OPD is a full-service, multi-award winning product design consultancy, committed to delivering innovative, commercially successful products across industries.
Making things better by making better things. - Oxford Product Design is an award-winning, full service product design consultancy founded in 2013.
We are professional problem solvers, working with some of the world’s leading brands on category-defining products that improve how we humans live and work. (We wish we could share them all here, but we’re sworn to secrecy.) And we’re just as excited about working with entrepreneurs and startups on groundbreaking new ideas...
Our way of working is rigorous but flexible. We’ll take your project from ideation to production, or can get involved and work alongside you at any stage of the process - from technology development to engineering, visualisation, prototyping and project management - integrating with your in house team or working independently.
We’re innovators - curious, experimental, creative and passionate. But our pragmatic, precise approach and highly technical expertise mean that manufacturability and risk management are at the core of everything we do.
Finally, we care deeply about the impact our work has on the planet. We are proud to be founding partners at Oxford Greentech - a network encouraging innovation, collaboration and knowledge transfer to facilitate the transition toward a sustainable future.
Build it right - Our intelligent process has been honed over hundreds of product design cycles. It’s rigorous but flexible, and it works. We tailor it to meet the unique requirements of each and every project.
We can take your project from ideation to production, or can get involved at any stage of the process - from R&D to engineering, prototyping and project management - integrating with your in house team or working independently.
The first step is to build a detailed and accurate picture of the end user, the market, and the problem. As our client, your knowledge and expertise is invaluable to our finding the right solution.
We’re transparent, straightforward and open with our clients (and with everyone else for that matter), working in true collaboration with you to get the job done. Because we know that the best solutions come when people work together, pooling knowledge, expertise and experience.
By monitoring progress throughout the project, we ensure that we’re meeting your time constraints and budgets, and we look ahead to anticipate problems and mitigate risk, testing our solutions and keeping manufacturability front and centre at every stage of the process.
We’re independently ISO 9001:2015 certified. This internationally recognised quality standard ensures that our process prioritises the best experience for our clients through consistency and continuous improvement. So you know you’re in safe hands.
We believe that we have a responsibility to our clients to drive both the practicalities of manufacture and the commercial success of the products we have a hand in creating.
We work with purpose toward a solution that will defy convention, delight your user and exceed your expectations.
Get in touch find out how we can help with your next project.
Delivering an exceptional, commercially successful product requires creativity, passion and technical expertise across multiple fields.
Our team brings together specialists from across disciplines - from research and strategy, to industrial design and mechanical engineering, to prototyping and manufacture.
We can take your project from ideation to production, or can work alongside you at any stage of the process - integrating with your in house team or working independently.
Our intelligent process has been honed over hundreds of product design cycles. It’s rigorous but flexible, and it works. We tailor it to meet the unique requirements of each and every project.
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Our industrial designers are adept at creating beautiful and informed designs that challenge convention as well as being both realistic and achievable.
The team begins from a perspective that anything is possible. In an ideal world, what might this product look like? How could it feel and behave? They conceive masses of ideas, before narrowing down to the most innovative, inspiring and manufacturable approaches.
The team then works alongside our mechanical engineers to refine their ideas further, testing their concepts throughout the process and ensuring manufacturability as well as determining potential components, material and finishes.
We bring the concept to life through detailed, photorealistic visualisations and animations using software including Creo ISDX, Rhino and Keyshot, to help you convey your product to a wider audience. We’ll work closely with you to establish the right colour, material and finish (CMF) for your product.
Get in touch. Let's chat about your next project.
Our designs have to be beautiful, innovative and crucially, realistic.
We work in collaboration with our clients to make sure we have a clear understanding of the scope of the design challenge - before we begin to iterate, develop and hone the perfect solution.
Our methodical approach allows us to examine the key factors that will influence a product’s design. Design for Manufacture (DFM), Design for Assembly (DFA) and Design for Disassembly (DFD) considerations always underpin our CAD surfacing and detailed design phase.
Using complex computer simulation methods and industry recognised tools including Creo CFD and Solidworks Simulation Premium, we can predict the behaviour of the product concept and determine critical factors that influence that behaviour.
Finite element analysis enables us to predict how your product will respond to physical effects such as force, vibration and heat and helps pinpoint any inefficiencies in the design.
