PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
In business and engineering, new product development (NPD) is the term used to describe the complete process of bringing a new product or service to market.
There are two parallel paths involved in the NPD process: one involves the idea generation, product design, and detail engineering; the other involves market research and marketing analysis.
Companies typically see new product development as the first stage in generating and commercializing new products within the overall strategic process of product life cycle management used to maintain or grow their market share.
These steps may be iterated as needed. Some steps may be eliminated. To reduce the time that the NPD process takes, many companies are completing several steps at the same time.
Most industry leaders see new product development as a proactive process where resources are allocated to identify market changes and seize upon new product opportunities before they occur.
Many industry leaders see new product development as an ongoing process (referred to as continuous development) in which the entire organization is always looking for opportunities.
NDA
What they are - A Confidentiality or Non-Disclosure Agreement (CDA or NDA) allows a party to discuss its confidential or proprietary information, such as unpublished data or research results, with another party that is interested in receiving the information.
Why they are necessary - The agreement binds the receiving party to keep the information confidential and not disclose it to third parties. Without such an agreement, the recipient of the disclosed information could use or distribute proprietary information for any purpose, or the discussion would be considered public disclosure and could impact patentability.
In some instances, the company will need access to a sample of your technology for testing. This is done under a Materials Transfer Agreement (MTA), which included appropriate provisions to protect associated rights. It is always best to have a confidentiality agreement signed before in depth discussions take place.