top of page
Image by Ramón Salinero

Innovation creation support

At Covalent, we are good at developing new businesses and new products that understand the details of our customers' operations and lead to new solutions using advanced technology. We are also good at speedy new product verification using MVP (Minimum Viable Product: a product with the minimum specification required for verification).
We have many achievements that have led to the development and introduction of products that solve customers' problems by utilizing the literacy that has utilized many advanced technologies and the knowledge of on-site work in the manufacturing and construction industries.


If you would like to know the details of our past performance and services, please request detailed materials from the following.

ISSUES

Issue

  • Can't find human resources or partners who can accurately understand the business requirements of your company or industry and develop optimal new products

  • Can't find a partner who can create a sense of fit for work using advanced technology

Concerns about creating new businesses and services

Concerns about speed of new business development

  • I want to validate the idea immediately, but it is difficult to get a budget or test marketing using my company name

  • I want to validate my ideas immediately, but new product development is not progressing as expected.

  • I don't know how to conduct marketing research for new B2B products

SERVICE MENU

service menu

New product development utilizing business knowledge

We can develop applications by organizing business requirements that can be realistically introduced and created effects for customers. In particular, our strength lies in the development of new products that meet the on-site work requirements of the manufacturing and construction industries. Tech-savvy staff can build new products using cutting-edge technologies such as AI, xR, digital twins, and Blockchain.

Speedy verification of MVP utilization

For the customer's new product idea, after sorting out the verification points, we quickly develop the minimum product (MVP: Minimum Viable Product) necessary for verification and conduct verification.

New business creation consulting

We support customers who are pursuing business creation in search of new revenue sources. In particular, we are good at cases that utilize the advanced technologies of overseas startups and cases that analyze and refer to the business models of overseas startups.

APPROACH

approach

New product development utilizing business knowledge

1

1

Requirement definition

About 1 month~

2

Specification design/development/test

about 2 months

3

Operation support

​3 months~

1

Requirement definition

About 1 month~

We understand the customer's new product idea, the needs behind it, on-site work and on-site environment, etc., and break it down into functional and non-functional requirements. After analyzing the actual conditions and issues of the assumed users' on-site operations and the factors that prevent existing products from addressing the issues, we propose how advanced technology can be used to solve the issues.
If it is difficult to define the requirements because there are unclear parts in the concept of the new product or the requirements are enormous, etc., we will conduct market research and benchmark reference cases as appropriate, and propose the optimal requirements for business development. We can also support discussions on setting priorities for implementation according to the time axis.


Output: Requirements definition document
We will summarize the development purpose of the new product and the functional and non-functional requirements before the start of development.

2

Specification design/development/test

about 2 months

We will proceed with the development of new products according to the requirement definition. With our offshore development partners, you can quickly source advanced technology engineers and start development quickly and cheaply.
By having customers see new products under development in detail through agile development, it is possible to reflect points that need improvement that we feel when actually using them in new products.


Output:
·new product
We mainly develop IT tools for development, production design and production operations in the manufacturing industry, design and construction operations in the construction industry, and other management operations that incorporate the following technologies.
- SBOM (software bill of materials)
- AI algorithms (both supervised and unsupervised) and training datasets
-Digital twin (3D model, collection and reflection of sensor data, simulation algorithm)
-Blockchain (Available for public, consortium, and private types)
We can also develop native apps (iOS/Android), hybrid apps (PWA/Flutter), and super apps (LINE apps/WeChat mini-programs).
・(as appropriate) specifications, test specifications, test result reports
Development documents that record the development process can also be delivered. However, due to agile development, we will create and deliver after new product development.
・SBOM (software bill of materials)
We will share the list of open source software used for development with the customer as SBOM. It can be used to identify vulnerabilities and understand license details.

3

Operation support

from 3 months

After delivery of a new product, we can support various tasks up to the start of operation, operation and updates after start.


Output:
·manual
Summarize the operation and handling methods when using new products.
・Operation design document
Coordinating maintenance and other operational tasks.

