Gransee
Flashlight Enthusiast
Hello Guys. I am not too happy with the level of defects we have had in our lights lately. This is what I have found:
Problem: The 3.1 version Arc-AAA with the roll crimp does seem to have fixed the flicker problem. I have not seen one returned. We are still getting Arc-AAAs with problems though and 90% are ground problems that can be fixed with a proper crimp. I have checked each return personally and they are all pre-3.1 versions.
Fix: Monday, I am going to ask our dealers to trade in their old stock for new stock so we can better insure that everyone is getting the latest version. Since the crimp can be applied after manufacturing, we will crimp and retest this older inventory. If it then is fully 3.1 compliant, it will be introduced back into inventory, otherwise it will be sold as "seconds".
- Last month's batch of LSs was pretty bad. We estimate defects of more than 20%. If there is any positive from this, they all seem to be the type of defect that manifests itself fairly quickly. So if your LS has been ok for a month, it will probally be ok much longer. The bulk of the problems have been the "flex failure". A smaller percentage have been real stupid stuff like: the wrong retainer, no retainer, bad threads, etc. Also, the rev1 lack of waterproofing really bugs me. I know it is a new version and we did design it to be waterproofed, etc. But still, I will be glad to see the new version come from production.
Fix: We are canceling our contract with our primary assembler/fullfiller at the end of the month. We have tried repeatidly to redeem them in many ways over the past year. This past month was the last straw. Contractors are only usefull when they offer surge or capital equivelents. Neither is being provided by them so they are a bad deal. We are taking the work in house where we can better control the quality of the product. This way, Arc will be the last entity that sees the product before the UPS truck picks it up.
Furthermore, I am having our LS inventory retested again to weed out any more units that have failed since the last test. We have changed our procedures already to fix the flex failure (fortunately an easy fix once we identified it).
We have also added new tests to look for the inane stuff like missing retainers, etc.
None of our dealers have any LS stock since they sold out in a matter of days. So dealer exchange is not applicable.
And of course, we have new models in the works that will address these and other issues. They will take awhile of course, so we are instituting changes right now with our current product to make them work.
--
How did we get here? We are a small company and rely heavily on outsourcing (contractors). There is only so much you can control a contractor. You can offer them bonuses, cancel them and start all over with someone new, sit over them like a hawk, go on about "six sigma" or "ISO 9002", demand refunds, yell at them, drown them in paperwork, spell everything out all over in triplicate (include nice exploded drawings), etc.
Ultimately though, it is our responsibility. So rather than whine about it anymore, we are just going to do it ourselves. We will still rely on contractors for the heavy capital and surge capabilities, but the assembly and order fullfillment will soon be entirely ours.
It will take a month or two to see the results of these efforts. I am sure we will get the worst PR I have seen before this is resolved. I can not focus on that though. Our focus is and will continue to be to look for ways to improve our products now and in the near future.
We have a trust relationship with you. Therefore, this letter is the kind of communication that you would expect in a trust relationship. Please let me know if you have any questions! Also, bear with us if you have a unit with a defect.
Sincerely,
Peter Gransee
President
Arc Flashlight
Problem: The 3.1 version Arc-AAA with the roll crimp does seem to have fixed the flicker problem. I have not seen one returned. We are still getting Arc-AAAs with problems though and 90% are ground problems that can be fixed with a proper crimp. I have checked each return personally and they are all pre-3.1 versions.
Fix: Monday, I am going to ask our dealers to trade in their old stock for new stock so we can better insure that everyone is getting the latest version. Since the crimp can be applied after manufacturing, we will crimp and retest this older inventory. If it then is fully 3.1 compliant, it will be introduced back into inventory, otherwise it will be sold as "seconds".
- Last month's batch of LSs was pretty bad. We estimate defects of more than 20%. If there is any positive from this, they all seem to be the type of defect that manifests itself fairly quickly. So if your LS has been ok for a month, it will probally be ok much longer. The bulk of the problems have been the "flex failure". A smaller percentage have been real stupid stuff like: the wrong retainer, no retainer, bad threads, etc. Also, the rev1 lack of waterproofing really bugs me. I know it is a new version and we did design it to be waterproofed, etc. But still, I will be glad to see the new version come from production.
Fix: We are canceling our contract with our primary assembler/fullfiller at the end of the month. We have tried repeatidly to redeem them in many ways over the past year. This past month was the last straw. Contractors are only usefull when they offer surge or capital equivelents. Neither is being provided by them so they are a bad deal. We are taking the work in house where we can better control the quality of the product. This way, Arc will be the last entity that sees the product before the UPS truck picks it up.
Furthermore, I am having our LS inventory retested again to weed out any more units that have failed since the last test. We have changed our procedures already to fix the flex failure (fortunately an easy fix once we identified it).
We have also added new tests to look for the inane stuff like missing retainers, etc.
None of our dealers have any LS stock since they sold out in a matter of days. So dealer exchange is not applicable.
And of course, we have new models in the works that will address these and other issues. They will take awhile of course, so we are instituting changes right now with our current product to make them work.
--
How did we get here? We are a small company and rely heavily on outsourcing (contractors). There is only so much you can control a contractor. You can offer them bonuses, cancel them and start all over with someone new, sit over them like a hawk, go on about "six sigma" or "ISO 9002", demand refunds, yell at them, drown them in paperwork, spell everything out all over in triplicate (include nice exploded drawings), etc.
Ultimately though, it is our responsibility. So rather than whine about it anymore, we are just going to do it ourselves. We will still rely on contractors for the heavy capital and surge capabilities, but the assembly and order fullfillment will soon be entirely ours.
It will take a month or two to see the results of these efforts. I am sure we will get the worst PR I have seen before this is resolved. I can not focus on that though. Our focus is and will continue to be to look for ways to improve our products now and in the near future.
We have a trust relationship with you. Therefore, this letter is the kind of communication that you would expect in a trust relationship. Please let me know if you have any questions! Also, bear with us if you have a unit with a defect.
Sincerely,
Peter Gransee
President
Arc Flashlight
