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Product Development Research for Construction
A new clay tile, a redesigned safety helmet, digital printing for concrete roof tiles, a refurbishment window, a power tool platform. Construction products live or die on installer adoption, specifier acceptance, and on-site behaviour. R&D can love a concept that fails the moment a contractor installs it on a wet Tuesday in November. We run concept testing, prototype validation, and hands-on testing with the people who will use the product: architects, contractors, roofers, facade specialists, installers, wholesalers, and where relevant DIY consumers. Methods scale to the stage: IDIs and face-to-face hands-on testing early, CATI and CAWI validation at concept and pre-launch, with Van Westendorp, Gabor-Granger, and conjoint where pricing is part of the question. In short: we tell you whether your product survives contact with the people who will install it, before tooling commits.
30+
years of construction product research
4 stages
concept, prototype, pre-launch, and post-launch coverage
Hands-on
face-to-face prototype testing in the respondent's working environment
50+
countries of B2B fieldwork with architects, contractors, and installers
What We Measure
Examples
Concept Resonance & Unmet Needs
Whether the central idea is understood by architects, contractors, and installers. Whether it solves a problem they recognise (common pitfall: R&D-driven concepts that fall flat on site). Unmet needs and pain points the existing product set fails to address.
Feature Prioritisation
Which features are essential, which are nice-to-have, which are noise. MaxDiff and conjoint give the trade-offs that direct ratings hide. Brand, feature, and price trade-offs in choice-based conjoint.
Prototype Usability & On-Site Behaviour
Installation time, tool requirements, handling, weight. Packaging, transport, and storage handling. Moments where the installer either smiles or swears.
Willingness to Switch & Willingness to Pay
Willingness to switch from incumbent products and technologies (rubber to plaster moulding for clay tiles, clay to concrete tiles with digital printing, single to multiple-window solutions). Willingness to pay at concept versus prototype stage. Price corridor via Van Westendorp, demand curve via Gabor-Granger, feature-price trade-offs via conjoint.
Adoption Barriers
Training requirements, certification, compatibility with installer toolkits. Warranty terms, merchant availability, channel acceptance. The technical product is rarely the bottleneck.
Country Differences in Product Fit
A facade system that lands in Germany may flop in France for spec, certification, and aesthetic reasons. Power tool platforms that win in Southern Europe may lose in the Nordics. We measure where and why, not just whether.
Construction Subsectors Covered
Subsector
Roofing
concept and prototype testing of tiles, underlay, accessories, system warranties, and digital printing technologies with installers and architects.
Subsector
Doors and Windows
refurbishment concepts, value proposition testing on multiple-window solutions, heritage conservation specification.
Subsector
Facade
ventilated facade concepts, cladding materials, and fixing systems with architects, contractors, and facade specialists.
Subsector
Insulation
thermal, acoustic, and technical insulation concept and prototype testing with installers, specifiers, and distributors.
Subsector
Adhesives and Sealants
packaging redesign, applicator tube redesign, formulation testing with tilers, glaziers, and applicators.
Subsector
Tools and Consumables
power tool concept and prototype testing with professionals and DIY consumers.
Subsector
Building Materials, Walls and Ceilings, Civil and Infrastructure
concept testing for new materials, prefabricated systems, and certification-led products.
Subsector
Security and Hardware
door hardware, locking systems, and safety equipment concept and journey testing with contractors and building owners.
Note: this is a portion of the subsectors we cover.
What We Measure
How Construction Product Development Works
Example Project Scenario: a roofing manufacturer is developing digital printing for concrete roof tiles in Italy. Before tooling commits, they need to know whether architects, roofers, and building owners will switch from clay, whether the finish convinces, and what price it can hold. Design: 25 IDIs (face-to-face and video) for early exploration across the three audiences, 350 CATI interviews to validate with conjoint on price, finish, warranty, and brand, and 30 hands-on field sessions where roofers handle the prototype, install a small mock-up, and walk through their concerns. Output: a go or no-go recommendation with conditions for go, a feature priority list with conjoint utilities, a willingness-to-pay corridor with Van Westendorp and Gabor-Granger reference points, named adoption barriers per audience, and a pre-launch checklist of product, packaging, and messaging adjustments. Note: this is a typical project design, not a fixed process. Concept testing a power tool with DIY consumers and professionals across seven countries looks very different.
Target Audiences for Product Development Research in Construction
Architects [CATI / IDI]
concept reception, aesthetic and technical evaluation, willingness to specify. Face-to-face for senior specifiers and signature practices.
