How a project runs
Six phases. Every phase ends with a fixed-price quote for the next one, and you can stop at any boundary and keep everything produced so far. Two of the six are written up below.
Phase 03
Get a working prototype
You have a concept and need something real in your hand, rather than a render. Something you can test, demo, and put in front of people.
Three tracks
Every one of these takes more than one round, and the rough ones take the most.
- 01 Show it For convincing a room. Finished surfaces, correct weight and balance, functions far enough to demo convincingly. For investors, trade shows, photography.
- 02 Test it For finding out what breaks. Built to leave the bench, and robust before it is finished. The data coming back is the deliverable.
- 03 Refine it For getting the handling right. Build it, watch people use it, note where they hesitate and what they get wrong, then change it. I run the sessions myself.
What’s in the build
Every build ships as 1 to 5 assembled, working units.
-
Housing and mechanics Designed, machined or printed, assembled with real tolerances.
-
Custom electronics Schematic, layout, assembly, bring-up. Designed around the product, not bought in and adapted.
-
Firmware to demo level Enough to prove the concept, not production code.
-
Rough cost estimate Ballpark for building one, and where volume would take it. Not a quote.
What it costs
Most builds start with a scoping day. Fixed fee, and you get a written build plan and cost estimate whether or not you continue.
You bring the concept and leave with a build plan and a cost estimate.
Phase 04
Turn the prototype into a product
A prototype goes together once, in your hands. A product goes together every time, in someone else’s. The design decides the unit price, and most of it is set before anyone gets a quote.
What’s in the work
-
Design for manufacture Changes that bring the unit cost down before tooling is cut.
-
Tolerance and fit Stack-ups checked so parts still assemble when they come back at the edge of spec.
-
Electronics ready for volume Parts that are stocked and second-sourced, on a board an assembly house can build and test without asking questions.
-
Firmware ready to ship Flashed on the line, updatable in the field, and hard to brick.
What it costs
Before quoting the work I need to see the files, and the prototype if there is one. That review is a fixed fee, and the report is useful on its own.
Get it reviewed before you commit to a tool.
Phase 05
Produce
This phase is not written up yet. Ask me about it directly and I will tell you how it runs.