A Medical Device Manufacturer Uses Value Engineering to Simplify New Product Development

Client Context

A medical device manufacturer specializing in non-invasive osteoarthritis and injury solutions sought to implement a worldwide Value Engineering (VE) methodology as part of an organizational transformation and new strategy deployment initiative called “Products Simplified”.

Over the years, the company had expanded its portfolio through acquisitions and new product launches, resulting in complexity and overlapping features without a strong focus on cost. However, with competitive bidding pressures in the regulated U.S. medical device market, the client needed to reassess costs to protect margins.

A critical shift in strategy prioritized prescribers as key decision-makers, requiring a new round of Voice of the Customer (VoC) interviews to understand value perception and guide portfolio redesign efforts. To support this shift, the company paused all new product development and reassigned engineering teams to focus on portfolio simplification using EFESO’s 360° Value Engineering approach.

Key Challenges

• High product complexity with overlapping features across acquired portfolios.
• Cost pressures due to increased price sensitivity in the regulated medical device market.
• Limited standardization across components and subsystems.
• Need for a structured approach to ensure quality, environmental sustainability, and customer alignment.

Approach & Key Success Factors

EFESO implemented a three-phase approach to deploy its 360° Value Engineering methodology:

1. Pilot Projects & Initial Deployment

• Selected two pilot projects, later expanding to a third due to early success.
• Led cross-functional teams through a structured, collaborative process to re-engineer product families.

2. Holistic 360° Value Engineering Approach

• Applied six key VE methodologies to optimize cost and functionality:
  1. Voice of the Customer – Captured customer preferences and regulatory interpretations.
  2. DFM/DFA (Design for Manufacturing & Assembly) – Identified design changes to enhance manufacturability.
  3. Supply Chain Optimization – Assessed supplier constraints and sourcing strategies.
  4. Function Analysis – Explored alternative ways to achieve the same product function at lower cost.
  5. Performance Teardown – Identified performance bottlenecks for targeted improvements.
  6. Benchmarking – Analyzed competitor products to identify cost-saving opportunities.
• Introduced a “Design Overlap” step to streamline product offerings and reduce SKUs.

3. Training & Long-Term Adoption

• Trained 10 cross-functional employees (engineers, purchasing, project managers, and product managers) in VE methodology.
• Expanded methodology deployment with two additional VE projects, where EFESO supported newly trained employees in execution.

Results

20%+

Cost reduction validated across all three pilot projects.

1,000+

Ideas generated per project, leveraging multiple VE methodologies.

300+

Proposals developed per product portfolio.

100+

Proposals selected for short- and mid-term implementation.

25%+ SKU

Rationalization, significantly simplifying the product portfolio.

Product redesign

Aligned with quality, environmental impact, and customer needs.

The client has fully embraced Value Engineering as a new way of working and has committed to expanding its use across future product development initiatives.