Speedy verification of MVP utilization

1

1

Organize verification points and define MVP requirements

About 1 month~

2

MVP development

About 1 month~

3

Verification preparation

from 1 month

(Concurrently with MVP development)

Four

Verification and result analysis

About 1 month~

1

Organize verification points and define MVP requirements

About 1 month~

It is necessary to understand the customer's new product idea, the needs behind it, on-site work, on-site environment, etc., conduct market research, competitive benchmarks, technology research, etc., and verify the feasibility of business and technology. Organize your points. Summarize the minimum necessary new product requirements for verification of verification points.


Output: MVP requirements definition document
Before the start of development, we compile the minimum necessary functional and non-functional requirements based on the purpose of new product development, feasibility verification points, and verification points.

2

MVP development

About 1 month~

If it is difficult for the customer to develop, it is also possible to implement MVP development at our company. With our offshore development partners, you can quickly source advanced technology engineers and start development quickly and cheaply.


Output: MVP
We develop products with minimum specifications and functions for verification. We utilize open source software as appropriate and develop in the minimum period and budget.

3

Verification preparation (in parallel with MVP development)

About 1 month~

We design verification methods for verification points, formulate verification plans, acquire monitors and verification partners necessary for verification, and prepare test data.


Output: MVP verification plan
Organize verification points and a task schedule for conducting verification.

Four

Verification and result analysis

About 1 month~

After conducting verification, we will propose areas that need improvement and design an execution plan. If there are matters that are difficult to improve on your own, we can also support the search for development partners.


Output: MVP verification result report
Summarize the verification results by MVP in PPT. Summarize the verification results for each verification point and actions for improvement on the issues raised.

1

New business creation consulting

1

Identifying new business ideas

About 1 month~

2

Evaluation and selection of business ideas

about 1 week

3

Realization of business model

about 3 months

1

Identifying new business ideas

About 1 month~

We will design a method for identifying new business ideas based on the customer's theme. For example, we may research the business models and advanced technologies of overseas startups to identify business ideas, or we may identify business opportunities based on our unique method of analyzing market trends in the customer's theme. . The scale of each project varies, but when research is conducted, it is often several thousand ideas.


Output: List of new business ideas
Organize new business ideas as a list in Excel along with their characteristics.

2

Evaluation and selection of business ideas

about 1 week

The identified ideas are selected based on a certain evaluation axis. The evaluation axis is set in consideration of the background and purpose of the customer's business creation, and the sense of scale and speed required. When there are many ideas, we may provide three opportunities to narrow down the list. In addition, when business ideas are identified by our unique method, speedy selection is possible because it is linked with the narrowing down process.


Output: Evaluation results of new business ideas
We summarize the evaluation results for each evaluation axis for the list of new business ideas and clarify the ideas with high priority.

3

Realization of business model

about 3 months

In order to start the selected business idea as a business, we will proceed with the materialization of the business model. We use various verification methods (POC, MVP verification, etc.) to solidify the outline of the business model (target users, profit model, service content) and formulate a business plan. After that, according to the business plan, when collaborating with an overseas startup, we will proceed with preparations for negotiations, and when developing a new product in-house, we will solidify the product specifications and proceed with development.


Output: business model, business plan
We will define the outline of the business model for the new business idea and formulate a business plan. The business plan organizes the necessary tasks in detail according to the business content so that it will lead to the subsequent launch.

ADVANTAGE

advantage

Technology with high technical specs, technology with many implementation records, startups with a track record of investment by prominent investors, etc., do not necessarily create results for your business. Therefore, we analyze the customer's strategic emphasis, issues, QCD effect of on-site work, etc., identify the technical requirements that will lead to the creation of the customer's effect, and reflect it in subsequent surveys and evaluations.

Based on the customer's business and business conditions, we can design the evaluation axis of advanced technology.

