We tackled this challenge in three progressive phases:

Version 1.0 – The Extension Arm Solution Our first approach was to add extension arms to the existing lights. These arms would angle the lights higher and extend them further out, allowing them to illuminate areas that were previously out of reach.

However, this solution came with significant drawbacks. The extension arms added 50% to the structural costs (if a light structure cost $2, the arm added another $1), plus increased shipping and installation costs due to their size and weight. While this solved the immediate problem, it was far from ideal.

Version 2.0 – The Lens Innovation Realizing that the extension arm was just adjusting the light distribution angle, we thought: why not solve this at the lens level instead? This is where things got interesting—and complicated.

Our supply chain management at the time only reached our primary suppliers, and we knew virtually nothing about secondary suppliers like lens manufacturers. We had to rely on our supplier’s procurement team to recommend different lens options, then ship samples overseas for real-world testing. After countless samples and nearly two months of back-and-forth, we still hadn’t found the right solution.

Frustrated with the inefficiency, we flew directly to our supplier’s facility and spent hours searching through their sample room. Finally, we found a lens that looked promising—but then came the bombshell: the procurement team couldn’t remember which factory had supplied it!

The Detective Work We weren’t giving up. We took the lens to the supplier’s sales department and asked if they remembered selling similar lenses to other clients. They wouldn’t reveal names but mentioned it was developed for a German client years ago.

That night, we used customs data to identify the German client, then researched all their suppliers until we found a lens manufacturer in their supply chain. The next day, we confirmed with our supplier—bingo! But this time, we decided to work directly with the lens factory.

Direct Collaboration Working directly with the lens manufacturer was a game-changer. We could conduct simulation tests on-site instead of shipping samples internationally. However, there was a new challenge: this European-focused manufacturer knew nothing about North American standards and certifications. Our client, being a project contractor rather than a lighting engineer, could only provide us with dozens of pages of technical specifications in English.

So we rolled up our sleeves and dove deep into those technical documents, translated complex standards into simple Chinese for the lens factory engineers, and worked together to design the optimal solution. We spent two weeks fine-tuning the product structure based on test results.

Version 3.0 – Supply Chain Optimization Through this process, we gained deep knowledge about optics and lens products. This expertise allowed us to optimize the lens supply chain further, achieving an additional 60% cost reduction on the lens components themselves.