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Custom Molded Plastic & Packaging

The Client

The NightWatch Dock brings together the functions of a charging dock, acoustic amplifier, and magnifying glass. By combining these capabilities, the NightWatch Dock transforms Apple Watch’s nightstand mode into a complete bedside alarm with a tap-to-wake feature to show you the time.

International Product Solutions (IPS) was recommended by an existing client to help with this product. Specifically, we were tasked with bringing the NightWatch’s orb casing to life. Throughout the project, we demonstrated expertise in material selection, engineering, and the manufacturing process to develop the best product at the best price.

The Task

IPS was tasked with taking the client’s concept, creating a working prototype, and then building a viable retail product. We immediately understood the goals of this product and began working on the ideal solution to achieve them.

This project was led in the United States by our partner and team leader, Eric McNiff. Eric was the chief liaison with the client and the internal coordinator between our design, engineering, procurement, QC, and logistics teams. When working on a project, we find the best way to ensure efficient project management is to have one point person.

The Process

To complete the project, we used the cold molding process to develop the orb casing. This process involves forming and curing fiberglass reinforcements and catalyzed resin by placing them between matching male and female, press-actuated molds.

We used a multi-step process with a full project timeline of seven months. In total, we produced 25k units with specifications including:

  • Overall Part Dimensions: 111mm x 77mm x 68mm
  • Tightest Tolerances: +/- 0.5mm
  • Material Used: Silicon
  • Material Finish: High Gloss

Challenges We Overcame

This project presented a couple of key challenges, including:

  • Clarity. It was very important to achieve high optical clarity of the material and finish. Any deviations or flaws in the temperature or material flow throughout the manufacturing process could result in a defective part.
  • Tolerance. Tolerance was just as important as clarity. The interface with the Apple Watch required very tight tolerances.
  • Tooling. Production tooling needed to be engineered with consideration given to material flow rates and cooling time to ensure the product did not warp or deform during and post-production. Special considerations were built into the production line to manage post-production part challenges.

Although it was no simple task, IPS was able to overcome these (and more) challenges for this unique project.

Results

The customer was very satisfied with every aspect of our work and has come back to IPS for additional partnerships. With each and every project, we go above and beyond to be the customer’s best supplier.