Safety Testing, Production and Coffee Beans!
almost 6 years ago – Tue, Nov 06, 2018 at 11:10:22 PM

Hello and happy Tuesday to our backers around the world!
We’re excited to share a few updates with you:

PRODUCT SAFETY TESTING

As we mentioned in our previous post, we’re currently undergoing product evaluations with our testing labs as we approach the formal testing for launch. We’re learning more about the differences in testing requirements from country to country as well as in each certification service.

We are working diligently to ensure that Kelvin conforms to both the UL standards for the US market and the CE Mark requirements for the European markets. Conforming to these standards will also help us with the other certifications required to sell products in the other countries where we have backers. We have backers in 41 countries across the world, and many of those countries have unique requirements that we have to meet before we can ship products there. It is a complex process involving multiple hundred-page documents of requirements and tests, but it is a process that will help ensure that you receive the safest, highest quality roaster we can provide.

BEAN SELECTION

We also wanted to share another focus area our team has been working on: Selection of beans to be offered with Kelvin! Last Friday, our team tested three unique beans and had a great time sipping, sharing tasting notes and discussing our personal preferences. We’re getting closer to sharing the origins and tasting profiles of our initial bean offerings with our backers- stay tuned for a more detailed update coming soon.

PRODUCTION

Production is well underway! We will have a more comprehensive production update for you all soon, but in the meantime, here are some in-process photos of the tooling from our manufacturing partner.

 In clockwise order, starting on the left:

• Surface Temperature Tests on the production sample
• Part of the injection mold for the Roast Chamber Cap 
• Electrodes used to cut the mold for the Base part
• Roast Chamber Inlet on one of the stamping dies used to make it

Project Timing & Development Updates
almost 6 years ago – Sun, Oct 21, 2018 at 12:27:08 AM

Hello, Kelvin Backers!

We are hard at work bringing the Kelvin Home Coffee Roaster to life, and want to provide you with an update on project timing and everything we’ve been busy working on. From creating roaster packaging to designing the updated digital platform, sourcing green beans, and ramping up our manufacturing process - we are as focused as ever on delivering a product that is beautifully designed, of the highest quality, and thoroughly tested for safety and quality.

UPDATE #1: PROJECT TIMING

First, some important news we need to share immediately with our backer community: based on some recent developments with our manufacturer, we are disappointed to share that Kelvin will not deliver to our first batch customers in US and Canada by our originally estimated delivery date of December, 2018. This was an aggressive goal to start, but please know that we’ve worked diligently with our manufacturing partner to solution around every possible option that would enable us to meet our original deadline. However, none of those options were acceptable as they would require sacrificing crucial safety and quality testing. The manufacturing process is complex, and despite planning for all possible scenarios (and known unknowns!), there can still be unforeseen challenges, and that is the case here.

Specifically, we have run into some issues where it seems that two different third party testing labs have different interpretations of one of the safety standards we will be testing Kelvin to. To be clear - our product is fully functional, with most initial tooling fabrication complete, but this shifting safety testing target has required us to take some time exploring potential structural/material solutions related to the side impact strength of our outer glass safety chamber, as well as the temperature rise of the top handle during roasting. These are two key functional and aesthetic features of the product, so we need to test a few more solutions to make sure we get it right. We’ve heard of others knowingly skipping these safety certifications to hit a deadline for shipping products - that’s not a shortcut we’re willing to take.

In the next few weeks, we have a few big meetings with our manufacturing and testing partners that will help us target a refined delivery date for Kelvin. Look for a delivery timeframe with our next update in 2 weeks.

Recognizing that some of our backers had likely planned to give Kelvin as a gift this holiday season, we will be providing a beautifully designed digital gift card that you can download, print, and give in its place. We know it’s not the same as getting a Kelvin, but we want to do right by our backers and will share the gift card design with you in November. We will also be providing all of our backers with a coupon code to use toward the purchase of green beans once our new digital platform launches. We take our commitments seriously and want to offer you this additional bonus as a continued thanks for your support of our project.

Additionally, in the spirit of continued transparency, we are committing to providing updates every two weeks moving forward, between now and product delivery. Expect another update from us the week of October 29.

