Happy New Year! I hope everyone was able to spend some time with family and friends over the holidays. With the new fiscal year well underway for many companies, now should be the time to consider the development work done over the past 12 months. Remember, if SR&ED claims are submitted with the corporate return, refunds are issued within 120 days, instead of the 240 days when submitted after the corporate return.

In today's blog, we will continue where we left off in December. DM Manufacturing is a successful accessories manufacturer from Waterloo, specializing in a popular handset produced in the region. With the introduction of a new handset model, DM Manufacturing has committed to develop the most advanced and functional case ever produced for such a device. After several months of research, meetings and computer generated mock-ups, DM is ready to start producing prototypes.

DM Manufacturing has identified two areas where they would like their case to excel beyond their competitors:

• Protection of the device through the use of advanced materials and structural design
• Enhancement of the device's core functionality through GPS, sound output, camera capabilities and battery

DM has designed two very different cases, one of which uses a hybrid of two materials with a multi-piece design, while the other uses one material that is a flexible, one piece design. DM Manufacturing has sourced 5 different key materials that they think will allow them to achieve their goals. In terms of protection, their objectives were to create a case that

• Could withstand 20 lbs/square inch of compressive force
• Withstand cracking after a fall of 20'
• Ensured heat was dissipated away from the device so the temperature of the device did not exceed 20°C
• Provides a coefficient of friction of 1.2 at key points to prevent slippage of the handheld when on a desk or in the hand
• Does not discolour due to handling
• Repels dust and lint
• Does not increase the size of the device at any point more than 5 mm

With project tracking well established, DM Manufacturing creates 50 different prototypes to test the combination of materials with each of the two designs.

The testing phase begins in next week's blog!