Engineering design is a process that is never complete. Once a first cut is made at a design, one goes back to use that first cut as the basis for a second cut. This process continues indefinitely even after a product has come to market. We call this type of process an iterative process.
The process of design has a number of typical types of activities performed at various times. As one example of a design cycle, these activities can be outlined as follows:
Engineering Design Cycle:
Defining Objectives
Choosing a Design Strategy
Gathering Information
Making a First Cut at the Design
Building, Documenting, and Testing the Prototype
Refine the Design (may include any/all of the steps above)