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Measurement Specialties Inc. : Bresslergroup Award-winning Bresslergroup (Philadelphia, PA) has been creating innovative new products for more than three decades. The company is world renowned for its attention to detail and sophisticated approach to product design and development. Its clients include consumer, medical, office, and industrial goods manufacturers. Six years ago Fairfield, NJ-based Measurement Specialties Inc. (MSI) contacted Bresslergroup to help launch new automotive digital tire gauge products. Up until that point, most of the digital tire gauges being sold in the US were considered low-end items selling at stores such as Pep Boys and Wal-Mart. The devices were typically plastic commodity items from China that sold for less than $5.00. "MSI got into high end product marketing when one of their bathroom scales was successfully launched in the Sharper Image retail store and catalog," says Peter Bressler, Bresslergroup founder and president. "It was about the same time that MSI decided to break into the digital tire pressure gauge market. The company asked us to design a high-end device targeted for upscale stores and catalogs." Since then, Bresslergroup has designed more than half a dozen high, middle, and low-end digital tire gauges for MSI, and the company recently celebrated the one-millionth sale of the first Bresslergroup-designed high-end model. The products can be found in leading department stores, automotive parts stores, wholesale mass merchandisers, and online catalogs such as www.griots.com. Getting established In the beginning of the MSI/Bresslergroup relationship, MSI was in the midst of aggressively establishing product development and manufacturing groups in China. "All parties had a lot on their plates in terms of organizing new relationships and beginning a new product development process," notes Bressler. "At the time, the Chinese group was using AutoCAD, while we had recently migrated from a 2D environment to 3D with Pro/ENGINEER mechanical CAD software." Working with MSI's NJ and China-based design and manufacturing groups, Bresslergroup completed the first MSI digital tire gauge using AutoCAD 2D drafting software. For the second project, Bresslergroup designers used a combination of AutoCAD and Pro/ENGINEER. By the time the third tire gauge design was solicited by MSI, its Chinese partners had migrated completely to Pro/ENGINEER. "Subsequently, all MSI projects have been paperless and much more efficient," adds, Bressler. "Having common file formats makes exchanging engineering data much more efficient." As a result the product development cycle has been reduced from nearly 20 months to just six months from conceptualization to production. Engineering digital tire pressure gauges The original digital tire pressure gauge, called Accutire®, was designed for automotive enthusiasts who are looking for tools and accessories that are distinctive and functional. Competitive digital and mechanical tire press gauges tend to be designed and manufactured for cost-effectiveness and basic functionality only, with little attention to ease or use and appearance. The goal of the Accutire® project was to design an appealing device that looked advanced and reliable but wasn't cost-prohibitive. Whether the digital tire gauges are focused for the high, middle, or low-end markets, Bresslergroup designers pay a lot of attention to human factors. John Coleman, Bresslergroup designer, adds, "We considered the amount of pressure required to push the device against the tire stem without allowing air to escape from the tire. We also considered how to best make the LCD display readable while the gauge is being used." The high-end models provide backlighting so that the devices can be read at night or in poorly lit environments. They feature materials such as elastomer, rubber-like handles and brushed aluminium housings. The more cost-sensitive models are generally made of plastic, and have standard LCD displays. Display sizes vary depending on the market. Coleman says, "From an engineering perspective, each gauge project has its own separate engineering challenges such as working with existing components, reducing the number of internal parts, and reducing overall manufacturing costs. We believe that by simplifying assemblies, we can address these issues. For instance, we innovated the mid-range product by eliminating fasteners. Screwing the nose on and snapping the handle on assembles the product. This ease of assembly helps MSI reduce labor costs associated with production." Other issues that Bresslergroup takes into consideration as part of the design phase include product testing, calibration, airflow patterns, and electrostatic discharge shielding. "These tire pressure gauges are truly accurate pieces of test equipment," notes Bressler. Depending on price point, a MSI gauge may or may not have permanent batteries, a new air chamber, or a tube leading from the tire to the air chamber. "These, too, are technical issues that are taken into consideration at the early product conceptualization stage," adds Coleman. Each MSI project has been a packaging challenge in terms of fitting all the internal components within a small envelope. " These hand-held devices are small," notes Coleman. "It's been challenging to wrap square shaped (batteries) parts into a rounded model." On-going relationship Over time, MSI's manufacturing facility in China has made significant manufacturing process improvements. Bressler says that due to the enterprise-wide use of 3D solid modeling software at MSI and Bresslergroup, quality control for design is very much improved across the board. " It's also important to note that we have a good working relationship with MSI," says Bressler. "You could have the best technology in the world, but if the relationship doesn't work, the final product outcome could be less than anticipated. Our communication with MSI is very good." According to Mark Cappiello, MSI's vice president of sales and marketing, "We have consistently worked with Bresslergroup for a number of tire pressure gauge projects. We selected Bresslergroup because they are geographically close to our offices. Both groups can easily convene for a design review or discussion. Over the years, Bresslergroup has been responsive to our scheduling needs and appropriately prices its work to meet our product goals." At the onset of a new MSI project, MSI engineering, consisting of mechanical and electrical engineers and MSI marketing meet with Bresslergroup for a kickoff meeting that defines the project from a feature, manufacturing cost target, and timeline standpoint. After MSI signs off on the cost proposal, work begins on the concept stage. MSI engineering and marketing groups meet routinely with Bresslergroup at various stages of the design and development process until final parts data files are passed off to China for hard tooling. Bresslergroup may provide input and advice to MSI china engineering during the pre-production and pilot production phases in China. Cappiello adds, "As a result of working with Bresslergroup and introducing our tire gauges to the market, we have been able to expand our customer base, as well as become more important to our current customers. MSI will continue to drive down costs as well as continue development of new products with value added features." SIDEBAR New Designs help Motorists Conserve Fuel and Improve Safety. PHILADELPHIA, PA: July 30, 2001 - Studies show that one tire under-inflated by two pounds per square inch (psi) will result in a 1 percent increase in fuel consumption. Frequently, under-inflated tires cause fuel consumption to increase by 6 percent. Based on figures represented in the table below, that 6 percent increase can cost average consumers over $50 per year per car. Measurement Specialties Inc.(MSI)and Bresslergroup, their product design and engineering firm, have developed a line of highly accurate, cost effective and stylish tire gauges to help motorists reduce fuel consumption and improve safety. According to Peter Bressler, Bresslergroup's founder and president, "Before the development of the Accutire® products, tire gauges on the market were cheaply made and not very accurate. Several years ago, MSI asked us to design an innovative, high-end device for upscale stores and catalogs. Since then, Bresslergroup has designed more than half a dozen high, middle, and low-end digital tire gauges for MSI." Statistics from a number of government agencies and other independent sources all suggest that something as simple as maintaining proper tire pressure can help motorist save money, improve safety and help the environment by reducing emissions. According to Bressler, "we're glad to be involved with the development of products like MSI tire gauges that can have a dramatic impact and still be extremely affordable to consumers." Sample Calculation of Cost Savings from Properly Inflated Tires
Beyond Cost Savings Tire Pressure Impacts Safety
For more information about Bresslergroup, visit www.bresslergroup.com. Visit www.msiusa.com for more information about MSI. Author: Laura Carrabine |