Fri Aug 24 '18 Announcement
over 5 years ago
– Fri, Aug 24, 2018 at 10:21:15 AM
Part 1 of 2
Greetings!
A lot has been happening since our last update.
The biggest news? We’ve started shipping! The first backers around the world have already started receiving their Stickybones.
From all of Team Stickybones--THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts. Without the long-standing, patient support of our Indiegogo backers Stickybones would not be. THANK YOU.
Loading the first backer's Stickybones package into the FedEx Truck. Video clip.
So now that shipping has started, can we finally relax and kick up our feet while well-trained peacocks gently fan us with their lustrous tail feathers? Nope! It’s just as exciting and intense as it has ever been. Which is VERY!
What kinds of things have been going on during the beginning of production? If you’d like to read about a few and see some behind the scenes photos, read on. (Fear not, though, the issues we're about to mention are already resolved!) If you’re in a hurry, feel free to skip to the Q&A’s in part 2.
- We discovered that some of the neck rods were being produced smaller than specification resulting in some of the necks being too loose. Floppy heads = not good. Our manufacturer is already fixing it. Email us if you got a loose neck that won't hold your pose.
We found a surprise problem with a batch of the hips. As a result, we had to rush to our manufacturers facility and personally hand test every single Dark Storm hip that had been made so far. We’re glad we did-- We weeded out many bad hips, and have now replaced them with good hips.
We're working to resolve a production bottleneck. Even though we replaced the glue with easier-to-handle glue, among a few other things, the magnet installation station was still proving to be where production gets backed up the most. To speed up this process, we’ve (okay, well Erik) built mechanisms aimed at making handling strong magnets simple and easy for the magnet installation and assembly team. (Essentially, he quickly invented and built an entirely new invention to help assemble his first invention, ha!) (Erik did not write this) Many trips to Home Depot (they know him by name now) and Ace Hardware later, it’s done and we dropped it off at our manufacturer this week. We think it will prove useful and speed the magnet installation up a great deal.
We randomly spot-checked a “ready-to-ship” Stickybones box and discovered that the figure had 2 left feet! We decided to find out how common this mix up was, so we opened and checked all of the boxes that had not shipped yet. Luckily, we found only 1 other mismatch out of many--so the problem was not as pervasive as it could have been. We’ve notified our manufacturer to please be extra vigilant about getting proper parts in the box. (Which reminds us, please let us know if you get a mismatched or wrong part in your box and we’ll correct it.) We understand that everyone is human and mix-ups are bound to happen from time to time, especially since this is the first run in history!
Aside from those surprise situations, we’ve been doing anything and everything we can to help production along. When we can get there, we’re trying to be the extra “hands on deck” at our manufacturer and fulfillment center---helping out with any aspect we can. And to be honest, it’s incredibly fun to be working on the line there! We’ve been labeling boxes, stuffing bags, sorting and testing parts and really anything they need help with.
“Photo show and tell please!” You think to yourself.
“Okay,” Responds Team Stickybones. “but don’t forget you asked for these!”
At our fulfillment warehouse, opening up all the Stickybones boxes to check for matching toes!
Confirmed: These backer boxes are good to ship.
First Shipping Day: Erik rolls up his sleeves to get to work. The Stickybones, Fly-Rigs and Performance stages here are the first-ever backer orders to be shipped. (see the labels with each order? Those are filled out with backer addresses.) Some of the countries included in this group are USA, Switzerland, Japan, The Netherlands and Yellowknife, Canada (love that name)---and many more countries were shipped to that day.
At the manufacturer labeling another batch of boxes--400 UPC stickers in one swoop!
More boxes getting their UPC label.
Sorting parts at the manufacturer.
More sorting and documenting late into the night!
Manufacturing in Progress: Fly-Rig. Click for short video.
Please continue to Part 2 of the update for Q&A's.
Wed Aug 8 '18 Announcement
almost 6 years ago
– Wed, Aug 08, 2018 at 03:32:21 PM
The BackerKit surveys have been emailed to you! This is where you will input your mailing address, choose your Stickybones color, and pay your shipping costs and select any add-ons you may want, i.e. additional Stickybones or Fly-Rig(s) and this will not change your original position in regard to the order in which we are shipping.
If you've recently sent us a message or comment, we will get back to you personally, but please allow us a bit of time to respond since we've had many messages just come in. Thank you!
