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Industrial

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We use design and engineering expertise to deliver technical, high-performance products for industrial environments that set you apart from the competition.

Our Approach

Our approach balances performance, aesthetics, usability, and manufacturability from the outset, enabling the creation of solutions that meet technical requirements while supporting long-term product evolution.

Smallfry has over 50 years of experience successfully navigating the complexities of new product development in the industrial sector. Our multidisciplinary team have the expertise needed to design solutions that deliver precision and reliability while exceeding the expectations of your customers, users and stakeholders.

Trio Motion PLC, machine automation designed by Smallfry.

Why Choose Smallfry for Industrial Product Development?

Led by Market Insight

We apply an iterative, insight-led design process, validating ideas with stakeholders to remove NPD guesswork and ensure the market is bought-in to your product.

Enhanced User Experience

We design intuitive, robust products for industrial environments, balancing usability, safety, and performance to drive faster adoption, reduce errors, and make you the preferred choice amongst the competition.

Proven Experience

With over 50 years of experience creating award-winning products, our structured design process delivers confidence at every stage.

Direct Collaboration

You work directly with the people actually delivering your project, enabling clearer communication, faster decisions, and better results.

A Connected Network

Our long-established supplier and specialist network helps move products efficiently from development through to manufacture.

Cross-Sector Thinking

Experience across multiple sectors enables us to apply fresh thinking to your project and help solve complex problems in innovative ways.

Built for Performance

We have developed robust processes that ensure your product delivers on performance while allowing for seamless liaison with electronics partners, suppliers and manufacturers.

Stand Out In the Market

We’ll ensure your product looks the part, creating an aesthetic and visual branding that’s sophisticated, appropriate, and memorable. Our photorealistic rendering capabilities showcase your products in their best light, so your marketing messages leave a lasting impression.

Our Clients

“Smallfry’s sourcing and manufacturing knowledge has undoubtedly helped us improve our commercial proposition and delivered real competitive advantage.”

Dr. Simon Goodyear

Metrasens, CEO

“Smallfry have never let us down. Their expertise and creativity are very good in a niche market.”

Simon Davies

Rycote, MD

“Smallfry brought a level of elegance and sophistication to our product that has received great reactions from our customers.”

Dr. Simon Goodyear

Metrasens, CEO

“Having worked with other agencies we were astonished at the commitment shown by the team to our project, we are looking forward to a long and successful relationship with Smallfry as we now have no need to go anywhere else!”

Sarah Clayton

Simple Stuff Works, CEO
Trio Motion PLC, machine automation designed by Smallfry.

In-House Prototyping

Our comprehensive prototyping capability allows ideas to be tested and validated quickly, solving complex challenges like fitting new technology within tight constraints to simplifying product construction for manufacture, ultimately helping to reduce risk and accelerate development.

Push the Boundaries

We approach every project with fresh thinking, adapting to evolving requirements, solving complex problems in innovative ways, using design and engineering to elevate your technology and the benefits it delivers.

A Snapshot of Our Work in the Industrial Sector

Trio Motion PLC, machine automation designed by Smallfry.

Trio Motion Technology | Trio Motion-PLC

A paradigm shift in the world of motion & factory automation.

Rycote | Rycote PCS

An ingenious quick-release connection system.

Joby | Wavo Pro

The ultimate, professional on-camera microphone for creators and film-makers.

What Can Smallfry Help You Achieve?

Deliver You to Market Faster

Accelerate Your Business Growth

Reduce Development Risks

Comply to Industrial Standards

Elevate User Experiences

Engineer New Patentable Technology

Stand Out amongst Competition

Optimise Manufacturing Process

High-Impact Marketing Visuals

Our Services

Exceed your goals with our strategic guidance and in-depth research, supporting you to make the right decisions for your business and unlock opportunities for success.

Strategy & Research

We use sophisticated techniques to deeply understand your target audience’s needs, wants, desires and behaviours to uncover invaluable insights and opportunities.

Consumer Insights

Our talented team combine form and function to create visually striking, user-centred designs that elevate your products and captivate your target audience.

Industrial Design

We can deliver powerful storytelling, effective data visualisation, and engaging brand communication through captivating graphics that leave a lasting impression.

Graphic Design

Bring your ideas to life with our rendering capabilities, showcasing your products in stunning virtual environments so you can market and present with impact.

