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Will Your Tradeshow Product be a Superstar or a Fright? Think "Touchy Feely" Bottom line? Your prospects need to see and touch a real product--one that can withstand bending and prodding and holding. Because of this, avoid stereolithography (SLA). But why, you might ask, considering SLA models can be created from CAD files in a matter of hours? Sure, you might have a "real" three-dimensional object in hand, but problems with SLA models exist. They're costly (the liquid photopolymer used in the SLA machine can cost upwards of $800/gallon), and the process (which involves the layering of the liquid photopolymer) is not always structurally sound. Imagine having an SLA model at a tradeshow and it doesn't bend or flex the way it's supposed to or worse--it breaks in a prospective customer's hands. Wouldn't it be better to have the actual part instead of a raw piece? Even if you attend a tradeshow with a prototype, it should be made from materials similar to those that will be used in the final product, and it should have a production finish. Show and Sell Well, not so fast. Think about it. In today's hectic world and crowded marketplace, a person has only so many chances to engage a prospective customer. The beauty of tradeshows is that they're filled with captive audiences. People attend for a reason, such as a vested interest in a particular industry. Many of these people are looking for products--perhaps products like yours. Where else besides a brick and mortar storefront will you have the opportunity to speak with a hot prospect face-to-face while showing your wares? When you look at it like this, suddenly those products displayed at tradeshow booths take on new meaning. This is your opportunity to show and sell. Don't skimp.
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Ahhh Yes - Summer and The Email Inbox
We know how it goes: emails overwhelm your inbox and the next thing you know, you're deleting at will. Problem is, you know you might be missing some good stuff! That's the purpose - and only purpose - of this blog entry...to provide you with links to some of the resources that you might have missed. We want to arm you with benchmarks you should use when evaluating companies like ThermoFab so that you can select the best company to manufacture your product:
And please know that we'd love the opportunity to "wow" you with our thermoforming process. Contact us today to schedule a call to discuss your product's needs, or, better yet, set up a time to tour our plant. Telephone Lisa King or Michael Wahl at 888-494-9777. We truly enjoy showing clients and prospective clients around our Massachusetts office and manufacturing facility.
Details, Details, Details
Design Services Designed Around Your Needs 
Design Services which concentrate on the details of your custom plastic enclosures. We're excited to announce an increased investment in ThermoFab's in-house design services. This investment will further ensure that our customers continue to receive the highest quality parts from a company that truly is a one-stop shop in the engineering, design, and manufacturing of thermoformed plastic enclosures.
Whether you already have a designer or a design or you need a designer to turn that concept into reality, ThermoFab can help in both scenarios.
If you already have a designer or a design, we'd be happy to do the following:
If you need a designer, we'd be happy to do the following:
We invite you to read about some of the design and manufacturing challenges we've solved for our customers.
Design: It's in the Details 
Sometimes what is hidden behind a product - it's interior details - are the most crucial in the design process! These interior photos from a medical device highlight sophisticated attachment details and intricate design. Contact us today to learn more about our Custom Plastic Enclosures and Revolutionary Processes
You've labored over your product: its design, its function, its manufacturing. But keep this in mind: it doesn't--and shouldn't--stop there. In fact, we're willing to say that product finishing is just as important (and maybe even more so, at least initially) as design, function, and manufacturing.
Why?
Simple. Your product's finishing touches are what prospective customers are going to see first. If your product doesn't garner attention (and quickly), it won't matter how innovative or how useful your product is because the prospect will have already walked on by.
Don't let that happen. Take the time to understand how to reach the product "finish line" in style.
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Reach the Finish Line in Style
 When it comes to product finishing, you need to focus on three things: color, min/max chips, and logo artwork and design.Color Me Brilliant: We've talked about color psychology in past issues, but it bears repeating. The color you choose speaks to consumers on a subliminal level. White says "clean," bold purple suggests "fun," and soft blues and sea greens have calming effects. Think about what you want your product to say and what impression you want it to leave on people's minds. Don't randomly select a color. Make sure you have a reason (and a good one) for selecting it. Of course, choosing the right color is only the first step. What comes next? Working with a thermoformer that makes certain your color translates well onto the product. At ThermoFab, we perform all painting in-house because this gives us maximum control over color, gloss, and texture. For the exterior color, we can color-match using your color sample chip or specification. To ensure the right color is applied every time, we use Dupont Spectramaster. Which brings us to our next important point. Ensuring Color Consistency with Min/Max Chips Think of it like this: min/max paint chips keep everyone "honest" because they provide the all-important color/texture/gloss level criteria. How does it work? We can only speak to our own process here at ThermoFab:
Everything about your product should reflect and reinforce your existing brand. Branding is not something that you should be thinking about after the product is designed and manufactured. It needs to be part of the custom thermoforming process. Questions to ask:
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Finished Product. "Wow" Result.
Read how ThermoFab helped transform this industrial box housing into a sleek platform, complete with product finishing that really makes the product "pop." (Note: link opens a PDF.) Then browse through our complete list of thermoforming case studies here. |
Ah, yes. "Quality Assurance." QA. It's a term you no doubt have heard bantered about in the marketplace, by your vendors, and in your own hallways. But what does it really mean? Has it become a meaningless phrase, a term that all product manufacturers talk about--or at least talk around--but that has become overused, much like the terms "robust solution" or "teachable moment"?
We're going to talk about what QA really is, how to look for it and what questions to ask your thermoforming vendor, and what, exactly, our quality assurance promise is to our customers.
Ultimately, the customer (the true end user) decides if a product is "quality" or not. For us at ThermoFab and for you, that means your customers (end users) determine whether the part we thermoformed is quality.
Still, we can all takes steps to assure that what we're putting out there--from the custom thermoformed plastic enclosures to the final product itself--is the right quality. Which brings us to the next point.
What is a quality product?
A quality product meets a specific market's needs. It doesn't necessarily have to be expensive or even "high quality" to be a quality product. The market and the people in that market determine quality.
What's the difference between quality assurance and quality control?
We imagine you'll probably get different definitions depending on the source, but here's how we view it: QA and QC are different. We think this explanation from the Wikipedia page on quality assurance is accurate:
"Quality control emphasizes testing of products to uncover defects, and reporting to management who make the decision to allow or deny the release, whereas quality assurance attempts to improve and stabilize production, and associated processes, to avoid, or at least minimize, issues that led to the defects in the first place."
What's something that can hamper the production of a quality product that no one ever talks about?
What we're going to say might sound simple--even too simple--but the biggest thing that can hamper the production of a quality product is an unrealistic vision.
For example, perhaps you or someone in your company has sketched out or designed how you expect the product to look and function. Now what if you begin to talk it up and market this idea to people--upper management, marketing, sales, even potential customers--only to realize once you sit down with your manufacturing vendor that your original vision (i.e. your design) needs to be adjusted or tweaked?
Read more in our May eNewsletter: http://www.thermofab.com/newsletters/may-2010-thermoforming-quality-assurance/
Did you just ask yourself - - How do I best attach this plastic enclosure to the metal chassis? Do you need assistance with a hidden hindge design incorporation with a plastic assembly?
If you are looking for a thermoforming company to assist you to develop and manufacture your parts by meeting your specifications and expectation then it is critical that you and your team carefully think through the ins and outs of your parts hardware. Email superhero@thermofab.com to assist with your project and hardware options.
Interior Detail
