Prototype unit vs production unit

Two different objects doing two different jobs

A prototype unit exists to be judged and approved. It is where you confirm the material family, the finish, the hardware feel, the construction and the tolerances against a real object you can open, close, load and inspect. A production unit exists to reproduce that approval faithfully, at volume. The prototype's job is decision; the production unit's job is conformance — and confusing the two is where runs go wrong.

Why the distinction protects the whole run

Once you approve a prototype, you are not approving a look — you are setting the reference the entire batch will be measured against. Every later argument about "is this right?" should resolve by comparing the delivered unit to the approved prototype, not to memory or to a rendering. In ALUMAX's model this is deliberate: design one unit, approve a real prototype, freeze the specification, then route to bulk production. The frozen prototype is what makes one approval repeatable across a development.

What gets locked at prototype

Lock everything that defines identity and performance, and record it so the production partner cannot reinterpret it. Anything left vague at this stage becomes a variable the run is free to change.

• Material family per moisture zone (e.g. P6 for dry, plywood for semi-wet, ACP for wet) and the emission grade (E1/E0/ENF) where health matters
• Finish: colour reference, sheen and texture, held against a retained sample and read for colour difference (ΔE), not by eye alone
• Hardware: hinges, runners, soft-close, handles — the exact make and model, not "equivalent"
• Construction: carcass build, joinery, edge-banding, back panels, fixing method and stainless grade (SS304/SS316) where relevant
• Tolerances and reveals: gaps, alignment and fit — agreed in writing and held to at production

What may still legitimately vary

Not every difference is a defect. Natural materials and finishes carry batch and dye-lot variation, so a production unit can sit within an agreed range rather than being identical to the atom. Handed or mirrored units, and dimensional adjustments to suit a real site opening, are expected — provided the specification allows them. The test is whether a variation was anticipated and bounded at prototype, or whether it is drift the run introduced on its own.

How to verify a production unit against the prototype

Verification is a comparison, not a fresh opinion. Put the production unit next to the approved prototype (or its retained samples and signed spec) and check point by point, logging anything outside the agreed range as a snag before it multiplies across the batch. Raise an RFI the moment a partner proposes a substitution — an "equivalent" hinge or a near-match panel is a spec change, and it should be re-approved against the prototype, never waved through on site.

• Finish and colour read against the retained sample, in consistent light
• Hardware confirmed as the specified make/model, operating as the prototype did
• Construction, edge-banding and fixings match the frozen build
• Dimensions and tolerances within the written agreement
• Batch/dye-lot variation inside the allowed range — not beyond it
• Every deviation captured on a snag list and closed before handover