UPDATE #2: DEVELOPMENT STATUS

Below is a rundown of everything else that’s in progress with Kelvin right now:

Roaster packaging: We are currently finalizing die-lines, box construction, design and content for our roaster packaging. We want to ensure your Kelvin arrives safely and with a fitting unboxing experience.

Updated digital platform: Our new digital platform is being built as we speak. The site will provide you with a way to explore our bean offerings and customize your subscription preferences. The platform is targeted to launch in December.

Sourcing green beans: We are working with the best purveyors of green coffee beans to test and select the very best green beans to roast with Kelvin. Thank you for sharing your favorite bean flavor profiles and roast preferences with us as part of the backer survey. We will be announcing more details on our bean selection soon!

Manufacturing ramp up & product testing: As mentioned above, the Kelvin Home Coffee Roaster is undergoing rigorous testing as we approach launch. Our Design and Engineering teams are headed back to China later this month to work on-site with our manufacturing team to review, approve (and possibly troubleshoot) components as Kelvin parts get molded, die cast, stamped, cast and finally assembled as part of our pilot production process leading up to the full launch. There are still many key activities to accomplish before we’re ready to ship and we’ll keep you updated with any developments.

Backer Survey & Shipping: We recently sent out our backersurvey via Backerkit to confirm shipping address and received information about your flavor preferences and coffee rituals. Thank you for sharing. Your answers will inform decisions about our green bean offering and helps us get to know our growing Kelvin community a little better. If you haven’t yet completed your survey, please check your inbox and spam folders to find and complete that process, as we cannot ship your product without that info!

Again, be on the lookout for more updates in the following weeks and let us know if you have any questions in the meantime. We're thrilled at the progress we've made toward making Kelvin real and think you'll appreciate the attention to detail when you receive your roaster!

Best, 

The Kelvin Team

Backer Survey Testing
almost 6 years ago – Tue, Oct 02, 2018 at 01:23:38 AM

Hello Kelvin Backers,

We have been working behind the scenes on the Kelvin Home Coffee Roaster and will have a product update soon covering all the great progress we've made. In the meantime, we have a quick update to handle some administrative activities. To facilitate the process of collecting and verifying shipping information, we’re working with the fine folks at Backerkit to execute our backer survey.

We will first send out a small test of our survey to a randomly selected group of backers. Backerkit refers to this as a “smoke test” -- essentially a prototype of the process to make sure everything runs smoothly before we send out the survey to all of our backers. Emails will go out on Wednesday to those randomly selected, so be on the lookout in your inbox and spam folders for the message. If you don’t see anything immediately, don’t worry, we’ll post another update once all of the surveys have gone out!

Best,

- Team Kelvin

Making Kelvin - Behind the Scenes
about 6 years ago – Tue, Jul 03, 2018 at 11:16:02 PM

Hello Kelvin Backers & Fans,

We’ve been hard at work on all fronts since our campaign ended, but things have been especially exciting for the Kelvin team in the past few weeks.

For today’s update, we want to give you a peek inside the complex process of taking a design from prototypes into production, and all of the associated considerations and decisions that need to be made along the way. Our engineering team just returned from China after an in-depth review of every part of the Kelvin roaster with our manufacturer and we wanted to share some info on that process with you.

Design for Manufacturing (DFM)

Design for Manufacturing is an important yet often overlooked part of the product development process. Individual components need to be optimized for the process used to make them and materials they will be made from. This means determining things like how parts are held into a mold, how plastic or metal flows into that mold, what sort of finishing processes need to be performed on each part, and how those individual pieces are assembled together to make the final product.

//Plastic Parts

For the main housing components of Kelvin, we have chosen to use an engineering-grade, high-temperature thermoplastic. The DFM process for plastic parts focuses on process tolerances and the capabilities of the mold process. In addition, we’re also looking at every single part and making decisions of where the parting lines will be located (where the parts of the mold come together), where the gate locations will be (where the plastic enters the mold), and how the part is drafted (slight angles on the parts to make it easier to remove them from the mold). These are critical decisions that can impact many attributes from the part performance to the aesthetic appearance, and even how fast a given part can be made—which is one of the main considerations in how much that part will cost to manufacture.

