from Manhattan.
Yes. We work with startups, individual inventors and established OEMs. We mainly serve New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania, and we take remote programs when the fit is right.
For patents: we refine concepts and prototypes and collaborate with your patent attorney. We don't file or prosecute patents. For FDA and other compliance: we design to the requirements you provide. We don't run compliance testing, and we don't write or file 510(k) or PMA submissions. Those steps belong to the client and third parties. Production drawings and design documentation are part of a normal engineering package when they are in scope.
Our main industries are medical and laboratory equipment, semiconductor equipment, and industrial products and machinery, including coin-operated and kiosk systems. We also work on consumer hardware and interactive systems. When a program calls for it, we can design wearables and connected (IoT) devices too.
Yes. Send a sketch, CAD file or short brief. We confirm fit, then give you a phased estimate before hours start. Billing is by hours within each phase.
Yes. We take over programs that started elsewhere, after an intake and a clear scope for the next phase.
Typical deliverables, as scoped: 3D CAD (SolidWorks, STEP, IGES), production drawings and bills of materials. When a client needs design documentation that supports their own regulatory file, we can prepare engineering documentation to the package they define. Vertex does not own or submit FDA design history files as a firm deliverable.
Yes, when a program needs it. We can handle the mechanical and electrical integration of sensors, microprocessors and connectivity modules for connected and edge devices. That work follows the same industrial design, engineering and prototyping path as any other hardware program.
When it's in scope, we apply design for manufacturing and design for assembly so a product is easier to build in the United States. We don't claim a fixed labor-cost reduction.
DFM sits inside the engineering phase. We look at part geometry, materials and tooling early so the design can be built and serviced. Unit cost depends on volume, materials and the manufacturer. We don't promise the lowest possible unit cost.