ALL BACKERS PLEASE READ:
If you receive more than one survey, please email [email protected] with the subject line "Multiple BackerKit Surveys" and we will combine them into a single survey for you on our end. The reason we'd like to do this is to allow all of your items to ship to you in the same package and save you shipping costs.
We're instructing our fulfillment house to ship in chronological order of when we received your original contribution.
Not all orders are shipping immediately...we are shipping in batches as they come off the manufacturing line--but all backers are officially a part of the first-ever production run of Stickybones. We're just beginning the shipping process before all Stickybones are made so we can start getting them to backers as quickly as possible. First shipments begin this week.
We are still in active production--Stickybones and Fly-Rigs are being made every single day. Yours will be hot off the press.
The first group will begin shipping this week and we will continue shipping as we get more fresh Stickybones off the press, in groups .
How is shipping and handling calculated?
The shipping and handling charge you see in BackerKit is a bare-bones cost--we are not profiting from shipping fees. The shipping and handling charges have been meticulously calculated by country and include FedEx shipping fees as well as fulfillment/handling fees charged by our fulfillment house. In an effort to ensure your packages get to you as safely and quickly as possible, we have partnered with a high capacity, international shipping facility to get Stickybones to 97 countries around the globe and all across the USA. Your perks will be in great hands there. As a startup, we're not yet getting "high volume" discounts at our fulfillment house that are given to big corporations with much larger volumes that allow them to ship more cheaply. We hope to reduce shipping costs in the future and will actively explore ways to do this. Thank you for understanding.
USA BACKERS Please read:
You just need to complete your survey here and we'll send your package when it's ready. You will receive tracking information via email when your shipment goes out. If you move or need to change your address before the shipment goes out, please update it in your BackerKit.
INTERNATIONAL BACKERS PLEASE READ! IMPORTANT!:
INTERNATIONAL BACKERS----How does the international shipping process work?
(Please familiarize yourself with this process so you don't encounter problems with your shipment.)
You'll pay your shipping and handling fees here in BackerKit. However, as indicated in the perk description, you will also be required to pay customs/duties (aka import taxes) to your destination country's government.
International Shipping: HOW IT WORKS: IMPORTANT!
1.) You pay your shipping and handling fees in BackerKit and select your color (this does NOT include your country's import tax.) Please ensure you include the best phone number by which to reach you. Double-check your address is accurate.
2.) When your Stickybones has been produced and ready, we will ship your products to you hot-off-the-press via FedEx and email you tracking info.
3.) Your shipment gets stopped in your country's customs agency.
4.) You will receive a request for payment of duties/taxes/VAT from FedEx. This could come as a phone call (so please make sure you provide your phone number) or email. Please pay these quickly.
5.) Once you pay your import taxes (again, please do this quickly!) FedEx will continue delivery to the address you provided in BackerKit.
Question: what happens if I don't pay INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING: Customs/Import Tax?
Answer: If you refuse or otherwise do not pay your government obligated import taxes/customs/duties in a timely manner, your perks will be confiscated by your country's customs agency. We cannot be responsible for or replace your shipment that has been confiscated due to non-payment of taxes. For this reason, it is incredibly important that you pay these fees as soon as you are asked and avoid this undesirable situation and to get your Stickybones to your door as smoothly as possible via FedEx. Since we at Stickybones are not licenced tax professionals we cannot provide tax estimates, however, here is a great resource if you would like to generate an estimate yourself: https://www.dutycalculator.com/. Reminder, you will be given tracking information when your package ships. Thanks!
Backers in RUSSIA, please email us at [email protected] Subject line "Backer in Russia." Please do not complete the BackerKit survey before getting in contact with us.
Question: Can we see photos of Dark Storm and Spark Blue in the same photo on a white background?
Answer: Yes! Yes you can. Here they are below...
Thu Jul 26 '18 Announcement
almost 6 years ago
– Thu, Jul 26, 2018 at 11:16:22 PM
Let’s kick off this update with some great, long-awaited news:
We have the first-ever group of final, manufactured Stickybones and Fly-Rigs completely, 100% DONE. (We’re celebratory dance-typing this update.) These are all destined for backers. (You didn't miss the BackerKit survey, they have not been sent yet...more on that below.)
The final manufactured Stickybones and Fly-Rigs are working GREAT and we are incredibly happy with them.
The last few weeks have been busy, busy, BUSY with many moving parts.
