Optimizing your Product’s Value through Value Engineering

During this challenging time—when rising tariffs, declining consumer confidence, and increased competition from imports are putting pressure on margins—OEMs are looking for new ways to create value and differentiate their products.

Through value engineering and engaging the right industry experts, OEMs can uncover efficiencies and maximize return on product development. Value is achieved when the balance between a product’s functionality (ie. features, performance, reliability etc) and its production cost is optimized, without compromising quality, performance and manufacturability.

However, real value is best achieved when value engineering is implemented at the beginning of the development process. Early introduction of value engineering minimizes the risk of higher production costs, manufacturability issues, time-to-market delays, inefficient testing strategies, life cycle issues and poor supply chain integration,

At Avnan, we implement the value engineering methodology at every step of the product development process integrating DFx principles to optimize cost and design efficiency ensuring a seamless process from start to finish and shortening time-to-market.

Design Optimization

Our goal is to optimize design for manufacturability keeping the ratio of cost and functionality balanced while minimizing waste and simplifying design. How do we do this? We tackle the 3 key areas:

Strategies to Optimize BOM and Schematic

• Simplify Design: we review the schematic and reduce part counts without sacrificing functionality
• Material efficiency: we reduce the cost of parts in effect reducing the BOM
• Simplify Assembly: we minimize fasteners, using snap fits and aligning features as examples
• Apply consistent tolerance: we avoid overly tight specs that drive up costs
• Engage suppliers early: we collaborate with suppliers and the manufacturing team during the design phase

Component Selection

• Substitution: We might suggest substituting non-critical custom components with off-the-shelf alternatives
• Integrated chips: Use these to avoid complex configurations simplifying PCB layouts and assembly
• Leverage economies of scale: Use higher volumes of common parts to lower costs.
• Reuse: Reuse or reform scrap materials to cut costs and reduce environmental impact

Efficient PCB Layout Designs

• Design Simplification: Use integrated components and minimize layers and complex vias to reduce cost and ensure correct footprints and connectivity to support reliable performance.
• Component Placement: Group and place components with proper spacing near board edges to support assembly, mechanical integrity, and signal quality.
• Routing: Keep traces short and well-routed to maintain functionality while reducing copper use and avoiding interference.
• Panelization & Material Use: Design for efficient panel layout and material nesting to maximize board yield per panel and optimize thickness for cost and durability.
• Design for Testability: Allocate space for automated test pads and ensure accessible test points to simplify functional and in-circuit testing.
• Manufacturing-Friendly Choices: Select appropriate board finishes that balance cost and solderability, avoiding overly high-end options where unnecessary.
• Cost-Effective Materials: Use standard materials like FR4 and apply specialty materials or finishes only when required by specific performance needs
• Modular Designs: use these for easy upgrades and avoids full redesign
• Design for scalability: Avoid using prototype only features that won’t suit mass production

Testing and Validation

Testing and validation ensures that the integrity of the value created by engineering decisions didn’t come at the expense of cost efficiency. The right testing method implemented will ensure you achieve performance reliability while minimizing expense and redundancies.

• Pre-functional checks: Catch obvious issues early by performing basic inspections (like visual or automated checks) before full functional testing
• Optimizing test methods: Avoid unnecessary or overly detailed testing by choosing the right types and levels of tests based on the complexity of the product
• Test strategy: Balance quality with time and cost by deciding between board-level and final product testing

Lifecycle Management

When building products, engineers will ensure to maximize the product’s life span by ensuring that design is optimized, costs are carefully controlled, materials and components are selected for their reliability, durability and sustainability. We also ensure that the components’ life cycle does not reach end-of-life before the product does. Finally, we ensure that updates are performed regularly providing alternative solutions that maintain value and meet evolving standards such as new regulations.

Essence of Value Engineering

The core principles of value engineering are focused on functionality, cost efficiency, collaboration and lifecycle planning. When applied early in the design phase, this methodology helps OEMs avoid costly late-stage design changes, overengineering of designs and assembly inefficiencies.

Value is realized by meeting functional requirements while uncovering cost-saving opportunities, promoting early team alignment, and optimizing the product’s entire lifecycle—from concept to end-of-life—without compromising quality. With our expertise and experience, Avnan can deliver lasting product value to both the OEM and the end user through value engineering.