A Proposal for Klarvoya
Klarvoya INC: Radially Expanding Compliant-Mechanism Earring
Background
Klarvoya is a United States product company founded by Gal Zeidman, a mechanical engineer and the holder of the product intellectual property. The first product is a piece of jewelry built on a patent-pending, transformative radially expanding link mechanism: a compliant mechanism made from flat, precision links that open and close around jointed eyelet connections, expanding to a 1.92 inch outside diameter. The mechanism is multi-stable, it holds position at the closed and fully expanded states and points in between, and it must stay locked through normal wear while remaining smooth and intuitive to actuate.
Klarvoya has prototyped in brass, stainless steel, and PVD-coated stainless steel. Links are produced by chemical etching with a mirror finish and passivation to prevent patina. The critical performance requirement is smooth actuation of the links around the eyelet joints, with minimal play and no bending of the assembly.
Klarvoya previously worked with a manufacturer in China that produced a strong prototype, smooth actuation, minimal play, and minimal bend, but declined to transfer the eyelet specification or the assembly fixture and required a large production commitment before any technical transfer. Klarvoya walked away from that arrangement. She approached C2W and Shield Works specifically for a transparent partner that provides full knowledge transfer and contractual ownership of the design and tooling she pays for. That is her decisive requirement and it is the basis of this engagement.
This proposal covers Stage 1 of the program, Phase 1, Engineering Validation, following the discovery call held on 20 July 2026 and the NDA already in place between our teams. Klarvoya has supplied a design history document, prototype photographs, and the STEP CAD for the link assembly. The CAD does not include the eyelet, the eyelet tooling, or any manufacturing edits made by the prior supplier, as that know-how was withheld. Re-establishing it, under full transfer and ownership, is the core of the work.
This proposal is marked provisional in that the figures in Section 5 are indicative and firm up through Phase 1. The Phase 1 scope and fee set out below are firm. No pre-payment call is required. A short technical call with Mark Jacobs and Sourya Ghosh is available on request before you proceed if you would find it useful.
Our Preliminary Read on the Product
Ahead of engagement, our team has reviewed the brief, the intake form, the discovery call notes, the design history document, and the prototype photographs. The link-assembly STEP file will be reviewed in full on the formal audit. The following is not the Phase 1 output. It is the position from which our engineering work will start, and it is shared because you asked for an indicative view. Everything below is a working position, not a committed one. Phase 1 converts these into engineering commitments.
2.1 The central technical question: the eyelet joint and a coating-safe assembly fixture
The single most important item in this program is the eyelet joint and the fixture that forms it. This is the exact piece of know-how the prior supplier withheld, and it is where every one of your requirements meets.
The joint has to do three things that pull against each other. It must give smooth radial actuation, it must hold minimal play, and it must be multi-stable, locking cleanly at each stable position and staying there through wear. Play is a function of the clearance in the eyelet holes and the clearance between the two link layers that allows radial movement, so tightening one requirement tends to work against another. Your own in-house attempts show the trade-off directly: gauge-wire rivets bent and stiffened the action, press-fit PEM pins were smooth but left play and pressed out, and single-diameter riveted pins ran with significant play. The prior factory solved this with a specific eyelet geometry and a dedicated insertion fixture, neither of which you hold.
Layered on top is the coating problem. On the PVD parts, the eyelet colour rubbed off during insertion and the fixture marked the coated link surface, while barrel-plated rose gold eyelets chipped and stainless steel eyelets were too hard to form cleanly. Because the parts are PVD-coated before assembly, and double coating was ruled out on appearance, the joint must be formed with a non-marking fixture and an eyelet material and finish that forms cleanly and holds its colour through insertion.
Phase 1 carries this as a dedicated engineering workstream. We reverse-engineer the working joint from your best physical sample, define the eyelet geometry, material, and finish, and specify a coating-safe assembly fixture that sets the eyelets uniformly without marking the links. The deliverable is documented and owned by Klarvoya. This is the value we add over the withheld know-how, and it is the reason the production timeline cannot be fixed until the joint is re-established.
2.2 Where quality, cost, and timeline are won or lost
- The eyelet material and finish decision. Stainless steel eyelets were too hard to form, plated rose gold chipped, and PVD colour rubbed off on insertion. Phase 1 selects an eyelet material, forming condition, and colour strategy, plated or coated, that forms cleanly, matches the links, and survives assembly. This decision drives both appearance and yield.
