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Brand and Product Innovation "Simply put: innovation isn't what innovators do; it's what customers, clients, and people adopt" 1 Following a partnership-type relation, DETERTEC participates as member of innovation groups in charge of brand and product innovation projects. Our participation is aimed to implement and/or support the modern innovation strategy named Consumer Value and Experience Management (CVEM). Under this strategy, people in charge of branding have the imperative action to manage sensory, rational, emotional, physical experiences, present at communication, purchasing, use and results consumer moments, with the aim to improve the probabilities that consumers generate value to brand. More specifically, DETERTEC participation is focused to the development of creative ways to improve visual, olfactive and tactile consumer experiences at critical moments during purchasing, during product use and during evaluation of final results. The goal is to contribute to a better consumer perception of benefits, and finally to improve the consumer generation of value, i.e. the only valid reason why consumer adopt an offer. A close medium and long term relation between Client and DETERTEC is established, which is protected under confidentiality and exclusivity agreements that cover specific categories and local markets. Starting in 2006, DETERTEC has participated pro-actively in different consumer products categories where the visual experience plays a critical role on consumer value generation, like: beauty and personal products food and beverages family and household care domestic laundry KNOWLEDGE SHARING. As part of a partnership relation, private high-level training courses and workshops are offered in areas related to brand and product innovation, consumer value and experiences management, visual experience and benefit perception, basic and advanced applied optical spectroscopy. Fundamentals of each area as well as the latest developments and innovations are discussed and analysed, using a highly participatory methodology that allows in-depth consideration of each topic. 1. Schrage, M., Innovation Diffusion, Technology Review; Dec 2004; 107, 10. MIT Sloan School of Management.

Consumer Understanding Qualitative approach to consumer understanding about the complex way of consumer's benefit perception and value generation. Specific and customised qualitative studies based on in-depth participation of consumer experiences at critical moments when benefits are build in consumer mind. The information obtained is characterised by a high degree of reliability, quality and accuracy, and it deals with aspects with no coverage in conventional market studies. The studies are done using the company's own methodology of comprehensive visits made by highly - trained staff members. The studies collect information from consumer responses at actual scenarios and interpret this from a technical perspective, attempting to understand whether products performs as expected and why and how consumers experience/use the products and their criteria of judgement/satisfaction.

Consumer-centered Experimentation IN-VITRO. In-vitro experimentation to evaluate different aspects involved in products use. Our research strategies use standardised and innovative methods, taking into account actual using conditions and relies on a broad statistical base during its design, execution and data analysis. Quantification are based on instrumental data and/or sensorial responses provided by consumers and/or trained panels, taking as a point of reference consumer's actual evaluation criteria as well as the market scenarios in which evaluations occur. Special attention has been put to conduct instrumental evaluation of results with relevance to visual assessment by consumer's eyes. Measurands, technical parameters and system for data acquisition during laundering (SDAL)   IN-SILICO. Rapid changes in computational capabilities at affordable prices are offering new alternatives to 'in silico' innovation activities. Product, brands, consumers and their interactions are now capable to be virtualised, specially, thanks to recent mathematical models of consumer perceptions. DETERTEC has built innovative systems based on the powerful scripting and graphical capabilities of JMP software. Modelling consumer's cleanliness and whiteness perceptions. An analytic and geometric modelling procedures to develop customised stain removal indexes and whiteness formulas that correlates with consumer perceptual quantities. An analytical model approach, in the sense that we start to model defining general mathematical expressions, which are functions of colour attributes perceptions like: lightness, red-green opponency and blue-yellow opponency. Geometric modelling systems are also applied, thanks to recent development on interactive 3D graphic capabilities. Using a geometric modelling approach in combination with analytical models, it is possible to shape quadric functions like: two-sheets elliptic hyperboloids and ellipsoids, to reach levels of correlation or more than 95% with consumer responses. LaundryVisualSim™. A novel mesoscale modelling and simulation system of consumer visual assessment of washing results at relevant visual scenarios. Consumer-focused detergency virtual R&D. An 'in silico' approach applied to laundry products R&D, that simulates fabrics spectroscopy changes during one or multiple washing process, and predict different consumer cleanliness and whiteness perception responses when evaluating washing results under a multitude of laundry scenarios. Strong flexibility is the key component to keep relevancy in a worldwide base. An incredible powerful tool to conduct virtual R&D focused to increase efficiency and productivity of our clients, with tremendous savings in time and money.   SPECTROSCOPY TECHNOLOGIES. Based on recent developments on photonics and thin film technologies as well as on in-house data processing scripts using JMP software, DETERTEC has integrated several hardware and software components from different suppliers focused to conduct spectrometric measurements as close as possible to real energy interaction found in the market. Absolute spectrometric measurements are rested on in-house calibration procedures traceable to international standards. Visual scenarios characterisation. Simultaneous absolute spectroradiometry at market environments. Full characterisation of natural and artificial source of illuminations at critical moments when consumer conduct visual evaluations before, during and after product use, as well as scenario luminance measurement at eye's level. Soiled, stained and washed fabric characterisation. Non contact spectrofluorimetry of dried fabrics before and after the washes. Absolute radiation measurement coming from dried fabrics capable to reach consumer eye's. It include measurements of actual soiled fabrics like collar and cuffs areas before and after the wash. Consumer visual experiences during product using. Non contact spectrofluorimetry of wet stained/soiled dingy fabrics in the washing liquor. The fabric is immersed in the washing liquor and the sensor is place in or out the washing liquor. Focused to understand consumer visual experiences during the laundry, mainly when consumers conduct visual assessments at the beginning or at the end of the soaking process, in hand washing markets. For some market realities, that consumer perception is linked to final consumer value. Natural sun radiometry and transmittance properties. Absolute spectroradiometry of natural ultraviolet and visible radiation, and 'in vitro' evaluations of sun-protection technologies. Measurements of direct, diffuse and global sun irradiance in the range of 280nm to 800nm. Calculation of sun and ultraviolet protection factors.   TEST MATERIALS. Detergency studies only focused on technology assessment use standardised stained test fabrics with unreal level of stains applied onto unreal substrates, final results help to discriminate technologies and detergent ingredient concentrations, but have no correlation with consumer realities. DETERTEC approach on test fabrics is to offer relevant level of soils and stains on relevant substrates so as to mimic as close as possible, actual washing results that consumer evaluate visually after some washing/drying process. DINGY-CL™. Test fabric with redeposited body and ambient soils, and light-induced yellowished. A clean dingy fabrics, that represent not-new-garments ready to wear (not ready to wash). Yellowish, reddish, greenish, bluish or greyish shaded fabric according to specific market realities. DINGY-SD™. Soiled dingy test fabric with fresh body and ambient soils. A uniformly soiled dingy test fabrics that represent a soiled-worn-garments ready to wash but not stained. Yellowish or greyish cast is applied onto a shaded dingy fabric DINGY-CL. DINGY-TN™. Stained dingy test fabric with relevant coloured stains. A soiled dingy test fabric with localised stained areas that represents stained-worn-garments ready to wash. Several relevant stains are applied manually at real concentrations levels onto a soiled dingy fabrics DINGY-SD. A special case: the collar and cuffs stain. DETERTEC's approach to develop these relevant models of fabrics has been not only an extensive research on chemical constituents, physical characteristics and levels of concentration of soil and stains on fabrics, but also, and primarily, an advanced characterisations of visual attributes, based on extensive identifications of spectral properties of real new, dingy and stained fabrics from the real consumer market, using a custom-built non-contact spectrofluorimeter specially designed for this purpose. JMP™ is a trade mark of SAS, Cary, NC, USA. www.jmp.com