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The Project
J.W. Speaker is a family-run lighting manufacturer in Germantown, Wisconsin, and it sells to vehicle makers and to the aftermarket. It made a family of four 90mm LED lamps, and each one did a single job: a high beam, a low beam, a daytime running light with a turn signal, and a daytime running light with a fog light. J.W. Speaker's project engineer asked KAIA for concepts that combined two of these lamps into one light that does several jobs, with a new housing, mount, outer lens and bezel around the optics J.W. Speaker already made. KAIA's concepts led to the Model 93, which J.W. Speaker engineered and released as its own design.
Credit: KAIA | Solberg Design
The Challenge
A 90mm lamp is a standard size, so other makers can easily match a light that does only one job. Each market J.W. Speaker didn't serve yet, from farm equipment to construction and mining machines, seemed to need a new engineering program, with new parts, new tooling and new testing. For a smaller market, suppliers often decide that cost isn't worth it, and a competitor gets there first.
The Solution
Solution: Reach new markets with technology you already have
You've already paid to engineer your core technology. Selling it into a new market brings in more revenue from that same investment, but only if the new product fits what buyers in that market want.
The result: a product the new market wants, built on engineering you already own.
How KAIA does it:
- Research the market first. Who buys there, how they choose, and what they care about most.
- Design the new product around what you already make. Keep your proven technology and components, and give them the form, features and fit that market values.
- Skip the new engineering program. The hard part is already done, so the new product gets to market faster and costs less to build.
What KAIA did
- We studied the markets first. Before the first sketch, we looked at the vehicles the lamp could serve and what their buyers value.
- We combined parts that already worked. Our concepts put the optics and circuits of two 90mm lamps into one product that does several jobs, with a new housing, mount, outer lens and bezel around them.
- We explored many designs on paper. We filled five sheets with hand sketches, from one housing shared by both lamps to finned cans and a single body with a band across the front.
You already make components that work, and there are markets you don't serve today that would value them.
Set a 30-minute call about how to reach new markets with technology you already haveBack to the seven results ↑
Solution: Fit every vehicle and meet the rules
Buyers and installers want a part that fits their vehicle without any changes. It has to be the right size, use the mounting points and the connector the vehicle already has, and meet the safety standards for that vehicle, such as the DOT and ECE standards for headlights. If a part has to be modified to fit, or doesn't meet those standards, they'll buy a different one.
How KAIA does it:
- Design to the standard. We design the part to fit the openings, mounts and connectors that vehicles in your market already use.
- Cover every version. One design works for every vehicle and connector your buyers need, so you don't have to design each version separately.
- Leave the certified engineering alone. We shape the outside of the part without moving the components that already meet the safety standards.
What KAIA did
- We compared every kind of mount side by side. We sketched clamps, center posts, tube mounts and the ball-and-socket idea on one sheet, so the team could compare them before choosing.
- We made one pedestal work two ways. The center pedestal can sit under the lamps or above them, and the housing and bezels stay the same either way.
- We designed it to carry over. The pedestal joins two 90mm lamps in the middle, and it was meant to work with J.W. Speaker's other new lamps too.
Every vehicle fits a light differently. Where the light sits, how it mounts, how much room it has and how it suits the lines of the vehicle all change from one market to the next.
Set a 30-minute call about how to fit every vehicle and meet the rulesBack to the seven results ↑
Solution: Sell more
Most buyers make up their minds about a product in a few seconds, from how it looks on the shelf or on a screen, long before they read the spec sheet. If your product looks like everyone else's, they'll usually buy the cheapest one or stick with the brand they know. A product that looks different, and looks better, is the one they reach for first.
How KAIA does it:
- Explore widely. We sketch many different designs before choosing one.
- Design for the buyer's first look. We give the product a shape that fits its market and stands out next to the others.
- Keep what the engineers built. We design the new look around the parts you already make.
What KAIA did
- We explored many shapes. Our sketches ranged from one housing shared by both lamps to finned cans, a single body with a band across the front, and a single lens over the whole lamp.
- We made two lamps look like one product. The refined design puts a low beam and a high beam side by side, each in a notched bezel ring, joined in the middle by one bracket.
- We showed it the way buyers would see it. 3D models and renderings showed the finished lamp from the front, the side and above, before engineering committed to it.
KAIA designs each product to win its new market at first sight, and to fit exactly into the space its vehicle has for it.
"The new standard for 90mm lights."J.W. Speaker, Model 93 product page. J.W. Speaker's product copy, not a client endorsement.
Set a 30-minute call about how to sell moreBack to the seven results ↑
Solution: Sell at a higher price
Your product may be better engineered than the competition, but the difference is on the inside, where buyers can’t see it. So they compare prices instead.
Good industrial design makes that quality visible from the outside, in the shape, the details and the finish. Buyers can see that your product is better before they ever read the spec sheet, and that gives them a reason to pay more.
Why it pays:
- Buyers pay more for good design. Research shows it raises what buyers will pay and how likely they are to buy.
- A little more price goes a long way. Sell for 10% more with the same engineering and tooling, and you earn more than 50% more profit over the product’s life. (These are example numbers from KAIA’s cost model.)