- Link fabrication route: chemical etch now, progressive die at volume. Chemical etching gives the mirror finish and is the right route for validation and the first run. For the 80,000 unit per year forecast, progressive die stamping gives tighter dimensional control and a materially better unit cost, at the cost of tooling. Phase 1 sets the route for each stage and carries the die tooling as a costed volume decision in the Roadmap, not an early spend.
- Surface finish, PVD, and colour match. Mirror finish, passivation against patina, single-coat PVD before assembly, and a matched colour across links, eyelets, and earring hooks. Phase 1 locks the finish and coating sequence so the assembled piece reads as one uniform colour.
- Multi-stability, play, and durability. The joint clearances are tuned to hold the stable positions and minimise play while keeping the action smooth, and the assembly is validated to the 1,000 cycle actuation requirement without loosening or visible coating wear, inside the sub 8 gram weight target.
- Hypoallergenic earring hooks. Colour-matched hypoallergenic hooks and backings, sourced against the finish selected for the links and eyelets.
- Design to your target cost. Your $15 target factory cost for the rose gold pair is treated as the design-to-cost target for the program, not as a number we reconcile at the end. Phase 1 works backwards from it, so the material, joint, and process choices are made against the cost target from the outset. Where you hold a firm target or constraint, it becomes a design input on day one. Aligning on this now saves significant time later.
- Material focus. Phase 1 focuses on the stainless steel PVD rose gold pair, your lead product and the hardest joint. The bronze and silver variants are carried as downstream derivatives once the lead joint and fixture are proven, rather than solved three ways at once.
Volume and Timeline Targets
The following reflects current working assumptions from the intake form, the brief, and the call notes. They will be reconciled and validated through Phase 1.
| Prototype Quantity | 30 units for design and process validation |
| Pilot Run | 200 sets, the initial pilot order against which the $15 target factory cost is quoted |
| First Production Run | 3,000 units |
| Annual Volume Forecast | 80,000 units per year |
| Target Unit Price | $15 USD factory / landed for the stainless steel PVD rose gold pair at the 200-set pilot order, treated as the design-to-cost target for the program and validated through the Phase 1 Indicative Quotation |
| Target Markets | United States primary |
| Funding Status | Partially secured |
A note on timeline, given directly. You asked for parts from a large production order by October 2026. We will not tell you that is achievable, because the joint and the coating-safe fixture, the one part that is not yet solved, have to be re-developed and validated before any production run can be committed. A credible sequence from confirmation is roughly 4 to 6 weeks of Phase 1 engineering, then fixture build and prototyping, a likely iteration, finishing and assembly setup, and a first validation run, which places a sound first production run in the region of 4 to 6 months rather than 6 to 8 weeks. The exact schedule is set in the Development Roadmap. We would rather give you a real date than an optimistic one.
Phase 1, Engineering Validation
Phase 1, Engineering Validation is the first paid engagement in the Klarvoya development program. The work is engineering-led: an independent audit of the supplied CAD and design history, a focused engineering workstream on the eyelet joint and the coating-safe assembly fixture, a preliminary DFM assessment across fabrication, finish, and durability, supplier engineering engagement with indicative pricing against your target cost, and a Development Roadmap that consolidates the output into a costed, phase-by-phase pathway to qualified mass production.
Duration: approximately 4 to 6 working weeks from the Engineering Kickoff Workshop and receipt of your physical sample at Shield Works.
Phase 1 consists of the following six deliverables.
Note: Phase 1 is the first phase of the program. Phase 2 and subsequent development, tooling, and production work is scoped and costed within the Development Roadmap for Klarvoya's approval before any execution begins.
Fee: USD 5,000, payable in full on project confirmation.
This Phase 1 fee is set at a preferred rate, below our standard engineering validation engagement, in support of a self-funded founder and in view of the long-term production partnership.
Indicative Development Envelope Preview
The figures below are preliminary ranges from our initial review and our experience with precision metal and finished-component products manufactured in China. They are shared ahead of the Phase 1 Indicative Quotation so the shape of the investment is clear from the outset. They are not a quotation. Precise, buildable figures are the exact output of the formal Phase 1 engagement, locked against specific supplier quotes and the resolved joint design. Treat the ranges below as directional only.