Specifiers and Structural Engineers [CATI]
technical validation, certification fit.
Main Contractors and Subcontractors [CATI / face-to-face]
intent to install, willingness to recommend, hands-on prototype work.
Trade Specialists [CATI / face-to-face]
roofers, facade specialists, glaziers, tilers, dryliners, painters. Installation evaluation.
Wholesalers and Merchants [CATI / IDI]
channel acceptance, range fit.
Building Owners and Real Estate Developers [CATI / IDI]
capex willingness, lifecycle case.
DIY Consumers and Self-Builders [CAWI / face-to-face]
retail-facing categories. Online for breadth, face-to-face for hands-on product testing.
Our Advantage
Why Product Development Research for Construction?
Product development for construction is not a desk exercise. We do hands-on fieldwork on site. Forty-five face-to-face interviews with paving installers in FR, DE, NL, and UK, in their own context, beat 1000 panel responses on whether the product actually installs.
We bring the right respondent. Construction R&D fails when the concept is rated by someone who will never install it. We recruit by named trade, project profile, and category usage, and we verify before the interview. No panel can.
We give you the answer to commit. Go or no-go, with the prototype changes needed, the willingness-to-pay corridor, the country pattern, and the adoption barriers ranked. Not a 90-page deck with the conclusion on slide 73.
Project Examples
Power Tool Range Development
A power tool manufacturer ran a seven-country study on purchasing criteria among professionals and DIY consumers, feeding development of a power tool range. Output: a prioritised feature set and segment-led concept direction.
DK, FR, DE, IT, PL, ES, SE
Refurbishment Window Concept
A window manufacturer used IDIs with refurbishment installers and homeowners to scope a new line, define segments, and stress-test the concept before specification commits.
NL, DK, FR
Digital-Print Roof Tile Validation
A roofing manufacturer validated new digital printing for concrete roof tiles, covering willingness to switch from clay, willingness to pay, and customisation interest among architects, roofers, and building owners.
IT
Customised Safety Helmet Study
A safety equipment manufacturer studied large-contractor decision-making for customised safety helmets, mapping stakeholders, needs, and procurement steps to brief product and procurement strategy.
DK, DE, NL, UK
Garden Paving Concept Test
A garden paving manufacturer validated new tile concepts with 45 face-to-face interviews including hands-on testing before production. Output covered winning concepts, unmet needs, pricing, and messaging.
FR, DE, NL, UK
Deliverables
- Concept score report with comparison against benchmark concepts and named drivers of acceptance
- Feature priority list with MaxDiff utilities or conjoint preferences
- Prototype usability assessment including installation time, error points, and named friction
- Willingness-to-pay corridor with Van Westendorp and Gabor-Granger reference points
- Country-by-country adoption barrier map
- Go or no-go recommendation with conditions for go
- Pre-launch checklist of product, packaging, and messaging adjustments
- Workshop session with R&D and marketing to translate findings into a launch plan
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Can you do hands-on product testing with installers in their own environment?
Yes. Face-to-face fieldwork where the installer handles the prototype, installs a mock-up, or works a real task is standard at prototype stage. Typically 30 to 60 per country for hands-on, larger for quantitative validation.
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At what development stage should we engage you?
Earlier than most clients think. Needs and concept work before tooling commits saves the most. Prototype testing before pilot production catches the issues that pilot will mask. Post-launch tracking confirms whether the concept landed.
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Can you combine quantitative concept scoring with hands-on prototype work in the same study?
Yes. A common design is a quantitative CATI or CAWI core for concept and intent, plus a smaller face-to-face hands-on module for prototype usability and named friction.
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Which audiences do you reach for construction product development?
Architects, specifiers, main and subcontractors, named trades (roofers, facade fitters, glaziers, tilers, dryliners, painters), wholesalers, building owners, and DIY consumers. B2B by phone or face-to-face, consumers online.
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Can you run concept testing in five countries simultaneously?
Yes. Standard practice. One harmonised questionnaire, native-language fieldwork, country-specific quotas, pooled and per-country analysis.
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How do you measure willingness to pay at concept stage?
Van Westendorp for a price corridor, Gabor-Granger for demand at price points, and conjoint where the brief needs to value features against price. Often we use two of the three to triangulate.
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How long does a typical multi-country construction concept test take?
Six to ten weeks for a quantitative-only test in three to five countries. Ten to fourteen weeks when hands-on prototype work and qualitative phases are included.
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