Mold flow analysis ensures that the mold design is producing strong and consistent parts.
Tolerance analysis lets us validate that the product can be assembled in the factory with low yield, and that critical fits impacting performance can be maintained.
We can then work closely with a testhouse to guide your product to achieve certifications such as CE, FCC and FDA.
Get in touch to talk to us about your next project.
Photorealistic software provides exquisitely rendered, animated visualisations that can help you establish the right colour and feel for your product.
But even the most high fidelity virtual representation of a product can’t beat the experience of holding it in your hand. When it comes to understanding the experience of using a product in the real world there’s no substitute for physical prototyping.
Prototypes are often the fastest and most effective way to understand and refine a product’s design as well as to communicate a product’s potential to future users or potential investors.
We have the technology and the skills in house to simulate the precise look, function and feel of finished products through a variety of techniques including the very latest 3D SLA printing technology, in materials from plastics to rubber.
We also work with a group of trusted partners that offer CNC and other prototyping capabilities.
The team is highly skilled in building everything from quick and dirty visual prototypes for proof of concept, risk management and iteration - to functional rigs for manufacture and pre production prototypes - right through to high precision prototypes suitable for customer focus groups, testing and evaluation.
Get in touch to talk to us about your next project.
The perfect solution requires a perfect understanding of the problem.
We start by building a detailed and accurate picture of the end user, the problem your product will solve for them, and the context in which your product will be used.
In our experience, a user-centred design approach is the fastest way to bring clarity and direction to a project. We conduct questionnaires and focus groups, human factors and market research, competitor analysis and product teardowns, and explore design trends and emerging technology in the field.
The knowledge we gain through research allows us to boldly challenge preconceptions, and to envision a product that will delight your user, defy convention and create the conditions for commercial success.
Research is not a single phase at OPD. Rather, it’s a thread that runs through our entire process. We ideate, prove and refine our ideas at every stage, mitigating risk and ensuring that our designs are optimised for production.
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To be successful, every project needs careful planning, attention to detail and collaboration.
Product design is a complex discipline with numerous moving parts that require the attention, skills and knowledge of multiple experts.
Our project managers are diligent and skilled in the handling and coordination of every stage of the product design process, right through to handing over manufacture-ready data to a manufacturing partner.
They will guide you through our flexible and proven process, monitoring progress throughout the project to ensure that we’re hitting those crucial milestones - both to deadline and to budget - and keeping you informed at every stage.
Contact us to find out how we can help with your next project.
Bringing a product to market is a complex operation. Each project brings a unique set of challenges to navigate, and establishing the right strategy with the right support is key to a successful journey.
Our team has the experience and the expertise to guide your project to success.
Whether you need help making your idea a reality or have developed a technology and are looking for cross-sector opportunities to apply it, we will work with you to establish a clear and definite strategy, and to help you make the decisions that will lead to a successful launch.
We can also work closely with you to plan and manage your IP strategy and to apply for development grants, investments and product funding applications.
Let’s make your product idea a reality. Get in touch.
Our responsibility doesn’t just end when we have finished the design stage - we also ensure the practicalities of manufacture and support the commercial success of the products we have a hand in creating.
Our design process has manufacturability and assembly at its core, and through our rigorous testing and validation process we’re able to take products from idea stage all the way to mass production. Our manufacturing partners can cut tools directly from our 3D data, saving you both money and time.
We can help you to select and manage the best manufacturing partner for your project. We have relationships with a variety of trusted, reliable and experienced factories across the UK, Europe and Asia, who we ourselves have audited.
We support protobuilds - running the manufacture of your first products through the assembly process to ensure that the relevant documentation, materials and parts are in place for the build.
We also offer ongoing manufacturing support and production process planning. For every project, we will see to it that the implementation of our designs is efficient, effective and precise.
Our work doesn’t stop there. Seamless production requires ongoing testing so we’ll oversee the manufacture of your final product, working closely with the factory to manage quality issues, improve efficiency and bring down the overall cost.
Our engineers will look for ways to reduce lead time as well as the overhead costs associated with the production process, while retaining exceptional output and quality.
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We work across a wide variety of sectors - from household to industrial products to medical devices.
