Assess project resource requirements and availability.
Review project requirements in detail for staffing, funding, equipment and timeframes.
Generate engineering implementation plan.
Review requirements for engineering analysis, design, fabrication and testing.
Prepare proposal to secure necessary project resources.
Obtain required funding from extramural source (e.g., SBIR/STTR grant; private investors).
Allocate adequate staff, facilities and finances to complete plan formulated in Step 4.8.
Gather, analyze and prioritize target customer requirements.
Identify product features and specifications in light of production capabilities and component costs.
Project leader and partners consider feasibility of future scale up (mass production/delivery) of product, and estimate costs versus planned financing and target price points.
Generate preliminary bill of materials and estimate peripheral costs.
Assess required lead times for project components.
Complete business case using data gathered in prior steps and stages.
Reconcile preliminary business case with remainder of development plans.
Project leader and external partners consider if all elements of the business case have been fully vetted and validated. If yes, continue on to Stage 5. If no, either terminate project or reiterate Stage 4. Key Question is: Should the development plan be implemented?