This past Friday, we had the first production models come off the line at our contract manufacturer’s facility. These first few production units were shipped out to a small group of local testers to go through a production validation phase. This process is meant to expose any problems that could work themselves into the machines during assembly on the production line. This includes uncovering things like assembly tolerance issues, making sure all correct parts are included in the assembly, identifying any defective electronics or wiring issues and so on. It is an important step towards finalizing the production line process and determining how machines will be QC’d before being shipped out to customers.
Carvey in the assembly line
We of course wish we could say the very first production units were flawless, but so far we have uncovered a few areas that need to be addressed. These include updating some of the production drawings to show correct placement of things like warning labels and serial number plates, and in one case, replacing an older version of a plate with the newest revision. We also identified a tolerance issue with the acrylic used in the door panels. We scraped the ones that came in from China. We have three domestic sources making them with higher tolerances, at a higher cost, and with a much quicker lead time. This will improve the fit of the panels into the frame on all production units we ship to you.
Carvey door frame before windows are installed
We know everyone has been waiting a long time and is anxious to have shipments begin. We are almost there! We are trying our best to deliver you a Carvey that you will LOVE. We need just a little bit more time to iron out these last few details. Our best case estimate at this point is that we can begin shipping out finalized production units to customers within 2 - 4 weeks. This doesn’t mean everyone will get theirs in 2-4 weeks it means we can start shipping orders.
#24 waiting to go to the test bay
Thank you for your extended patience and sticking with us!