Paul Buff
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tetrode wrote:
Was it? Was the inverter designed by PCB or might it be a repackaged off-the-shelf component? If it was built (or tweaked) to PCB's specs by an offshore manufacturer, would that make it engineered in-house? Not really. Clearly, the battery wasn't engineered in-house. If I buy a Samlex pure sine wave inverter, an SLA battery, and a bag, and assemble them into a power supply, I don't think I could say I "engineered" anything; assembled, yes, engineered, no. In the case of the VML (again, assuming its parts are sourced offshore), perhaps "conceived and assembled in the USA" might be a more accurate declarative.
To cite guidance from the Federal Trade Commission one more time:
"U.S. content must be disclosed on automobiles and textile, wool, and fur products. There’s no law that requires most other products sold in the U.S. to be marked or labeled Made in USA or have any other disclosure about their amount of U.S. content."
As I read this (and it's just a layman's reading), there is most likely no requirement that the VML case say anything regarding country of origin or parts content. However, inasmuch as it does, it then has to play by the rules and it appears that it does not. My interpretation is that the Made in USA attestation is there as a marketing device rather than as an accurate representation of where the product's component parts originate. Again, I would like nothing more than to be proven wrong.
Dave F. ...Show more →
First, the Vagabond Mini product was designed in TN. That includes the inverter (Indeed, it is not a stock "Samlex" inverter (Samlex doesn't make inverters by the way, they are made by BA Power in Taiwan, as the Mini inverters. We did extensive redesign to BA Power's standard inverters in order to achieve the performance and reliability we wanted.
Same with the batteries . . . The individual Lithium cells are designed and manufactured by a substantial Chinese firm, but the pack itself (containing 16 cells, a controller-protection--charge/discharge regulation circuit, wiring and connector system, and custom molded housing was designed by yours truly, as was the five piece molded Vagabond housing itself and the circuitry and PC boards that together form the product from the component parts. The product itself is assembled, tested, wired and packaged (manufactured) in the US. Some of the components are made in the US and some are made in other countries.
The VML back panel bears the clear statement "Contains components from various countries of origin".
Let me pose the question: If you took a Delco (American brand) battery, an Apple iPhone, a Texas Instruments processor, designed and built a customer security system controller board in Kansas, assembled, tested boxed and shipped the product in your factory in Boston from these components, where would you say it was manufactured? Even considering that the battery, iPhone and processor were actually made in other countries.
From this jumping off point, I direct your attention specifically to Elinchrom's website link where it is clearly stated their products are manufactured in Switzerland. Yet it is widely known that some of their products . . . D Lite and, I believe, BX500 series at least, are completely manufactured in India and likely never see Switzerland at all.
http://www.elinchrom.com/corporate.php
"From our headquarters and manufacturing facility overlooking Lake Geneva, we export Elinchrom studio flash around the world."
Do you think Manfrotto stands are manufactured in Italy or that Chryslers are Made in USA, or that Photoflex umbrellas or just about any other umbrella you can name aren't made in China? And just look at that Chinese battery and Taiwan inverter in the Profoto "Swedish" BatPack.
Perhaps Peter has the best approached . . . that used by Apple: "Designed by Apple Computer in Cupertino, CA" with no mention of where it was actually made, boxed, tested and shipped from.
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... and I'll bet he didn't even lobby congress to make the rules that way, but I'm sure other USA "BIG BOYS" likely did. It's always ironic how investers and consumers love it when "Wall Street" does well, but then cry foul when they learn how it's being done.
