Engineering Diagnostic and Production Readiness Engagement

A Proposal for
Tramex International

Engineering support to bridge the gap between European product development and the industrial realities of Chinese production.

Engineering Diagnostic and Production Readiness Engagement
01 — Background

Background

Tramex International is a Belgium based company specialising in the design and development of garden umbrellas and bioclimatic pergolas. New mechanisms and systems, covering opening, closing, tilting, rotating, and adjustment functions, are developed with European industrial designers. The initial concepts and designs are created on the design side, and the products are then taken into production in China.

Tramex has approached C2W and Shield Works for engineering support to bridge the gap between European product development and the industrial realities of Chinese production. The recurring requirement is to refine mechanisms, improve manufacturability, increase precision, resolve technical issues, and bring new developments to a production ready state, working between the designers and the factory.

A live example was raised during the discovery call held on 15 June 2026: an umbrella winding mechanism that functions correctly but is not yet precise enough, generates noise, and requires fine-tuning of several components. The adjustments need to be made against the real production capabilities and tolerances of the factory in Linhai. This proposal covers a first, focused engineering engagement on that winding mechanism. It is structured to deliver real engineering value on a defined problem and to establish the working relationship from which broader ongoing support can follow.

02 — Preliminary Read

Our Preliminary Read

Ahead of any engagement, our team has reviewed the description of the winding mechanism issue as set out in correspondence and the discovery call. The drawings, the existing prototype, and the factory tolerance data will be reviewed on receipt and on site. The following is the position from which our engineering work will start.

The mechanism works but is not production ready.
A mechanism that functions on a prototype bench but is noisy and imprecise is almost always a tolerance, fit, and load-path problem rather than a fundamental design failure. The likely contributors are component tolerance stack-up, surface finish and contact geometry on the moving parts, backlash in the drive train, material selection on the wear surfaces, and the gap between the design intent and what the factory can actually hold in production. These are resolved by working through the real parts against the real factory process, not by redesigning on paper alone.
Noise is a symptom, not the root problem.
Noise in a winding mechanism points to specific causes: metal-on-metal contact without the right finish or lubrication, excessive clearance allowing rattle and chatter, resonance in a thin-wall or unsupported component, or a drive engagement that is not clean. Each has a different engineering fix. The diagnostic work isolates which causes are present before any change is recommended.
The factory dimension matters.
The fixes have to be ones the Linhai factory can actually hold at volume. A solution that requires a tolerance the factory cannot achieve is not a solution. This is why an on-site day with the factory engineers and the Tramex local team is part of this engagement rather than a remote review.
03 — Scope and Deliverables

Scope and Deliverables

This is a focused engineering diagnostic and solution engagement on the winding mechanism. The work is engineering-led, led by Sourya Ghosh, our Head of R&D, with Mark Jacobs, CEO. It consists of the following.

01
Prototype and design review
Review of the existing prototype, the design drawings, and the current mechanism against the reported issues of noise, precision, and component fit. Identification of the engineering causes behind the symptoms.
02
On-site engineer day at the Linhai factory
A Shield Works engineer travels to the factory for one full day, working directly with the Tramex local team and the factory engineers. The day covers hands-on assessment of the mechanism, discussion of the issues identified by the local team, review of the factory production capabilities and tolerances, and direct examination of where the design and the production process are not aligned.
03
Root-cause engineering assessment
A written assessment isolating the causes of the noise and precision problems, covering tolerance stack-up, contact geometry and surface finish, drive-train backlash, material and wear-surface selection, and the alignment between design intent and factory capability.
04
Practical engineering solutions and recommendations
A ranked set of recommended engineering changes to bring the mechanism to a production ready state, each one defined against what the factory can actually hold. Where a change requires a tooling or process adjustment at the factory, that is identified and described.
05
Production readiness direction
A clear statement of the path from the current prototype to a refined, quieter, more precise mechanism ready for volume production, including the sequence of changes and any validation steps recommended before committing to production tooling.
Investment
USD 4,500
payable in full on confirmation

This includes one on-site engineer day at the Linhai factory. This is an example engagement scoped to the winding mechanism. It illustrates how we price a defined engineering problem, and is not a flat rate. Each future problem is scoped and quoted on its own complexity.

04 — On-Site Support and Rates

On-Site Support and Rates

A question was raised about rates for on-site work at the factory, both for travelling to discuss technical matters and for solving specific issues on existing projects rather than running a full development engagement. The position is set out below.

There are two ways to engage us on site. The first is a defined-scope engineering engagement on a specific problem, as set out in Section 3 for the winding mechanism. The engineering work and the on-site visit are delivered together for one fixed fee, which keeps the cost predictable and keeps the value in the engineering rather than on the clock. The second is standalone on-site support for discrete issues, charged per visit on the rate card below.

Each standalone tier is an all-in price per visit. It covers the on-site day and the associated travel, so there is no separate travel or expense line to manage.

