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We design the prototype, our partner shops build it, and we test it
Make every prototype build count. Free assessment and roadmap.
Your team orders a prototype, it fails, and you order another. Each round costs money and weeks, and nobody is sure the next one will pass. Most prototype companies build to print. The part matches the drawing, flaws and all. That works for a proven design. For a new product, it means paying for prototypes that fail for reasons a review could have caught. The best prototype companies help you learn something from every unit you pay for. The rest just ship parts, send the bill, and wait for your next order.
If nothing changes, the loop keeps running. Budgets drain one build at a time, and launch dates slip. The design that finally passes is the one you ran out of time to improve. Competitors who prove their designs sooner reach the market first.
PPS prototype development services start with the design. FEA and DFMA check it before anything is made. Each prototype is planned around what it must prove. Test results go back into the design, so fewer rounds reach a final design.
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Build, fail, repeat
Too many prototype iterations. Each round costs weeks and nobody knows if the next one passes.
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Prototypes don't match production
Test results change when the real process is used.
✓
Failures show up late
Problems appear at test, after tooling is quoted.
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Nobody checked the design first
The shop made what was sent, flaws and all.
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Test units take too long
Parts arrive, but fixtures and test plans don't.
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Budget runs out before the design is right
The last build passes, but nothing is improved.
Flaws come along
No one asks what it must prove
Failures found after the spend
Each round costs weeks and money
FEA and DFMA before the build
Every unit answers a question
Results carry into production
Each round fixes real causes
The 34% less rework, 51% fewer prototypes, and 37% shorter test phase figures are from the PPS Innovation Edge white paper.
Public benchmark
70%
Lower cost on a NASA-tested part
Precedent
A NASA-tested printed injector took under 4 months, not a year, at 70% less cost (NASA, 2013).
What it means
Building straight from the design model removed slow tooling steps. Prototype companies that only build to print can't plan that for you. We design the prototype, manage the build through partner shops, and test it.
Lever
Decision it lets you make
Result
Design check
Prototypes that fail on flaws
Decision
FEA and DFMA catch problems before the first part is made.
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Result
Fewer failed builds. FEA services →
Build plan
Units that prove nothing
Decision
Each build is planned around the question it must answer.
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Result
Every unit earns its cost. R&D engineering →
Process match
Results that change at production
Decision
Prototypes use materials and processes close to production.
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Result
Test results that carry over. DFMA services →
Testing
Weak points found too late
Decision
Stress testing finds the weakest links on the first units.
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Result
Margin before launch. HALT reliability testing →
01
Prototypes that answer real questions, a design improved by each round, and CAD and drawings ready for production.
02
Design checks and test results you review and approve at each gate, before the next build is ordered.
03
You own the IP by default. When an OEM or partner manufacturer is involved, the contract spells out who owns what.
04
If we missed it in our QC, we fix it. If your supplier can't make the part within three years, or supply dries up, we fix that too.
You send
What we need to start
CAD or sketches of the product or concept
Requirements: function, loads, and standards
Past prototypes or test results, if any
Volumes: prototype and production quantities
Targets: budget, launch date, or cost
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You get
What you hold at the end
A build plan that says what each prototype proves
Design checks in FEA and DFMA before the build
Prototypes built by partner shops in the right process
Test results fed back into updated CAD, with CAD design services for the release package
A roadmap to production, and a team that stays
We price to the value we deliver, not the hours we log. If the value isn't there for you, we'll say so in the assessment.
Bring your own manufacturer or lab, or work with our partner network. See how we partner by industry.
You approve every build plan, design change, and its cost at every gate, so nothing that affects function surprises you. If we missed something in our QC, we fix it. If a supplier can’t make the part within three years, we fix that for you too.
Every extra build costs weeks and money. Get a free roadmap.
Get Your Free RoadmapBrackets, housings, and modules prototyped in the processes planned for production, so the results hold.
Results that carry over.
Applications
Brackets
Housings
Modules
Flight hardware prototypes planned around qualification, so each unit answers a question that matters.
Each unit earns its cost.
Applications
Brackets
Ducts
Housings
Wear parts and machine prototypes built and tested for impact and abrasion before the field finds flaws.
Prove it before the pit.
Applications
Wear Parts
Buckets
Frames
Components prototyped and tested for heat and vibration so plant trials don't become costly redesigns.
Fewer forced outages.
Applications
Components
Housings
Fixtures
Turn problems and test failures into better designs: root cause, new concepts, and proof that they work.
Fix it at the source.
Applications
Root Cause
Concepts
Testing
We plan HALT on designs we engineer, a partner lab runs it, and we redesign the weak points it finds.
Find weak points early.
Applications
Thermal
Vibration
Redesign
Prototyping, HALT, R&D, reverse engineering, and more. See every problem our engineering team solves.
Find your problem here.
Solutions
Prototyping
HALT
R&D
FEA, CFD, CAD, DFMA, and testing under one roof. Engineering is a team sport, and you get the whole team.
One team, every skill.
Under One Roof
FEA
CFD
CAD
DFMA
Testing
Veteran-owned SDVOSB status gives defense and federal buyers a set-aside path to proven engineering.
Verify our SDVOSB status.
Credentials
SDVOSB
VOSB
CAGE 8ZK73
NAICS 541330
Missed something in our QC? We fix it. Supplier can't make the part within three years? We fix that too.
Support for the long run.
We Fix
Our QC Misses
Supplier Gaps
Supply Chain
We price to the value we deliver, not hours logged. You buy a design that works, not more iterations.
