Companies are constantly trying to reduce costs. They have elaborate off-site gatherings with themselves and their suppliers to discuss possible changes to the products in development - can they change the materials in one part? Can they fix the manufacturing process there and take out an assembler or remove a robot? Some have end-user or “client” workshops were regular people are invited to evaluate their products and help decide what is kept and discarded in the pursuit of cost reductions.

An area that is frequently ignored are the test requirements that products are subjected to. These stress-tests are intended to validate any design to “real-world” conditions and ensure the company is protected. One example is there is a machine that is called the bite tester - it’s purpose is to bite body parts of Barbi dolls and ensure no 2-year old can chew off chunks from their doll and create a choking hazzard.

Automotive (and virtually every industry out there) has their own specific tests. Sometimes they are the same from company to company, sometimes vastly different. My experience has been that product groups within a company often use different criteria (organizationally caught in silos) or bend the rules one way or another as whims or instances or needs dictate.

Then many employees in a company almost never know the origin of a particular test. No one thinks about the appropriateness of continuing those tests. They just accept them. The most dubious of these tests create excessive costs, increase weight of the product, impare fuel efficiency, compromise package space, and generally inflict harm to the company’s financial viability.

Which validation tests make sense and which are costing you too much? Some tests are needed. A few should be embellished as they ensure safety and long term durability. The trick is to know which is which and be judicious in fixing the testing parameters.

You’ll improve the product and streamline the testing process - saving costs all around the Land.

Cheers!