Consumers’ desires for functional, healthy, yet refreshing beverages has placed a greater demand on manufacturers’ research and development (R&D) divisions. Whether large or small operations, beverage-makers are leaning on these divisions to keep them competitive within the market. Yet, in order to dedicate time to develop and test new products while minimizing the impact on existing production lines, companies are turning to lab testing equipment to save time and money.
David Miles, executive vice president of MicroThermics Inc., Raleigh, N.C., notes that many experts say that at least 90 percent of formulations fail during new product development. However, he suspects it could be even more than that.