What KAIA did
- We wrapped the housing in fins. Vertical fins run around both lamps and meet at the center bracket, which gives the die-cast housing a strong, rugged appearance.
- We kept the optics in view. The housing frames J.W. Speaker's optics so buyers can see how precise they are.
- The fins went into production. J.W. Speaker's released Model 93 kept a finned die-cast housing.
A product that only fits a market has to compete on price. A product built around what its buyers care about most gives them a reason to choose it.
Set a 30-minute call about how to sell at a higher priceBack to the seven results ↑
Solution: Lead your customers back for the next sale
When customers like the first product they bought from you, you want them to find you again when it's time to buy the next one. That happens when your products look like they come from the same company: the same shapes, details and finishes on every model and every version, so customers recognize your brand the moment they see it.
How KAIA does it:
- Set one design language. We choose shapes, details and finishes that customers learn to recognize as yours.
- Carry it through every version. Every size, option and finish looks like part of the same family.
- Use it on the next product. Each new product looks like it came from the same maker.
What KAIA did
- We designed for the whole family. We drew the finned housing and the center pedestal so they could carry over to other new lamps in the line.
- We put leadership's idea on the table. We drew the single-lens design that leadership liked next to designs that gave each lamp its own lens, so the choice stayed with J.W. Speaker.
- We reviewed it together. We presented the concepts to J.W. Speaker in person, from the sketches to the renderings.
Set a 30-minute call about how to lead your customers back for the next saleBack to the seven results ↑
Solution: Cut the cost and time to build
Most of what a product will cost to make is decided early, in the first design decisions. KAIA's industrial designers work inside the engineering you've already done: your parts, your clearances and your tooling. The design fits what your engineers built the first time, so nothing has to be reworked, and the product gets to production faster without adding cost.
How KAIA does it:
- Start from your 3D models. We design around the parts, clearances and tooling you already have.
- Show your engineers every surface. Your engineers can check the design from every side before any tooling is made.
- Hand back files they can build from. We deliver production files your engineers can use directly, so nothing is drawn twice.
What KAIA did
- We started from J.W. Speaker's 3D models. We worked from J.W. Speaker's models of its existing optics, so every concept fit parts that were already proven.
- We changed nothing inside. Each lamp kept J.W. Speaker's optics exactly as engineered. Our work was the housing, mount, lens and bezel around them.
- We settled the design before tooling. Leadership saw the product, from sketches to renderings, before engineering committed, and the refined design went to J.W. Speaker's engineers.
When you sell into a new market, you get new customers for engineering you've already paid for.
Set a 30-minute call about how to cut the cost and time to buildBack to the seven results ↑
Solution: Win OEM programs
When an OEM needs a part, it writes a specification and asks several suppliers to quote. Every quote meets the spec, so the decision usually comes down to price.
You can offer the OEM something the other suppliers don't: industrial design along with your engineering. KAIA works as your industrial design team, so the OEM gets a part that is both engineered and designed for its vehicle, from one supplier. That gives the OEM a reason to choose you for more than price.
Why it wins:
- Your bid offers more than a part. The OEM gets engineering and industrial design in one package, from one supplier.
- The OEM sees the part on its vehicle before it chooses. Designs and pictures made for the OEM's vehicle, with its logo, show its engineers exactly what they'll get.
- Your engineering stays as it is. KAIA designs around your finished parts, so nothing inside changes.
What KAIA did
- We designed around the finished parts. We designed a low-profile housing around J.W. Speaker's finished LED parts, and nothing inside changed.
- We showed the concepts in the OEM's brand. The logo plate in the center carries the OEM's logo, and we showed every concept with it, so the OEM's engineers could see the light as their own.
- We made it sell twice. When J.W. Speaker asked for pictures with its own logo, the same housing carried that too, so one set of tooling serves the OEM and J.W. Speaker's own catalog.
- We handed back production files. The final design went to J.W. Speaker's engineers as files they could build from, in two connector versions.
"Would it be possible for you to send renderings like the two below with the JW Speaker Logo?"Senior project engineer, J.W. Speaker
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The Outcome
J.W. Speaker engineered and released the Model 93 as its own design, with two lamps on a shared pedestal. KAIA's concepts led to it. Here is how the work measures up against each result on this page.
Similar results in other markets
What KAIA didWe designed a new face for J.W. Speaker's 4x6 truck headlight around the optics it had already engineered, and carried it through all eight versions.
The resultIt sells for about 1.5 times the price of a major brand's 4x6 LED low beam.
What KAIA didWe designed the bezel for J.W. Speaker's adaptive headlight for Victory motorcycles, giving each set of optics its own sculpted frame.
The resultIt retailed at $529.95, near the top of a market where branded LED motorcycle headlights sell for $140 to $600.
What KAIA didWe designed a low-profile housing around J.W. Speaker's finished LED parts, with a logo plate that carries the OEM's brand or J.W. Speaker's own.
The resultJ.W. Speaker still sells it as the Model 710, at $169.32.
Turn the technology you already make into your next product. KAIA's industrial designers have been designing products for manufacturers for 30 years. Click here to set up a 30-minute call about the market you want to enter and the parts you already make.