So, what's next?
Following last week's component deliveries we're starting to get a clearer picture of how the gadget is going to look. Not just on paper - but for real!
At the same time we're still waiting for a couple of component prototypes for evaluation. The first is our electronics assembly - this is the heart of the cooler and is where the computer code sits that controls the gadget's various functions. It's also home to some of the safety layers built in to the design. The second component, sometimes referred to as "The Worm" and also "The Sock" has been causing us some headaches. How to make it without sacrificing performance, make it durable, make it affordable and how to clean it. Make it attractive! Well, fingers crossed we should find out this week if it can be done.
We then have to put all the components together and then make final adjustments to how these will fit together. Obviously this entails once more round the buoy to get a final working version. Safety testing comes directly after this. An independent lab takes some examples of the pre-production cooler and, for want of a better explanation, does their best to destroy them. From day one we emphasised to all our team that safety in the design comes first. The tests involve both electrical and mechanical testing. If all goes well, then we "press the button" on a manufacturing run.
Anything else? Hmm, well there's packaging to design, a user manual to write and illustrate, an online store to build, legal work, VAT returns, the accounts, marketing,... so no chance of adjourning to the golf course just yet. Just as well it never stops raining!