JIN board member Tom Grace describes how he designed the foundation of the Bose speaker system for General Motors.

At last night’s meeting of the Jackson Inventors Network at Jackson Community College, attendees saw two views of the innovation process. The meeting kicked off with JIN board member Tom Grace describing how, while working at General Motors, he designed was became the Bose sound system. Designers were faced with the challenge of providing great audio quality within the confines of a automobile door frame. He described the process of redesigning the interior of a speaker to provide 4,004 cubic inches of space to combat distortion.

David M. Verduyn of C2C solutions describes the innovation process at the Jackson Inventors Network

The headliner of the evening was David M. Verduyn, of C2C Solutions in Troy, Mich., who provided an exciting, interactive presentation of various techniques and “tools” to spur innovation and creativity. C2C Solutions provides a unique innovation course and approach the product design process in the CAGE Model, as well as TRIZ Training, QFD Training, Six Sigma, Kano Model and FMEA Training.

He provided demonstrations how structured methods can be used to develop next-generation products. For example, he took the JIN audience through a demonstration of the CAGE Model and how it can be used to not only solve customer needs, but create products which excite them because they deliver features the customer didn’t realize they wanted.

He noted products may fail, for example, because in the desire to please the customer, the product developer may not consider those needs the customer doesn’t anticipate.

Verduyn has a YouTube channel offering some insight into his techniques.