A lot has been going on behind the scenes to prep to ship Stickybones. For example, a few weeks back, we were inspecting a box of Stickybones that was supposed to be final and we were about to give the “go ahead” and approve as final. However, at the last minute, our stomachs dropped as we caught a NEW critical error in the left shoulder. This became a 911 situation, as many of the Stickybones had already been made. Don’t worry, there is a happy ending--we were able to locate the source of the problem in the mold, fix it, and re-run just that shoulder part and it now works correctly.
We don’t know for sure why that surprise error occurred, we can only speculate that someone accidentally tweaked something they should not have.
We’re thankful we caught it before shipping and got it remedied. We will continue to keep a hawk-eye on production as we keep producing Stickybones and Fly-Rigs.
UPC bar code labels (all registered within the US bar code system) are being affixed to all final Stickybones, Fly-Rigs and Performance Stages.
IFU sheets (Instructions For Use) have been designed, printed, folded (letter-style tri-fold) and delivered to our manufacturer to be placed in each Stickybones box.
As we ramp up production, we’re looking for ways to increase the production speed. For example, we’ve identified a production speed bottleneck: Magnet testing and installation. Up until now, the magnet station was not running as quickly as Stickybones parts creation. This is due to a few factors. 1.) The glue being used is difficult to handle. We will be changing the glue to one that is easier to use and should dry faster. 2.) The polarity on each and every magnet must be tested. (We have a setup for this..photo below.) This can’t change--they must be tested, though we will experiment with techniques to try to increase speed. 3.) We now have a faster magnet installation assembly line running. (Previously, fewer parts could be handled at once.) While everyone gets more experienced with the workflow and the kinks are ironed out, speed of production will increase.
In addition to all of this, we’ve been in many phone meetings with various carriers such as Fed-Ex in an attempt to get lower shipping costs in order to reduce our backer’s shipping fees as much as possible. Because of this, the BackerKit survey has NOT BEEN SENT YET. We were waiting to get the final rates before we can enter them into BackerKit. We can now shift all of our energy to finalizing and sending you the survey. We will be sending out surveys by the end of next week. Thanks for being patient with the BackerKit surveys.
We’re pleased to share some photos from our most recent visit to our manufacturer this week.
[above] The first 400 FLY-RIGS are completed and getting boxed up to be transferred to our fulfillment house. If you want Fly-Rigs but have not yet ordered, we recommend adding them on in the BackerKit survey when you receive them at this point, since we’re so close to shipping.
[above] A Magnet Polarity Testing Station--Before installing the magnets, our manufacturing team runs a test to determine the magnets polarity, ensuring the magnets within Stickybones figures are placed properly. (For example, we must ensure sure the magnets in the hands attract each other--not repel.)
[above] Parts Compiling Station--At this station, the final parts are compiled before moving into the assembly line to get boxed.
[above] Molds! Erik posing with a couple of our many molds--some are even bigger than these. These weigh a minimum of a couple hundred pounds each.
[above] Quality checking. We opened up random “final” Stickybones boxes to test the contents and ensure everything was correct. And, yes, everything was great.
[above] Boxes filled with soon-to-ship Stickybones sporting some lovely UPC bar code labels.
[above] A bag of heads! Dark Storm Stickybones heads, that is. These heads are waiting to be united with their Dark Storm bodies when they are boxed.
[above] Loading up the first batch of 100% complete and manufactured Stickybones and Fly-Rigs! They are saying “bye” to the manufacturer’s facility and will soon be saying "hello" to our fulfillment house from where they’ll finally be shipped to backers.
Special message:
Though we’ve experienced a lion share of arduous manufacturing delays, we like to look at the silver lining--we now have an amazing product that works wonderfully that we can finally share with you. Speaking of silver lining--while we all endured the frustrating delays, our team pushed forward with putting into motion some incredibly exciting developments, that will give you immense additional value and a better experience with your Stickybones. Keep an eye out for some big announcements soon.
An Immense THANK YOU!
Cheers,
Team Stickybones
FAQ:
Q: Have you sent the Backer surveys yet?
A: No, for the reasons mentioned at beginning of update. We’ll be able to 100% focus on them now and will get them out within a week.
Q: How many Stickybones have been created so far?
