Where will my INFINITY pen be produced?
The final assembly and quality assurance is planned to take place in the UK. The Infinity design is based on multiple parts, these were sourced for prototyping from three locations, the UK, USA and Germany. We are evaluating suppliers in Asia for the body. We already have a UK-based supply chain in place for all key components.
Last updated: March 31, 2016 12:59
Where will my INFINITY pen be shipped from ?
We stock direct into the UK Amazon warehouse so to be most cost effective your INFINITY pen will be shipped by Amazon from their UK warehouse unless you are in North America in which case it will be shipped from an Amazon US warehouse.
Last updated: March 30, 2016 07:04
Did you design INFINITY yourselves?
The concept and prototyping was undertaken 100% in the UK by our design team alone. No ODM arrangements were used through pen suppliers. The primary design goal and challenge was the encapsulation of the meteorite in the water clear dome and excellent writing experience at a low price point so INFINITY could be enjoyed by everyone – a truly everyday pen. We did not design the body. To keep costs down we evaluated and sourced that as a platform component in keeping with best in class design principles.
Last updated: March 30, 2016 07:11
What experience does your team have?
The Infinity team has its own product designers trained at top UK Design Universities and all of whom have a formal education in Product Design. To support them we have hired a number of consultants who are experts in Intellectual Property, Design for Manufacture and Logistics.
Last updated: March 30, 2016 07:12
Why Schmidt refills?
The Schmidt refills were selected because they are simply the best in the world – used by the top branded pens and rebranded as their own – having German engineering DNA at their heart. This is the critical component to the writing experience. They were also selected because they are easy to source across the world including North America and Europe. They are available online too. If you want to use a manufacturer other than Schmidt there are lots of compatible suppliers such as ACME and Monteverde. Please see the segment on refills for some more detail.
Last updated: March 30, 2016 07:13
How have you managed the risks?
We have managed risks as follows. At each stage, we have employed professional in-house product designers to work on the overall design concept to prototype the Meteorite processing and encapsulation. In addition, we employed an external product design agency to advise on Intellectual Property, Design for Manufacture and Logistics. The overall result, we have been able to focus on the Design philosophy and delivery which we believe to be the most important aspect and have minimized the engineering and logistics risks, by partnering with established suppliers.
Last updated: March 30, 2016 07:16
Can meteorites even be bought?
Yes, meteorites can be bought on the open market, indeed, Christies is holding a big auction this month here in the UK selling some of the Chelyabinsk meteorite itself. Russia has imposed an export embargo on the Chelyabinsk meteorite as it is considered a scientifically unique and rare national asset. This embargo was put in place long after most of the world’s meteorite dealers had already sourced stocks so it is freely available.
Last updated: March 31, 2016 12:59
How do I know it's real Chelyabinsk meteorite?
The meteorite dealers undertake a provenance process before they buy in much the same way art and gold bullion dealers do as they could not trade without confidence in what they sell. We are sourcing from reputable dealers who can evidence provenance.
Last updated: March 30, 2016 09:12
Will all the meteorites look the same?
No, each INFINITY pen will have a unique piece of Chelyabinsk meteorite both in terms of size and colour. Some are blacker and crusted and some will be more red through oxidization, these will be more dominant as we are breaking larger pieces down, that then oxidize before encapsulation.
Last updated: March 31, 2016 12:59
Where will my INFINITY pen be produced?
The final assembly and quality assurance is planned to take place in the UK. The Infinity design is based on multiple parts, these were sourced for prototyping from three locations, the UK, USA and Germany. We are evaluating suppliers in Asia for the body. We already have a UK-based supply chain in place for all key components. Last updated: Thu, Mar 31 2016 3:59 pm EDT
Where will my INFINITY pen be shipped from ?
We stock direct into the UK Amazon warehouse so to be most cost effective your INFINITY pen will be shipped by Amazon from their UK warehouse unless you are in North America in which case it will be shipped from an Amazon US warehouse. Last updated: Wed, Mar 30 2016 10:04 am EDT
Did you design INFINITY yourselves?
The concept and prototyping was undertaken 100% in the UK by our design team alone. No ODM arrangements were used through pen suppliers. The primary design goal and challenge was the encapsulation of the meteorite in the water clear dome and excellent writing experience at a low price point so INFINITY could be enjoyed by everyone – a truly everyday pen. We did not design the body. To keep costs down we evaluated and sourced that as a platform component in keeping with best in class design principles. Last updated: Wed, Mar 30 2016 10:11 am EDT
What experience does your team have?
The Infinity team has its own product designers trained at top UK Design Universities and all of whom have a formal education in Product Design. To support them we have hired a number of consultants who are experts in Intellectual Property, Design for Manufacture and Logistics. Last updated: Wed, Mar 30 2016 10:12 am EDT
Why Schmidt refills?
The Schmidt refills were selected because they are simply the best in the world – used by the top branded pens and rebranded as their own – having German engineering DNA at their heart. This is the critical component to the writing experience. They were also selected because they are easy to source across the world including North America and Europe. They are available online too. If you want to use a manufacturer other than Schmidt there are lots of compatible suppliers such as ACME and Monteverde. Please see the segment on refills for some more detail. Last updated: Wed, Mar 30 2016 10:13 am EDT
How have you managed the risks?
We have managed risks as follows. At each stage, we have employed professional in-house product designers to work on the overall design concept to prototype the Meteorite processing and encapsulation. In addition, we employed an external product design agency to advise on Intellectual Property, Design for Manufacture and Logistics. The overall result, we have been able to focus on the Design philosophy and delivery which we believe to be the most important aspect and have minimized the engineering and logistics risks, by partnering with established suppliers. Last updated: Wed, Mar 30 2016 10:16 am EDT
Can meteorites even be bought?
Yes, meteorites can be bought on the open market, indeed, Christies is holding a big auction this month here in the UK selling some of the Chelyabinsk meteorite itself. Russia has imposed an export embargo on the Chelyabinsk meteorite as it is considered a scientifically unique and rare national asset. This embargo was put in place long after most of the world’s meteorite dealers had already sourced stocks so it is freely available. Last updated: Thu, Mar 31 2016 3:59 pm EDT
How do I know it’s real Chelyabinsk meteorite?
The meteorite dealers undertake a provenance process before they buy in much the same way art and gold bullion dealers do as they could not trade without confidence in what they sell. We are sourcing from reputable dealers who can evidence provenance. Last updated: Wed, Mar 30 2016 12:12 pm EDT
Will all the meteorites look the same?
No, each INFINITY pen will have a unique piece of Chelyabinsk meteorite both in terms of size and colour. Some are blacker and crusted and some will be more red through oxidization, these will be more dominant as we are breaking larger pieces down, that then oxidize before encapsulation. Last updated: Thu, Mar 31 2016 3:59 pm EDT
Current Estimated Shipping Date: August 2016
Production is on schedule and shipping is expected in August 2016
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