Paul Krush

Mass custom over the Internet is not sustainable say past 2012? It’s going to be copied and margins will go to zero. Asia will be king of mass custom for jewelry on the Internet, that is if the US dollar stays king.

What I have heard and taken to heart is for mass custom to work in an independent retail store:

1.) You need the relationship.
2.) You need to build the local community
3.) The business needs to be sustainable.

How do you do mass custom in an independent store and fits these rules? I’m not sure. Maybe a creation and teaching studio where people design their own mass custom items? They would use jewelry CAD software that outputs a simple finished model. It would be a social event with small classes (3-6 people). The computers would have to be taken away from time to time. I have thought about maybe a U shaped table that has the screens under the table so people can see each other and not the back of a computer display. Then there would be a main display for teaching. It would have to be about people collaborating, not people starting at screens.

Heck one could have foo foo drinks. Now this sounds like a Tupperware party or the “Jewelry Design Café”. Now it sounds like a hobby and not a business….

I think there could be a take home version of the software. Sure it could incorporate a website some how, maybe the model sharing database, but the real communication would take place at the store.

Also I see people using this store to make jewelry for their organization. It might be a hobby for them, or they might take advantage of discount pricing and have a little hobby business of their own.

I see this like how people get together in stores and do scrapbook crafting or bead work, except higher end. I am talking about designs that are very simple. A ring with names and symbols. A chain, pendant, or key chain that was build with 3D profile “clip art” that built into the software. Simple, Simple, Simple models.

I think kiosks for mass custom design in the retail store are a slippery slop. They are going to show up in the chain stores, Wal*Mart and such. But how do kiosks build a relationship with the customer? I have some very cool ideas about using hardware buttons and sliders for a kiosk in a store. It’s pretty easy/low cost to integrate hardware these days. More cool that practical, but Sensible Claytools fits into that category.

You could also have such a system scan stock forms for 2D or 2 1/2D model building. You could use this to put the customers handwriting and basic art work on the jewelry automatically. And of course you can incorporate 3D scanning into the mass custom system, like kids handprints and such. Somewhere there has to be a way to do mass customization and fit these 3 rules I have laid out. I really think something like “Build a Bear” for jewelry has huge potential, even if it’s not on the Internet.

I’m sure such a store would have different types of customers. In the experiments I have done I have had a few people interested in affirmations. These are spiritual in nature, or goals, or general loving reminders, or what ever. I can see such a store teaching goals or offering personal couching services and selling jewelry tokens to cast the goals and affirmations into store (well metal).

Really if you look at these ideas such a store is not selling jewelry. It sells experiences. It sells tickets to the jewelry design Disneyland.

Paul Krush

I plan on writing design tools that people can use within a web page to design rings. Now that real time 3D can be done in Flash, I am interested in starting with Flash with just images. I want to get my foot in before real time 3D flash takes off.

I think simple rings are a great starter product. These rings have no holes and a minimum thickness. This makes them very easy to manufacture; as easy as printing.

This type of design is called 2 1/2D because you can only change the flat profile of the design. The design is wrapped around a ring, but not designed in 3D. The design is represented by an image with the grayscale color being the height. So you will hear me say ways to manipulate an image, but really it’s changing the 2 1/2D information.

This is a rough list:
Centering of text on a ring.
Arraying artwork around the ring.
1D & 2D Arraying.
1D scale of the layout – stretch to array.
2D scale.
3D scale, the ring size, or thickness must change.
Pattern builder for the ring.
Booleans for the art work.
Art database.
Ring database.
Ring LxW look up calculator. Like a size 6 4mm layout fits on a size 8 4.5?mm layout.
Softening/blurring tools. Putting a chamfer on hard edges.
A cropping tool.
Import pictures tool.
Rail selection tool.
Height raise/lower tools, or darken and lighten the image.
Negative image tool.
Ring size calculator.
Font builder and font spacing tool (kerning maybe).
Vector curves – like adding a grove.
Basic setting tools for bezels and prongs.

I am thinking about these tools for simple rings, but they can be used for:
Bracelets, Links, solid or hinged.
Napkin rings
Huggie earrings.
Rondelles
Coin/medalian bezels
Flat metal strips for decoration.

Really these tools can be used for any 2 1/2D design work.

I think I see the Holy Grail for products designed by the consumer in an Internet browser forming. Adobe will be releasing ActionScript 3.0 for Flash 9 sometime in 2007. It’s currently in alpha. This release is orders of magnitude faster than previous versions. This release combined with faster computers is going to put us over the top for real time 3D in the browser. These 3D tools will work in almost all computer browsers without having to install them. The tools can just pop up, just like flash ads do at this point.

ActionScript 3.0 is not about 3D, but a powerful virtual terminal that runs in the browser. This lets people write 3D engines that use ActionScript. See Papervison3d.org and Kirupa.com.

Right now there are a lot of tricks you can do in 2D, but real time 3D in a browser that works on almost all desktops without installing anything is very hard. I see a small ad in a page expanding much bigger with a full-blown tool set popping up. In the past I thought Java would be the answer, but this was never able to achieve critical mass. Microsoft wanted to make darn sure that Java in the browser was not a way to replace desktop applications, and did what it could to kill Java. A server based CAD engine could work, but this lets the CPU power of the client go to waste. I have thought about running Rhino on a server outputting models and renders.

