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CustomDesigns & Prototypes

AceCo is a leader in the design and development of knives, blades and specialty cutting assemblies for food processing applications.

AceCo’s customers are constantly generating ideas for new or improved products, but often lack the time, capacity or expertise to turn them into a reality.  Our clients around the world depend on AceCo’s expertise, experience, and manufacturing capabilities to help take those ideas from concept to finished product.

The process starts with the finished product, works backward to examine the customer’s equipment and cutting processes, and identifies the necessary design, performance and process requirements to turn a product idea into reality.

Define the project goals and scope

Development projects can be complex undertakings. Customers have clear visions of the main goal for the project – developing a new product – but not always of the essential components that are required to make the idea into a reality.

At the beginning of any project, AceCo helps the customer define and clarify the project goals, and also to understand all of the elements that will be required to successfully complete the project and meet their objectives. 

Evaluate design-for-manufacturing

In too many R&D projects, decisions about the finished product are made without sufficient consideration for the knife or cutter design features required to make the desired cut. AceCo helps guide clients to part designs that are practical to implement for both their budgets and their profitability.

Risk tolerance and management

Each customer is unique, and so is their design project.  Some customers want to develop/test multiple iterations of a design, aiming to perfect the knife/cutter design and final product.  Others want to move from concept to production-ready as quickly and economically as possible.

For each project, AceCo helps the customer define and understand the risk level of their goals, and then creates a development process that aims to minimize risks to the project and avoid costly mistakes. 

Knife/blade/cutter design evolution requirements

Initial ideas turn into prototypes for test, and eventually, production-ready designs. AceCo helps clients navigate each phase of the development process so that, at the end, they have a knife/cutter design and manufacturing process that is practical and cost-effective to implement in the long-term.

The AceCo development process typically follows the following path, adapted as needed to the specific requirements of the customer’s project:

  1. Descriptions, sketches, drawings or samples of the finished product and/or knife are provided to AceCo.
  2. Design concepts are considered, based on the new product goals, customer equipment capabilities and current manufacturing process
  3. Project is assessed for feasibility from both a small-scale R&D and large-scale production perspective
  4. When project goals/scope, customer capabilities and concept feasibility are aligned, the agreed parameters are translated into a design concept for customer review, input, and approval.
  5. Once the design concept is approved, AceCo provides a quote and timeline for the agreed scope of the project.