Product testing
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Testing electric light longevity and brightness testing
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Television testing laboratory
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Product testing headphones in an anechoic chamber
Product testing, also called consumer testing or comparative testing, is a process of measuring the properties or performance of products.
The theory is that since the advent of mass production, manufacturers produce branded products which they assert and advertise to be identical within some technical standard.[citation needed]
Product testing seeks to ensure that consumers can understand what products will do for them and which products are the best value. Product testing is a strategy to increase consumer protection by checking the claims made during marketing strategies such as advertising, which by their nature are in the interest of the entity distributing the service and not necessarily in the interest of the consumer. The advent of product testing was the beginning of the modern consumer movement.
Product testing might be accomplished by a manufacturer, an independent laboratory, a government agency, etc. Often an existing formal test method is used as a basis for testing. Other times engineers develop methods of test which are suited to the specific purpose. Comparative testing subjects several replicate samples of similar products to identical test conditions.
Purposes
Product testing might have a variety of purposes, such as:
- Determine if, or verify that, the requirements of a ]
- Decide if a new product development program is on track: Demonstrate [[proof of concept|proof of concept[citation needed]]]
- Provide standard data for other scientific, engineering, and quality assurance functions[citation needed]
- Validate suitability for end-use[citation needed]
- Provide a basis for technical communication[citation needed]
- Provide a technical means of comparison of several options[1]
- Provide patents, product claims, etc.[1]
- Help solve problems with current product[1]
- Help identify potential cost savings in products[1]
Product tests can be used for:
- Subjecting products to stresses and dynamics expected in use[1]
- Reproducing the types of damage to products found from consumer usage[1]
- Controlling the uniformity of production of products or components[1]
Term
Product testing is any process by means of which a researcher measures a product's performance, safety, quality, and compliance with established standards.[citation needed] The primary element which constitutes an objective comparative test program is the extent to which the researchers can perform tests with independence from the manufacturers, suppliers, and marketers of the products.
History
As
Roles
Government role
The most common government role in product testing is creating laws for the creation of products with the intent of ensuring that manufacturers accurately describe the products they are selling and that products are safe for consumers to use. Lawmakers typically introduce government regulation when the industry's voluntary system will not or can not solve a serious problem.[6] Government standards are almost always more strict than voluntary standards and almost always have the goal of reducing the hazard.[6] Most governments put responsibility to test products on the manufacturer.[6]
Industry role
The most common industry role is to provide products and services according to industry standards. In any industry, some standards will be voluntary (which means that the industry practices self-regulation), or mandatory (which means that a government issues a regulation).[7]
Every major consumer product industry has an associated
An example of industry regulation could be
It is difficult or impossible to find an industry which has been able to review its members' products and supply unbiased comparative product information on them.[7] Trade associations exist to serve the members' interests and if information which consumers want is contrary to the needs of members then the distribution of that information may harm the industry.[7] The information which an industry provides is integral to the market but the nature of industry information is not to be balanced, objective, complete, and unbiased.[7]
Consumer organization role
The role of the consumer organization is to represent the interest of individual consumers to industry and government. Whereas neither government nor industry regulates product and service quality, from the consumer perspective, product quality is a chief concern.[8]
The history of consumer organizations internationally is closely tied to the history of the
Having access to comprehensive, objective product testing results is the primary tool which consumers can use to make an informed decision among product choices.[9]
Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g "Ipsos Encyclopedia - Product Testing | Ipsos". www.ipsos.com. 25 May 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
- ^ a b Warne 1993, p. 17.
- ^ Warne 1993, p. 18.
- ^ Warne 1993, p. 19.
- ^ Warne 1993, p. 20-21.
- ^ a b c d Brobeck 1997, p. 452.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Brobeck 1997, p. 451.
- ^ a b Brobeck 1997, p. 453.
- ^ a b c Brobeck 1997, p. 454.
References
- Perry, John (1955). The Story of Standards. United States: New York Funk & Wagnalls Company.
- Mayer, Robert N. (1989). The consumer movement : guardians of the marketplace (1. print. ed.). Boston: Twayne Publishers. ISBN 0805797181.
- ed, Stephen Brobeck (1997). Encyclopedia of the consumer movement. Santa Barbara, Calif. [u.a.]: ABC-Clio. ISBN 0874369878.
- Warne, Colston E. (1993). The consumer movement : lectures. Manhattan, Kan.: Family Economics Trust Press. ISBN 1881331016.
- Brobeck, Stephen (1990). The modern consumer movement : references and resources (1. publ. ed.). Boston, Mass.: G.K. Hall. ISBN 0816118337.