Pay for the result only.
Collections
Gold
Platinum
Diamond
How are you different from other prototype companies?
Most prototype companies build to print. You send a drawing, they make the part, and any flaw in the design comes along with it. That works when the design is already proven. For a new product, you pay for prototypes that fail for reasons a review could catch. Each failed build costs weeks, and the cost of a flaw grows the later you find it. A NASA study on error costs found that problems fixed late in a project cost many times more than problems fixed early. A shop that only builds to print can't stop that, because nobody owns the design.
PPS starts with the design. We check it in FEA and DFMA before anything is made, so the first prototype tests the right questions. You approve a build plan that says what each unit must prove. We manage each build through partner shops matched to the process. Test results go back into the design, so the next round fixes real causes. The free assessment shows you the plan.
What kinds of prototypes can you deliver?
Prototypes come in stages, and each stage answers a different question. Many prototype companies offer one process and push every job through it. Early models check size, fit and feel. Functional units test real loads, heat or flow. Pre-production units use production materials, so results carry over. Skip a stage, and a flaw shows up later, when it costs more. Use the wrong process, and test results change once real production starts. The choice of process for each stage can matter as much as the part. NASA hot-fire tested a 3D-printed rocket injector made by laser melting metal powder, not by the usual methods.
Our prototype development services plan the stages your product needs and skip the ones it doesn't. We match each unit to the process that answers its question best: 3D printing, machining, sheet metal, casting or molding. Partner shops make the parts. Fixtures and test rigs are designed alongside them, so testing starts when units arrive. For harsh service, HALT testing finds weak points well before launch.
Can PPS work with our manufacturer or test lab?
Yes. Unlike most prototype companies, we work with the shops and labs you already trust, or with our partner network. Many projects use both. What matters is that one engineering team coordinates them, so the builder and the lab always work from the latest released design and data.
When every vendor reports to you separately, you become the integrator. Design changes travel by email, parts get cut to old drawings, and test results arrive without anyone tasked to act on them. The Department of Defense's IPPD Handbook organizes programs around integrated product teams for this reason, with design, manufacturing and test under one shared plan.
PPS manages your builders and test labs inside one engineering loop. We release the design, track every build and test, read the results and make the fix ourselves. Data and NDAs are set up between all parties at the start. You decide how far we take the design, up to the start of production. The IP is yours by default, as set in your contract.
What do you need from us to start?
To start a project with our prototype development services, send what you have, in any format. That usually means CAD or sketches, the requirements, and any standards the product must meet. Add past prototypes or test results, prototype and production volumes, and your targets for budget or launch date. Photos of failed parts help us too. Missing data is the most common reason engineering projects stall, because a model built on guessed inputs gives a guessed answer. That is why we don't start the work until every data set is in.
Once it is, the first step is a free assessment of your project scope. We confirm what the work can and can't answer, and tell you what is still missing. Then we send a roadmap proposal with scope, targets, and approval gates. Every project is scoped on its own, so the roadmap sets the schedule, not a stock promise. NDAs are available before you share any files. For gaps in material data, NIST material measurement data is a good first stop.
Who owns the design and the models?
You own the design, the drawings, and the models from your prototype development services project by default, as set in the contract. When an OEM or partner manufacturer is involved, the contract spells out who owns what. Some firms keep the models, or license them back to you, so every later change sends you back to them. That locks your product to one vendor and makes design reviews harder, because your team can't open the evidence behind the decisions. You receive the native CAD, the drawings, the simulation model files, and the documented results. Your engineers can then check the work, rerun a load case, or hand the package to a supplier or customer.
We sign mutual NDAs before any of your data is shared, and your files stay in our controlled project folders while we work. If your program has export-control or customer data rules, tell us at the start and we will set up the data handling to match them. For defense programs, the State Department ITAR guidance sets the rules we follow.
What happens if a prototype fails in test?
If a prototype fails in test, we find out why and fix the design. Hard engineering carries unknowns on any project: real loads, material lots, and assembly effects never match a model perfectly. With prototype development services from PPS, you approve the data at each gate. A test result is then checked against predictions you have already seen, not a black box. A failure in test is data. It shows which assumption was wrong: a load, a material property, or a boundary condition. That data improves the model and the design.
When testing is in scope, we plan the test to confirm the margins that matter most. Then we correlate the model to the results, following ASME verification and validation practice. If the miss was ours, because something slipped through our QC review, we fix it. If the test uncovers a condition nobody knew about, we scope the change with you and update the roadmap. Either way, you get a clear answer and a path to a design that holds.
How are prototype development services priced?
We price prototype development services to the value they deliver, not the hours we log. Hourly billing rewards extra iterations, so the cheapest quote often becomes the most expensive project once tooling, rework, and field failures show up. Our incentive is to get the design right the first time. We engage by fit, not as a ladder. Gold (from $35K): you have one project and need help with it. Platinum (from $15K/mo): you have recurring work at a steady rhythm. Diamond (from $800K/yr): you have a long development program, often multi-year.
Gold is never required, and some clients start at Platinum or Diamond. These are starting points, not quotes; your roadmap sets the price. We price to the value we deliver, not the hours we log. If the value isn't there for you, we'll say so in the assessment. Our engineering consultant pricing page explains how each collection works in more detail.
Stuck in a prototype loop? Send the design. Get a free roadmap.
Send your CAD, requirements, and past test results. We review your project scope in a free assessment and reply within one business day with next steps.
On-site assessments that require travel are quoted separately.
