You may have heard that in May 2018, we released our newest product line—the CLiP™ System. With orders flowing in, we made it a priority to finalize our manufacturing partner. So, Mike set out to find the manufacturer who could best meet our needs. After narrowing our prospects to two US-based companies with factories in China and Taiwan, Mike took a little trip to the other side of the world. Before traveling, Mike thought both manufacturers would be fully capable of producing the wide variety of parts our gear required. After meeting with the manufacturers in person, he was not disappointed.


Where Mike Went and Who He Met

On his trip, Mike made two stops—one in Taiwan and one in China. In each country,  he toured prospective manufacturer factories. And, at each factory, he viewed samples of the manufacturers’ current projects. After meeting face-to-face with both candidates, Mike knew these partners were more than capable of meeting and exceeding our needs. And, each facility maintained excellent quality control.

What Happened Out There

While meeting with the manufacturers, Mike also had the opportunity to conduct a design review. He was able to finalize the materials, manufacturing processes, and finishes we will be using for the CLiP™ System. We’re happy to report that the BitLight™ and BitVault™ bodies will be constructed from anodized aluminum, while the end and front-caps will be diecast zinc with a beautiful and durable electronic discharge coating. We will have two color options—black and a medium, silvery grey. We’ll have renderings shortly to represent the true appearance of these colors.

Home Again and Next Steps

After touring both facilities, we’re confident we’ve found the best of both worlds in our manufacturing partner. With a US based company, we have a strong team to manage logistics and quality control backed by a fantastic network of factories in Dongguan and Shenzhen that can manufacture all of the components and assemble our products at the right price!

After working hand-in-hand with our manufacturing partners, Mike is working on finalizing parts and drawings based on feedback from the design review and our most recent set of prototypes. We’re anticipating tooling beginning before the end of July, which will put us on-track to deliver these new products by November 2018.


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