
Usability Starts Here.®
We are Human Factors Experts.
We conduct quality research to guide the user-centered design of your healthcare products and improve usability, safety, and appeal.
ANSWER QUESTIONS YOU DIDN’T KNOW YOU HAD
Our research-driven approach provides the answers you need. From initial user needs through the evaluation process to regulatory submission, we're committed to helping you every step of the way.
200+
Validation studies completed
(in the last 5 years)

37,000+
Participants in
our database
WE ARE NOT TRADITIONAL CONSULTANTS
We are your human factors partners. Our team of human factors researchers collaborates with you, providing guidance through every project phase. Together, we uncover valuable insights that optimize the usability and safety of your products.
USER NEEDS IDENTIFICATION
The most successful solutions are born from user needs. We observe, interview, and conduct workshops with actual users, so that you can gain a more accurate understanding of your users, their environments, and key tasks.
EXAMPLES
Field Research & Contextual Inquiry
Design Thinking Workshops
Acceptability Studies


REQUIREMENTS DEFINITION
Whether you are in the concept phase or looking to inform design specifications, focused research with our customized data capture tools can strengthen any project.
EXAMPLES
Eye Tracking
Human Capability Studies (e.g., Force Studies)
CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT
Both our in-house designers and engineers are human factors experts. We utilize their experience to consider all aspects of the user interface to bolster and transform our clients' ideas into realistic solutions.
EXAMPLES
Labeling Development (e.g., IFUs)
Packaging Development
GUI Development
ANALYTICAL METHODS
We use our vast experience of past healthcare products, along with market-available data, to analyze your product, no matter what phase it's in. We ensure you are in the best position possible to take the next steps.
EXAMPLES
Expert Reviews
Threshold Analysis
Competitive Benchmarking
USABILITY TESTING
Usability testing evaluates the usability of products and instructional materials. We do this by observing users simulate use of the product, and will never ask anyone to actually take or inject medication. This testing is not a clinical trial.
EXAMPLES
Formative Studies
Summative/HF Validation Studies
Comparative Use Studies
Recruiting
Moderation


USE-RELATED RISK ANALYSIS
An accurate assessment of use-related risk builds the foundation of every regulatory submission. It is important that risk documentation is built on healthcare industry experience and product knowledge to ensure risks are correctly mitigated and the safety of users is assured. We can help with that!
EXAMPLES
Use-Related Risk Analysis (URRA)
Perception, Cognition, Action (PCA) Analysis
Regulatory Support
Our Labs
We have six state-of-the-art usability labs in Philadelphia and Chicago equipped to replicate any simulated use environment.
Additionally, we have partnerships worldwide to accommodate you or your user populations, wherever they reside.
6
State-of-the-art
usability labs
Testimonials

“Design Science continues to be my ‘go to’ HFE partner because they make managing multiple new product development projects easier. They help with the gamut of work from formative to summative studies, including team coordination, study recruitment, securing the facility, skillful moderation and root causing, data analysis, and report writing. Their ability to get up to speed quickly on projects and deliver high quality HFE execution makes them my partner of choice for a majority of our HF deliverables and tasks.”
Senior Human Factors Engineer
Global Medical Devices Company
“Incredibly technically gifted. Design Science is uniquely able to see the forest not just the trees. When necessary, they deliver difficult feedback, but with practical solutions so we can bring forward the best commercial options. We would have found ourselves in difficult spot(s) without their partnership.”
Chief Compliance Officer
Pharma Company
“Design Science has been a trusted HFE partner for years. They are always customer focused, work at a very high level, are great listeners and moderators, truly understand regulatory requirement, are committed to confidentiality, and their willingness to be flexible is something I as well as my team have come to value a great deal. Beyond that, they manage the studies we work on with them so well and are highly competitive from a cost perspective.”
Head of Human Factors
Research & Development Global Pharma Company
“Truly experienced partner in designing safe products with the focus on the needs of the end users. Design Science brings so much knowledge in product development, regulatory pathways, and risk management. Customer-centric and willing to go the extra mile to ensure the Human Factors testing meets regulatory requirements globally.”
Director of Human Factors
Global Pharma Company
WE WORK HARD TO MAKE AN IMPACT
Our cross-functional team is driven by their passion for understanding “the human factor.”
PARTICIPATE IN OUR STUDIES
Your voice matters! Join our usability studies today and help shape the future of medical technology. All of our studies are compensated at $100+ an hour.
Our studies change monthly, so check back here often.