These workshops aim to either identify a new product or define the next generation of an existing one. New and interesting features are discovered and evaluated. This type of workshop is particularly relevant for product managers.

We typically use light creative ideation methods such as random word stimulation or provocation techniques. From the TRIZ toolkit, we apply the concept of ideality and the 9-Windows method to provoke innovative thinking.

This type of workshop focuses on systematically filing patents in a defined area to gain a competitive advantage. Patent managers and professionals have a particular interest in this to better protect the company’s intellectual property.

Random word stimulation works well here too. From the TRIZ toolkit, we also draw on methods for solving technical problems, including the 40 Inventive Principles.

When a technical challenge yields too few ideas or unsatisfying results, this type of workshop directly addresses the problem.

Project managers are often the initiators. This type of task allows the full TRIZ toolkit to be applied. The exact technical problem definition determines which tools are most suitable.

Reducing manufacturing costs is relevant for any product. The timing determines the ratio target achievable.

As a general rule, a product that has not been revised for more than three years offers a savings potential of 10% or more. We work with Function Analysis (value engineering perspective) based on TRIZ and dedicated ratio checklists.

Sometimes you want to implement a design and discover that a competitor has already patented your approach. Using Function Analysis, we break down the independent patent claim into its individual features and map their relationships.

In a next step, we develop potential questions whose answers are likely to allow a design-around solution. For this type of workshop, we involve a patent attorney to better assess the likelihood of patent infringement. We work with established partners for this purpose.

Using the 9-Windows method, the history of products was analyzed to place them within the known trends of technical system evolution. A Main Parameters of Value analysis identified the parameters for which customers are willing to pay more when they are satisfied.

An S-curve analysis assessed these parameters in terms of their potential growth and current level of fulfillment. Physical Parameter Determination then translated the often vague main parameters into concrete technical parameters, which were then improved using insights from the evolution trends to predict the next development step.

Using this approach, one client generated over 120 product ideas. The project used an accompanied approach with five in-house workshops.

A product had already gone through an initial brainstorming workshop and a two-day TRIZ workshop, generating 196 concept ideas. The client then wanted a fresh external perspective on the product.

A follow-up project was initiated in which students applied TRIZ methods to generate an additional 98 ideas. Three of these ideas could be implemented immediately with minimal effort, resulting in annual savings of 70,000 euros.

A group of TRIZ-trained engineers in China aimed to reduce the main dimensions of their product by 20%. Over two months, results and objectives were discussed in weekly conference calls. The coach provided guidance on which methodological steps to take next.

Within two months, the group of Chinese engineers, guided by the trainer, found a solution that achieved the targeted reduction in dimensions.