Product Development
A major part of the product development process of this frame was the creation of the sculpt. For this project, we had requested the vendor to make this for us as they had such amazing sculpting capabilities. We made sure that we sent them very detailed drawings to take full advantage of their ability. In addition, the detailed specs also reduced the back and forth emails that could have caused unnecessary delays.
First Sculpt
The first sculpt of the frame already captured our vision. We just made a minor revision on the corners to make sure the frame is raised enough to keep the other barbs from hitting the surface.
Revised & Final Sculpt
We approved the revised sculpt the moment we said it including the back tab. We just asked confirmation from the vendor that they are comfortable with the gaps between the barbs to make sure filled gaps/holes would not be an issue in production.
Sampling
Luckily, the first metal sample came out looking great and already showed the intricacy of the design. Only minor callouts were made such as making the inner borders smoother without the tiny divots and having the barbs less sharp so they don’t prick or snag. We immediately have them the green light to proceed with off-tool sampling.
Comments for Production
We received the off-tool samples and everyone thought they looked good. However, since mass production was the next step, I had to be more critical and looked at these much closer. I noticed that there was unevenness in the finish, missing barbs and even a warped section. I had made comments in the usual format shown above, where each issue was numbered with images and proper callouts. This ensured everything was communicated with clarity and nothing would be overlooked before moving to production.
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