The development total assumes the first run is produced on chemical etching, with a single prototype iteration and no progressive die tooling. Progressive die tooling is the route to the best unit cost at your 80,000 unit per year forecast and is presented as a separate volume decision, so early spend stays low. The total excludes production unit costs, PVD and plating test fees, sample and prototype shipping, and any patent filing fees, which are addressed in Section 6.
| Stage | Scope | Timeline | Indicative Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phase 2 — Engineering build and validated first run | Engineering refinement and DFM execution, assembly fixture build, first prototypes (approx. 30 units), a likely joint and finish iteration, and etch, passivation, PVD and assembly setup through to a validated first production run | approx. 4 to 6 months | Indicative order of magnitude, ~$16,000 to $33,000 (excl. die tooling and production unit costs) |
| Phase 3 — Volume tooling (optional, deferred) | Progressive die tooling for the links, the route to best unit cost at the 80,000 unit per year forecast. A separate volume decision, not an early spend | 6 to 10 wks | ~$12,000 to $30,000 |
| Stage-level breakdown | The detailed stage sequencing, phase management costs, and figures locked against specific supplier quotes are delivered as the Phase 1 Development Roadmap (Deliverable 6) | — | Phase 1 output |
5.1 Preliminary risk register
Indicative unit pricing is not included at this stage. The eyelet material, finish, and fabrication route materially affect per-unit cost and are not locked until Phase 1 is complete. Unit pricing at multiple volume tiers is delivered in the Phase 1 Supplier Engineering Shortlist and Indicative Quotation.
| Risk | Likelihood | Impact | Primary Mitigation |
|---|---|---|---|
| The withheld joint cannot be reproduced to the same quality from the sample alone | Medium | High | Reverse-engineering from the best physical sample in the dedicated Phase 1 workstream, with iteration budgeted |
| PVD colour rubs off or the fixture marks the coated links on insertion | Medium | High | Coating-safe fixture and an eyelet finish selected to survive insertion, validated at prototype stage |
| Clearances that give smooth action leave residual play or weak multi-stability | Medium | Medium | Joint clearance tuning as a Phase 1 deliverable, validated across the 1,000 cycle requirement |
| $15 target unit cost not met on chemical etch at first-run volume | Medium | Medium | Design-to-cost from the outset, with progressive die as the identified route to target cost at volume |
| October 2026 production expectation not achievable | High | Medium | Honest schedule set in Section 3 and locked in the Roadmap before any commitment |
Exclusions
The Phase 1 fee covers all six deliverables in Section 4. The following are excluded and would be scoped and costed within the Development Roadmap, or addressed through partners coordinated by Shield Works.
- Full DFM execution, engineering drawing release, and supplier qualification testing.
- Assembly fixture build, prototyping, sampling, and physical testing.
- Progressive die tooling and any other production tooling.
- PVD, plating, and passivation process development beyond specification, and any coating or material test-lab fees.
- Shipping costs for physical samples and prototypes between the United States and China. Shield Works shipping instructions are provided with this proposal.
- Patent filing fees. Guidance on a Chinese patent or utility model is included as a value-add. Filing costs are separate.
- Production unit costs for the 3,000 unit first run and beyond.
Note on the post-Phase 1 model: once a supplier set is confirmed and production begins, C2W and Shield Works operate as Klarvoya's manufacturing partner. Klarvoya receives a single unit cost per pair that covers goods, assembly, quality control, supplier management, packaging, and logistics coordination. These are not billed as separate service fees. The Phase 1 Indicative Quotation establishes those unit costs with confidence before any production commitment.
Payment Terms
| Stage | Fee | Payment Trigger |
|---|---|---|
| Phase 1, Engineering Validation | USD 5,000 | Payable in full on project confirmation |
Safeguards and Clarifications
Why C2W and Shield Works
Next Steps
This proposal is non-binding at this stage and is intended to give Klarvoya clarity on cost, structure, and what Phase 1 will produce. If you are happy with the direction, let us know and we will issue the invoice and get the Engineering Kickoff Workshop scheduled.
Best regards,
Mark Jacobs
CEO, C2W Group / Shield Works
with Sourya Ghosh, Head of R&D, Shield Works
July 2026