No matter how great the potential of the advanced technology is, if the maturity of the technology is low, the PoC result cannot be said to be highly cost-effective. It's not uncommon. Therefore, after understanding the technology maturity at the time of PoC, we distinguish between items that can be verified at the time of PoC and items that should wait for future technological maturity, and design the scope of verification in PoC. As a result, even if the PoC does not lead to practical use at the site, it will be possible to continue considering the introduction of advanced technology by connecting it to the next necessary technology development and designing steps for future site introduction. I can support you.

Even if the results are not sufficiently appealing at the time of PoC, it can be sublimated into a plan for future on-site introduction.

It is possible to create a list of ideas based on our unique business idea creation method that uses perspectives such as the factors of change in the customer's industry, environmental changes in the world, and the needs and concerns of expected customers. So far, we have identified business ideas based on this method with automobile manufacturers, infrastructure operators, chemical manufacturers, etc. We have a track record of identifying about 500 to 1,000 ideas in one case, which has led to commercialization.

We can propose a variety of business ideas using our original idea creation method.

We can propose various business ideas with a track record of overseas startups.

We continue to collect information through collaboration with overseas startup communities (VCs, accelerator programs, our own overseas bases). Using that knowledge, we can propose business ideas related to the customer's theme, and we can also propose collaborations between customers and overseas startups. Borrowing the wisdom of other companies can also be used as an effective means to speed up business creation.

Promoted by members with experience in launching venture businesses.

Members with experience in launching venture businesses in Japan and overseas and members with experience as executives at venture companies will be in charge of business creation. We are adept at making satisfactory decisions in a short timeframe, and we support speedy progress.

Output

OUTPUT

New products/services

I am mainly responsible for the development of products that lead to the improvement and enhancement of the customer's business process.
In some cases, we have a deep understanding of the business and make a major overhaul of the original business process.

MVP verification result

Through concept tests, we solidify the features of products and services that cannot be decided on paper.

It is possible to perform verification speedily and at low cost because we utilize the resources of our overseas partner software development company.

​ Verification results will be reflected in the specifications and functions of this product.

​New business model

We build a business model based on the customer's business policy.

In particular, we focus on the part of building a model that leads to solid profits, so we support the construction of a feasible scheme in consideration of advanced overseas cases and laws and regulations in the target market.

TRACK RECORD

achievement

KPIs

Number of new business ideas Approx.3,800

Proportion of businesses reaching commercialization Approx.100%

Percentage of overseas business Approx.33.3%

Number of client industries15Industry

Percentage of clients with multiple contracts Approx.95.8%

Average promotion period approx.9.5for a month

CASE STUDY

CLIENTS' VOICE

customer's voice

Major auto parts supplier

Reliable traction as an escort runner

In a sense, it was very helpful to have the ability to forcefully push forward in a situation where it was difficult to establish an appropriate team structure, such as members who had no experience in business development, members who did not work beyond the scope of their roles, etc.
At the beginning, I had a lot of anxiety, and there were many conflicts with the field and management, but after about a year, I felt like I could work as a team member, and I managed to start the business. I don't think we could have been able to bring it to launch without their contributions.

Major construction company

Surprised by the originality of idea generation

I was surprised that they presented more than 300 relatively sound business ideas by making full use of the idea creation method called the cube method.
Of course, there was also an explanation of the process of creation, but there were many ideas that we would not have thought of normally, and I felt the wonder of a professional.
Many of the ideas that were ultimately selected were reasonable, but there were also models that could be established by combining them with eccentric ideas.

RELATED SERVICES

Related services

Advanced technology research

We search and pursue advanced technologies that lead to the growth of our customers' businesses. We organize the information necessary for decision-making based on customer needs.

Overseas market trend research

For customers who are considering entering overseas markets, we help them understand market trends in detail and organize the information they need to make decisions about whether to proceed with entry.

​ Advanced technology introduction support

We select cutting-edge technology that meets the needs of the customer's business, and follow up until MVP development and on-site introduction are achieved.

WHITE PAPER
DOWNLOAD

White Paper Download

Download the white paper here

bottom of page