//Glass Parts

One of the signature features of the Kelvin roaster is the double-walled glass housing. Glass parts are especially tricky because they are very sensitive to process variables, like temperature, and have dimensional variations that can sometimes be as large as +/- 2 mm from the ideal dimension. That might not seem like much, but it is actually a big window—one that can have a large impact on the ability to assemble the roaster. For comparison, metal and plastic parts will typically have dimensional variations of +/- 0.25 mm, but can be +/- 0.1 mm or smaller for high precision components.

//Metal Parts

Several of the metal parts in Kelvin will be die cast, so we were reviewing similar considerations to the plastic parts, including gate locations and parting lines. Several other metal parts will be made by stamping from sheets of metal, so we had to review things like material thickness and overall shape to make sure they will be formed properly. Another signature element of Kelvin is the warm copper color palate. To create that finish, we’re actively exploring a range of methods, from traditional anodizing to more advanced high heat / food safe coating processes that will maintain the color over time. This finish investigation is happening in parallel with the development of the tools and initial prototypes.

//Electronics 

There were two major considerations we needed to work on when it came to the electronics. The first is making sure that our manufacturing team can find a motor and heater that can meet our specifications and safety requirements while still being affordable. Fortunately for us, these are fairly standard parts with many options on the market—it’s simply a matter of locating the best ones for us to use. The second major electronics item was refining the user interaction with the controls of the Kelvin Roaster. There is a careful balance between intuitive use and giving the right amount of information to the user and having unneeded complexity and extraneous information, which can make the product frustrating to use. Part of determining that interaction is mapping out all the possible interface interactions- a process that we began using the most versatile, high-tech tool available: Post-Its!

This enabled us to make quick and easy changes to our user interaction map, making sure everyone on the team was able to give their input and ended up on the same page before more formal documentation occurred.

//Design for Assembly (DFA)

Finally, as we’re making all of the considerations and decisions above, we’re also reviewing another key item—design for assembly, or DFA. How the parts fit together and attach to one another is a critical component of the design process. As professional product designers, we’re constantly trying to keep in mind how the finished product will be assembled during our initial work, but these decisions are always revisited as you work with your production partners. Each manufacturer can have slightly different process capabilities, expertise, and experiences that are invaluable additions to the process optimization to keep costs down or even to increase product reliability. One example of a DFA update we’ve made is for the attachment of the roast chamber inlet, which is now a threaded attachment that both allows us to connect that piece without the use of adhesives and also allows for easy disassembly and cleaning by the end user.

The Path Ahead

This was an incredibly productive week that built a great deal of confidence in our manufacturing partners and we’ve made amazing progress toward finalizing our mechanical and electrical designs. We still have many critical tasks ahead, but as of right now, we’re happy to report that we’re still on track for our production ship dates. 

Next steps include fabricating mechanical prototypes to confirm the design decisions made during the DFM meetings, and making any final design adjustments based on learnings from making those prototypes. Once those final tweaks are made, we can start the process of producing the tooling that will be used to make the production parts! We’ll continue to keep you updated on any future developments!

Best,

The Kelvin Team

Let's Get Roasting.
over 6 years ago – Sun, May 13, 2018 at 08:34:47 PM

Dear Backers,

Thanks to all of you for your support and engagement during our campaign. When we set out to launch Kelvin, we knew that coffee was topic many people are very passionate about and you didn't disappoint. Your pledges will now help unlock a new experience for coffee lovers around the world.

While this is an important milestone on our journey, our team is thrilled to continue our work to bring Kelvin to your countertop. We've already been ramping up our production efforts and will continue to update you with our progress along the way with more details of our manufacturing process, green bean sourcing and the many other activities we'll be working on over the coming months. 

In the meantime, keep an eye on your email inbox for your backer survey in the coming weeks - that is an important step to confirm your delivery address and other details of your order.

If you have any friends who missed the campaign, be sure to let them know they can place a pre-order at our website: KelvinRoaster.com

We can't wait to get Kelvin in your hands so you can start discovering a new side of coffee. With that said, we're going to grab a cup and get back to work!

Cheers,

The Kelvin Team