That means we’re able to apply our learning from one sector to another, providing fresh solutions and designing your products using breakthrough technologies, the most innovative materials and the latest manufacturing methods available across industries.
We work in tandem with our clients - experts in their fields - to offer strategic product development and maximise the quality and efficiency of existing products, establish their IP and develop groundbreaking new concepts from scratch.
While every sector is different, with its own legislation and regulations, our user-centric approach to product design runs through every project. With a deep understanding of your consumer and their environment, we create products that delight users, defy convention and create the conditions for commercial success.
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At OPD we work across a broad range of healthcare technology, from small medical devices to complex laboratory equipment.
With many medical systems now available for patients to use from home, the boundary between medical devices and consumer electronics is increasingly blurred. We work to understand your users’ needs, creating safe, optimised and user friendly products.
Our team has a shared desire to create products that improve the lives of those that use them. We inject creativity and passion to provide fresh solutions, designing your products using our knowledge of breakthrough advancements in technology, the most innovative materials and the latest manufacturing methods.
We work collaboratively with our clients - experts in their fields - to offer strategic product development and maximise the quality and efficiency of existing products, establish their IP and develop groundbreaking new concepts from scratch.
We design for compliance with rapid turnaround and proof of concept for new, patentable ideas, and will work with you to pinpoint the regulatory constraints and competitor IP you need to be aware of to get your product to market as efficiently as possible.
Our quality management system is ISO9001 certified, and we are working towards ISO13485 certification - meaning that we mitigate risks and meets regulatory requirements for the traceable and transparent documentation and design of medical devices.
Let's talk about your upcoming project.
At OPD we have a remarkable track record for the creation of production equipment for highly regulated rugged, safety critical and extreme environments - including for oil, gas, mining and PPE.
A deep understanding of specifications and environment are critical in creating any successful product, but that’s especially true when it comes to designing for ATEX. We have a clear overview of the standards and regulations we need to meet and will ensure your product gets approved and certified.
Our designs are infused with a deep understanding of both traditional and emerging materials and manufacturing methods. We explore technical details such as mechanisms, manufacturing processes, finishes and dimensions to add to the value and utility of your industrial or commercial product
The process we follow blends creativity, technical knowledge and expertise to create products that are intrinsically safe, highly functional and aesthetically desirable to your target market.
We design products that have dual and even triple redundancy. Products that can be relied upon. Products that can be trusted.
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We work with some of the world’s leading brands on category-defining products that improve how we humans live and work.
Our skilled team of designers blends form and function to achieve beautiful and innovative products - and product ranges - that speak your brand and are a joy to use.
Successful consumer product design is underpinned by a strong manufacturing strategy and efficient time-to-market. Through our rigorous and proven process we will establish the appearance and affordability of your product up front, reduce your development time, and ensure that the right decisions are made quickly.
Get in touch to talk to us about your next project.
Our work is about establishing how a product will come together. But what’s equally important is how it will come apart.
We’re passionate about sustainable innovation and care deeply about the impact our work has on the planet, and about what happens at the end of the life cycle of the products we design.
Considering the life-cycle impacts of a product can not only provide environmental benefits, but can also support customer satisfaction, cost savings and legislative and regulatory compliance.
We are proud to be founding partners at Oxford Greentech - a network encouraging innovation, collaboration and knowledge transfer. We’re on a journey with our clients toward creating a sustainable future for the industry.
Find out how we can help with your next project. Get in touch.
At Oxford Product Design we’re always looking for creative, driven, talented people to join our growing team.
We’re a passionate bunch, committed to designing products that break new ground. We invest in the latest technology and training to ensure our team has the resources to do work we can be really proud of.
OPD is an ego-free, collaborative consultancy. Our team combines the diverse experience, skills and knowledge of seasoned experts and exceptional graduates. Together, we’re able to be both rigorous and truly innovative.
At OPD you’ll have the chance to work on a massive variety of products - from household names to healthcare. Some brands you’ll already know, while others are truly specialist.
We offer competitive salaries, ongoing training and development, a great working environment in central Oxford, and flexible working arrangements to fit around the rest of your life. On top of that, you’ll get 25 days holiday (plus bank holidays) and a competitive pension scheme.
Want to be a part of it? View our current vacancies or get in touch.
Quality Policy
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