Team -

Thanks for your patience as we move towards the production of your rewards.  Kevin and I wanted to share an inside look at how we track our progress with the factory week after week.  It is called a WIP report or work in process report.  

Here is how it works:

We place a purchase order with our factory.  They then place dates that show when fabrics are received, when they will be cut, when production begins, when final QC starts and ends, and when they will exit the factory.  As the name suggests this is a work in process but the factory does its very best to hold firm to dates on the report but delays happen.  For example, much of our materials arrived mid November.  But the foam we are using took longer to arrive and thus delayed the cutting of all raw materials to December 5th.  This was unforeseen and unfortunate.  We could have substituted a lower quality foam for the shoulder straps but that would not have given you all the end product we set out to deliver.

Keep in mind that because we switched our facility so late in the game it took a bit longer than we expected to get all remaining raw material delivery dates.  This will move more quickly and be more known the next time we place a purchase order for CPL24 and MPL30.  

Once all fields can be completed the WIP is submitted weekly.  If there are any changes or adjustments we discuss and move forward.  Below is a screen grab of our report:

The two lines are for MPL and CPL.  

As you can see the sewing begins next week.  Kevin and I are slated to be at the factory for much of production.  Kevin will go ahead of me and work to ensure our in line QC practices are being met.  I will arrive slightly later as bags begin to come off of the line.  Our goal is to have a touch point with every bag that is produced.

Once the bags depart the factory late December it will take up to a few weeks for them to arrive and be ready for shipment.  We are actively looking to bring on shipping support so we can get these bags in and out the door as seamlessly as possible.  We will update more on these dates in real time as we are able to do so.

Stand by for updates from the road.

Onwards,

Jack and Kevin