Flash is not just for computers; it works or soon will on kiosks, palmtops, handhelds, and large cell phones. The same tools that let consumers design products over the Internet can be used at a local level. Just like a person at Walgreens can print photos from a kiosk, a person can use a kiosk to make a custom gold pendant in a jewelry store. Sure this can be done with desktop software now, but kiosks would be easier to manage using these Internet tools. Also people could use their own devices in the store to run the store’s machines. This would truly be user manufacturing like Frank Piller is talking about.

I’m not sure where I am going to take this. I think it would be wise to let these 3D engines get developed for another 6-12 months or so to see what happens. I need to explore the world of 2D and Flash first. At least I now have more motivation to learn Flash. I am most interested in designs that are flat with 2 1/2D profiles. This limits the options and makes it easier for people to design there own pieces. With 2 1/2D you can use images to represent profile information. This is why I think a coin is perfect starter mass customization product. It’s just 2D printing with one more piece of information, height.

So can something like ActionScript 3.0 be the grease that really gets mass customization rolling? For simple custom jewelry I say yes.

When I use this term service bureau for jewelry I mean a company that makes clients wax models from the 3D file they provide. The idea that a service bureau would share these files online does not exist in the jewelry industry currently. All service bureaus are private as they can command much higher rates for keeping their client’s work private.

When I say a public service bureau I mean a company that shares clients designs on the Internet for all to see and download.

Public service bureau (PSB) possibilities:

• Over time a PSB would create a database of designs for other people to use.
• It would create a community of users using and improving other people’s designs.
• Such a service could create a competition among users further motivating people to use the service.
• Some people are will be motivated to send in files just to create an online portfolio.
• Some designers will just want their models used by others.
• If the public service bureau was efficient and could profit from the content of the users the price per model could be reduced or even free.
• Advertising and promotion expenses could be very low due to word of mouth.

The motivation for clients to send in files would need to be huge. Some people would see this as giving away their work, and never use a PSB. Others would see the service as a fun experience, and just plain valuable. The service will grow if the model price is low enough and there is a critical mass of users. It’s all theory now, but I am going to invest some serious time and money into testing these ideas.

This is not the same as a discount service bureau. Creating the models would be an experience for the users. People will upload design because it’s a fun experience. This is the same as tom sawyer convincing everyone painting the fence was fun. It’s win-win for everyone.

Similar working concepts:

• A lot of websites have users successfully uploading content (YouTube, Blogs, MP3 sharing sites, etc).
• It’s a little like watching the paper photos come out at the developer. (I’m dating myself)
• Some jewelry sites post pictures of past work.
• It’s like a watering hole. Free water for all, and it makes a good place for conversation.
• A PSB is like an Internet forum that content (writing, pictures, files, etc) is uploaded for the moment, but retains value over the years.
• I want to say it’s like a 3D model sharing service but I don’t see any great examples of this yet with models for manufacturing.
• This is like shoppers willing to have their buying habits recorded in exchange for discounts on products, AKA grocery store discount cards.

What would a public service bureau need to survive?

• An easy to use system of uploading and sharing files.
• A way to fight the tragedy of the commons problem.
• A way to keep out spammers.
• A well maintained forum for users.
• The service has to be fun to use.

I think a public service bureau set up right would really grow as it’s database and user base grows. Change a low enough price and users have no other option but to use the service. I see such a service being used by the Pro-Am jewelry making community.

Theory is great, but some people experienced in the trade have to be shaking their heads at me. Yes there are a lot of issues with this. This is why I am starting tests with the simplest part I can, a half-dollar size coin. Changes will be made on the fly. It’s going to be fun to get this concept off the ground so others can copy us. I just want to see this happen, and I am compelled to do it.

2-3 years ago I wrote a few modeling tools for consumers to design diamond rings over the internet in 3D. This time I am not going to have diamonds in the jewelry. I am going to try to be a simple as possible.

I’m starting with just one part. I think a half dollar size coin is the shape I can capture the most interest with, and the simplest model I can work with. It’s 30.61mm in diameter and 2.15mm thick as per the US Mint. I am going to give people one or two 3D “windows” to work. People can submit a 3D model 29mm in diameter and .5mm thick for the front or back, or just a 1mm thick version for the front. Starting out I will mill these coins in wax. This means the 3D model only needs to be 2 ½D (X and Y information, and only a Z height). This means I can have configurrator tools written that will use 2D images to model the coin; the grayscale color value determining the Z height within the .5 or 1mm window I am giving people.

Doing a flat object like a coin or charm is a step backward for me. Three years ago I wanted to have consumers design their own diamond ring in full 3D in the browser. This was the gist of a few tries with RingHunt.com. Ten years ago I was tinkering around with pieces for mosaics. I even built my own CNC mill to cut out the parts. I’m a DIYer to the core, but have learned to delegate over the years. You can see some of these projects at Inlay.com. Yes I would still like to build CNC machines to pump out the parts by the millions, but first things first, we need the content!

My interest in operating a service bureau is purely for testing this idea out. So at first I will be acting like a service bureau, but what is interesting is it will be a public service bureau. Everyone will be able to see and use the 3D files people will submit for manufacture. I feel this will foster a huge amount of creativity.