A:
400 Spark Blue Stickybones are 100% final and boxed and heading to our fulfillment house.
400 Dark Storm Stickybones are manufactured and about to be boxed.
400 Fly-Rigs are 100% done and boxed (well..er..BAGGED) and heading to our fulfillment house...
...and the PRESSES CONTINUE TO RUN around the clock, creating thousands of parts for more Stickybones and Fly-Rigs to soon be shipped. They won’t stop until all backer’s perks are filled. (Side note: In an effort to get to shipping sooner, we opted to gather everything that is done NOW rather than wait until all pre-orders (or a larger first group) are completed. We’ll continue to gather completed Stickybones and Fly-Rigs and ship groups as they become available. It's also worth noting, we are going to do our best to ship in the order in which the orders were received.
Q: Can you post some photos of Dark Storm Stickybones before shipping?
A: YES. We picked up a fully manufactured Stickybones in Dark Storm during our last visit and will post photos soon. It’s lovely!
Sun Jun 10 '18 Announcement
almost 6 years ago
– Sun, Jun 10, 2018 at 04:36:57 PM
Our manufacturers should be wrapping up the first 2000 Stickybones any day now. We’re hoping to hear good news from them early this upcoming week. We'll let you know as soon as we know.
You may have noticed that the individual Fly-Rigs have disappeared as a perk option from our Indiegogo campaign page. If you do want to add on Fly-Rig to your existing order, you'll have one more chance to do so in the BackerKit survey.
The BackerKit surveys are done being manually consolidated (to avoid double shipping charges) and are now being finalized in order to send to you.
Worried you’ll miss the survey? To put your mind at ease--if you do somehow miss the Backerkit survey when it’s emailed out, don’t stress out… we will follow up many, many times. If you don’t fill out your survey right away, you will NOT lose your Stickybones perks but your perks won’t be shipped until you complete it.
Thank you!
Team Stickybones
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Check out this other great campaign we think you might love.
One of our very own Stickybones backers, Andy Bailey, (who is a veteran stop motion animator at Laika Animation Studios) has a Kickstarter Campaign open for 2 MORE DAYS ONLY. He has created a slick product born from his love of Flipbook animation.
After the first Flipbook Kit Campaign landed just short of it’s goal, he’s back again and full steam ahead. His new campaign has already surpassed it’s goal, so the Flipbook Kits will get made...all the more reason to get your pre-orders in now if you’re interested. Sweet!
You can also subscribe to his Youtube channel to get plenty of Flipbook tutorials and demos.
Again, if you want an awesome Flipbook Kit of your own, don’t wait....there are only 2 DAYS LEFT.
Sun May 20 '18 Announcement
almost 6 years ago
– Sun, May 20, 2018 at 12:30:38 PM
It’s been a long time in the making…
...and....
We are officially in production!
Our manufacturers have been producing the Stickybones for a couple weeks now and they’re close to being done with the first 2,000 units.
Essentially, from here on out, our manufacturers will continue running the molds full-time, creating all of the pre-ordered Stickybones and Fly-Rigs.
Once they complete the first 2000 Stickybones, there will be quality control checks before we put them in the box for transport to our fulfillment house who will begin the official shipping process.
This process will be repeated as the Stickybones and Fly-Rigs continue to be created until all pre-orders are fulfilled.
The exact timeline depends on how fast our manufacturers can finalize the first group of Stickybones they’re currently making, quality check, box and prep for transport… we will relay details as they emerge.
In case you didn’t know yet, Stickybones is totally modular and designed to be snapped together and unassembled when desired--or even reconfigured in imaginative ways. For this reason, in an effort to save a great deal of time and get these shipped much faster, we’re going to send Stickybones to you unsnapped, and you can easily pop it together yourself (again, this is what it’s designed for and is actually a lot of fun to do.) Your order will include simple instructions and a link to a follow-along video to make it even easier.
BackerKit Surveys
Being worked on...
As it turns out there was a large amount of extra work that had to be done in BackerKit behind-the-scenes (kudos to Team Backerkit for their help.) Why? We had to make sure backers who ordered multiple perks (which many of you did) will only be sent ONE consolidated survey containing all of your perks, and NOT one survey per perk, resulting in multiple surveys. All the extra effort was in order to save you from paying duplicate shipping charges. We are not profiting from the shipping fees.
When we do send your BackerKit surveys out shortly, you’ll receive an email from us with your special link. It’s important to respond to your survey as quickly as you can since we need this information to fulfill your rewards. We will send out multiple notifications once the surveys are sent out via email.
You don’t need to create a BackerKit account to fill out your survey. When you receive the email with the survey, click the survey link to respond. Answer the questions about your Stickybones color preferences, provide shipping information, and purchase add-on items if you like. You don’t have access to this survey link yet, but it will be available soon via email.