CGI Visualisation

Harness our precision and expertise to develop robust and efficient mechanical systems that integrate seamlessly, ensuring your product excels in performance and reliability.

Mechanical Engineering

Our prototyping and testing services enable you to refine and validate your product designs, guaranteeing impeccable functionality, durability, and user satisfaction.

Prototyping & Testing

Streamline your production process with our expertise in optimising your product’s design for efficient and cost – effective manufacturing, ensuring high-quality results.

Design for Manufacture

Exceed your goals with our strategic guidance and in-depth research, supporting you to make the right decisions for your business and unlock opportunities for success.

Business Support

Our Work

FAQs

Can’t find exactly what you’re looking for?

We work with ambitious brands and forward-thinking companies across multiple industries, from funded, early-stage start-ups to larger organisations. Typical clients include companies producing small domestic appliances (SDAs), consumer electronics, health and wellness products, medical devices, and high-performance industrial products.

Smallfry is conveniently located in central England, Warwickshire, and works with clients across the UK and internationally. We hold regular online meetings throughout each project and, when necessary, have successfully delivered many projects without any in-person meetings.

To get started on a project with Smallfry, get in touch via our contact form or send an email to design@smallfry.com, and a member of our team will look to arrange an initial meeting with you. We’re often happy to put an NDA in place before discussions begin to ensure your ideas and information are protected.

In short, however works best for you. The benefit of working with a consultancy like Smallfry is our flexibility; our multi-disciplinary team is built to support your product development however and whenever you need, and when you don’t… there’s no unused resource for you to worry about.

If you already have in-house design capabilities, we can seamlessly integrate with your team to extend its capacity.

If not, we can become your out-house design team/partner, on standby for you to call upon as and when you need.

As well as the traditional project-by-project approach, with defined stages, timelines and deliverables, we can also evolve a longer-term partnership. We have worked with several clients for upwards of ten years, acting as an extension of their team, providing ongoing support across multiple projects with the mutual understanding and investment in company goals that comes with a long-standing working relationship.

We know that protecting your idea is important. We are happy to sign an NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement, sometimes called a Confidentiality Agreement) before any detailed discussions take place, ensuring your information remains confidential. All of our projects are handled with professional discretion. Nothing goes public until you are ready.

At Smallfry, every project is tailored to your specific needs, so costs will vary depending on your scope and requirements: where you are starting from and where you need to get to. Having understood the brief, we usually create a detailed proposal outlining project stages, deliverables, and associated costs. We offer flexible payment options, including monthly retainers or stage-by-stage payments.

We aim to respond to all enquiries within one business day. Following an initial meeting, we typically provide a quote within one week, depending on the complexity of the project. Where input from multiple partners is required, we will clearly communicate expected timeframes on a case-by-case basis.

Unless agreed otherwise, on completion of the project (and full payment), you will have full ownership of any designs we create for you. All of our staff work under full confidentiality, and ahead of any project, we typically agree and sign a mutual Confidentiality Agreement with our client and any key suppliers. During the project, we minimise external file sharing and will only do so under the protection of a similar confidentiality agreement.

Smallfry’s process is structured and tailored to suit the needs of your project. We typically follow six key stages: Research & Insight, Concept Design, Design Development, Design for Manufacture, Production, and Marketing Material Creation.

Throughout the process, we provide the core services required to support our clients in delivering human-centred products that transform consumer experiences and drive measurable business impact.

The length of a project is highly dependent on its complexity and scope. All of our projects are tailored to client requirements, and therefore can span several weeks to a few years. We work with some clients for upwards of ten years, acting as an extension of their team, providing ongoing support across multiple projects.

We always define a clear timeline with key milestones at the outset and, if you have specific deadlines, we’re happy to tailor our approach to meet them wherever possible.

While we offer a wide range of services, allowing us to support projects from research through to production, we are flexible to your needs and happy to help with smaller, isolated aspects of your project as needed. You can explore our full range of services here.

We only use AI in a way that improves efficiency without compromising on quality or accuracy; it is used simply as a tool, like any other, handled by professionals. All projects are led by our team’s proven expertise in delivering designs that resonate with real human users.

No. We specialise in creating, developing, and refining products rather than selling or manufacturing them ourselves.

However, we have extensive experience in the production process and an established network of manufacturers and suppliers. We often work closely with clients to identify the best supplier for their needs. From there, we focus on optimising the design for efficient and cost-effective production – allowing you to remain in full control of your product and manufacturing.