Tier 01
Basic QC
USD 300
All-in, per visit
One full man-day on site against a defined checklist, with a post-visit report
Tier 02
Quality Analysis
USD 500 to 600
All-in, per visit
Pre-visit consultation, minimum one full man-day on site, post-visit report, and post-visit consultation
Tier 03
Engineer
USD 1,200
All-in, per visit
Pre-visit consultation, minimum one full man-day on site with an engineer, post-visit report, and post-visit consultation

The Quality Analysis rate sits within the USD 500 to 600 range depending on the final requirements of the visit. The winding mechanism engagement in Section 3 is a deeper, scoped version of the Engineer tier. It goes beyond a single visit and report to a full root-cause diagnostic, ranked engineering solutions, and a production readiness direction. The on-site engineer day for that engagement is included in the fixed fee. Any return engineering visits, if useful, are quoted separately.

05 — Exclusions

Exclusions

The engagement fee in Section 3 covers the diagnostic, the on-site engineer day, the engineering assessment, and the solution recommendations. The following are excluded and would be scoped and quoted separately where required.

–
Full mechanical redesign or new 3D CAD development beyond the diagnostic and recommendations.
–
Prototyping, sample builds, and physical testing of revised components.
–
Tooling and mould costs, and any factory process or tooling changes implemented as a result of the recommendations.
–
Return engineering visits beyond the one on-site day included in this engagement, which are quoted separately.
–
Ongoing engineering support across the wider Tramex project pipeline, which is addressed under the forward model in Section 8.
06 — Payment Terms

Payment Terms

Engineering engagement
USD 4,500, payable in full on confirmation.
Standalone on-site visits
Charged per visit on the rate card above. Each standalone tier is an all-in price per visit. It covers the on-site day and the associated travel, so there is no separate travel or expense line to manage.
07 — Safeguards and Clarifications

Safeguards and Clarifications

Scope
This engagement is the diagnostic and the engineering solution direction for the winding mechanism. Implementation of the recommended changes, any redesign, prototyping, and tooling changes are separate steps, scoped once the direction is agreed.
On-site visit
The on-site engineer day is scheduled once the engagement is confirmed and the drawings and prototype access are arranged. We will agree the date with you in advance.
Factory cooperation
The on-site session depends on reasonable access to the mechanism, the relevant drawings, and the factory team during the visit. The more the factory engineers and your local team are available on the day, the more we resolve in a single session.
Engineering files
Sharing the design drawings and any available CAD ahead of the visit lets us prepare and arrive with a focused diagnostic rather than starting cold on the day.
Intellectual property
Tramex retains all intellectual property in its products, designs, and mechanisms, and in any derivative engineering work produced under this engagement. Shield Works operates within an IP-secure, ISO-certified facility. Work proceeds under an NDA put in place between our teams.
08 — The Forward Model

The Forward Model: Ongoing Engineering Support

The broader requirement Tramex described is ongoing engineering support across a pipeline of umbrella and pergola developments, refining mechanisms and solving production issues as they arise, rather than a single one-off project. That is best served by an ongoing engineering support relationship rather than repeated one-off scoping of every issue.

Our recommendation is to run this first winding mechanism engagement, prove the value on a real problem, and then move to a monthly engineering support arrangement that gives you continuous access to our R&D team across your project pipeline, with on-site factory visits built in. We will set out the structure and the numbers for that arrangement once this first engagement is underway and we both have a concrete sense of the working rhythm and the typical workload. Building the ongoing model on a real shared project gives a far better fit than pricing it in the abstract now.

09 — Why C2W and Shield Works

Why C2W and Shield Works

An independent engineering and manufacturing partner, British-owned, with over 21 years on the ground in China. We are neither a sourcing agent who hands over a supplier list, nor a factory technical team representing the factory's interests. Our interests are aligned with yours.
In-house R&D, mechanical engineering, DFM and DFX, and quality control, led by a mechanical engineer CEO with over 27 years of manufacturing experience and our Head of R&D, Sourya Ghosh, who holds an aerospace engineering background.
Direct, day-to-day experience with aluminium structures, moving mechanisms, injection parts, and outdoor products, which is exactly the territory of umbrella and pergola mechanisms.
A China-based team that conducts factory visits and on-site technical work as standard practice, with the ability to be on the factory floor when a problem needs resolving in person.
The capacity to challenge what a factory says it can and cannot do, and to push production to the standard the design requires, working in SolidWorks and aligning with your designers' files and review process.
10 — Next Steps

Next Steps

01
Confirmation. Your confirmation of this proposal and settlement of the engagement fee.
02
Engineering files. Sharing of the winding mechanism drawings and any available CAD ahead of the on-site visit.
03
Engineering review call. A call with Mark Jacobs (CEO) and Sourya Ghosh (Head of R&D) ahead of the visit, to align on the issues and the diagnostic approach.
04
On-site scheduling. Agreement of the date for the on-site engineer day at Linhai.
05
Engagement delivery. The diagnostic, the on-site engineer day, the engineering assessment, and the production readiness recommendations.
06
Forward model. A conversation on the ongoing engineering support arrangement once this first engagement is underway.

We look forward to working with you on this project.

Best regards,

Mark Jacobs

CEO, C2W Group / Shield Works

June 2026