Add README: project vision, equipment plan, sustainability and safety commitments

README.md

@@ -0,0 +1,175 @@
+# CNX Vinyl — Poy Records
+
+A vinyl record factory in planning for the Chiang Mai area of northern
+Thailand (site candidates include Lamphun and Lampang provinces), driven by
+[B4L](https://b4l.co.th). This repository is the source of truth for the
+project: planning documents, cost data, and — as the factory takes shape —
+the data and software used to run it.
+
+## Vision: Full-Service Production
+
+The goal is the complete vinyl production chain under one roof, from audio
+file to finished record:
+
+1. **Mastering** — audio mastering for vinyl
+2. **Lathe cutting** — cutting the master disc
+3. **Silvering** — metallizing the cut master
+4. **Stamper production** — electroforming nickel stampers in-house
+5. **Pressing** — extrusion and pressing of the finished records
+6. **Finishing** — trimming, labels, shrink wrapping
+
+In-house galvanics (steps 3–4) removes the dependency on overseas stamper
+suppliers — a common bottleneck for pressing plants — and shortens turnaround
+for clients. The current planning documents cover the pressing line (step 5–6)
+in detail; equipment and budgets for mastering, cutting, and galvanics are
+open planning items.
+
+## Project Status
+
+**Planning stage** (as of mid-2026).
+
+- Industry outreach has been ongoing for several years — equipment vendors,
+  material suppliers, and independent consultants.
+- Alexander and Simona will soon travel to
+  [Making Vinyl](https://makingvinyl.com/) in Haarlem, Netherlands, to gather
+  further insights from the pressing industry.
+- A collaboration with [Resurrec](https://www.resurrec.com/) is under
+  discussion.
+
+## Pressing Line: Equipment Plan
+
+The core pressing machinery under evaluation comes from
+**Newbilt machinery GmbH** (Alsdorf, Germany):
+
+- **Newbilt Single 2.1 system** — one VEX 50 extruder feeding one HRP 12
+  hydraulic press (~150 t press force), pressing 12" records at 140 or 180 g
+  with a Newbilt book mold set. A Vario trimmer handles 12" cuttings, with
+  a 7"/10" upgrade path.
+- **Duplex upgrade path** — the hydraulic aggregate is already sized for a
+  second press; an additional press and extruder are quoted options, so the
+  plant can scale from Single to Duplex without replacing infrastructure.
+- **Supporting equipment** — label dry oven, shrink wrapper, PVC grinder
+  (scrap feeds back as the ~20% recycled share of the feedstock), 7" center
+  label punch, buffer spindles and separator plates.
+
+The June 2024 Newbilt quotation totals **≈ €200,500** including freight from
+Alsdorf to Thailand and seaworthy packaging. Two major utility systems are
+deliberately excluded and will be **sourced and installed locally in
+Thailand**: a ~400 kg/h steam generator (with water treatment) and a ~250 kW
+cooling water system. The quotation has passed its validity date and will need
+re-confirmation before ordering.
+
+Site planning works from Newbilt's Duplex requirements: roughly 200 m² of
+production floor, 32 kVA connected electrical load, saturated steam at 10 bar,
+and compressed air and cooling water circuits — plus side rooms for materials,
+compressor, chiller, and finished goods.
+
+## Sustainability
+
+Two commitments are fixed design requirements for this plant, not aspirations
+to be traded away during engineering: run on as much renewable energy as
+possible, and discharge no contaminated water. Both are decisions we can
+actually make, because the two biggest utility systems — steam and cooling —
+are explicitly excluded from the Newbilt scope and will be sourced and
+installed locally in Thailand. That gives us a free hand to spec them green
+from day one.
+
+### Renewable energy — large solar installation
+
+The pressing machinery itself is a modest electrical load: 32 kVA connected,
+~21 kW average for a full Duplex line. The real energy demand sits in the
+utilities around it — above all the steam generator (400 kg/h saturated steam
+at 10 bar / 180 °C) and the 250 kW cooling system.
+
+- A large rooftop/ground PV installation is planned. Northern Thailand's solar
+  irradiance is favorable, and daytime-heavy production shifts align well with
+  PV output.
+- The machine load and cooling system are straightforward PV targets.
+- Steam is the open engineering question: options under evaluation include an
+  electric boiler (maximizes the solar share), a biomass boiler (locally
+  abundant fuel), and solar-thermal pre-heating of boiler feedwater. No
+  technology choice has been made yet; it will be driven by honest numbers on
+  load profiles, storage, and grid backup — not by what sounds greenest.
+- System sizing (kWp, storage, grid-connection model) is open until the site
+  is chosen.
+
+### Zero contaminated water
+
+The reference process schematic shows a conventional open "dirty water"
+cooling loop. We will not build it that way.
+
+- Cooling (up to 250 kW, 220 l/min peak — ~98% of it mold cooling) will run as
+  a closed loop with a cooling tower/chiller, so process water is recirculated
+  rather than discharged.
+- Steam condensate will be recovered and returned to the treated feedwater
+  cycle instead of being dumped.
+- The planned in-house galvanics line (silvering and stamper electroforming)
+  involves plating chemistry — silver solutions and nickel baths. This is the
+  hardest part of the zero-discharge commitment: rinse water will need
+  closed-loop treatment and metal recovery, designed in from the start rather
+  than retrofitted.
+- Solvent handling (flagged in the site requirements) will be contained and
+  disposed of as controlled waste — never via wastewater.
+- Target: no process-water discharge to the local environment. Detailed water
+  balance and treatment design are pending site selection.
+
+### Materials
+
+The plant design already includes a PVC recycling loop: an in-house grinder
+returns trimmings and rejects to the extruder, with the standard feed mix at
+80% virgin / 20% recycled compound. Record scrap becomes feedstock, not
+landfill.
+
+For the virgin compound itself, the preference is **local (Thai/regional)
+PVC sourcing if the quality meets vinyl-record specifications**. The current
+supplier list (2021) is entirely European plus one US option; qualifying a
+local compound would cut shipping distance, cost, and the carbon footprint of
+the feedstock. European suppliers remain the fallback where quality demands
+it.
+
+## Worker Safety
+
+Worker safety is a founding priority, on equal footing with the environmental
+commitments:
+
+- **Safety training** — proper, structured training for all operators and
+  maintenance staff, starting with the vendor-led commissioning training and
+  extending into an ongoing in-house program. The pressing line combines
+  hydraulics (~180 bar), saturated steam (10 bar / 180 °C), and hot PVC —
+  every one of these demands trained, deliberate handling.
+- **Clean rooms for galvanics** — silvering and stamper electroforming will
+  run in dedicated clean rooms with controlled access, proper ventilation and
+  exhaust, and decontamination procedures for people and equipment leaving
+  the area. Plating chemistry stays inside its containment.
+- **Personal protective equipment** — appropriate PPE (overalls, gloves,
+  goggles, and process-specific protection) is mandatory per work area, in
+  line with the equipment vendor's site requirements (exhaust work benches,
+  fire protection) and local regulations.
+
+Safety infrastructure — training program, clean-room specification,
+decontamination workflow — will be planned alongside the equipment, not after
+it.
+
+## Repository Layout
+
+```
+docs/
+├── consulting/   Consultancy proposals and overviews
+├── equipment/
+│   └── newbilt/  Offers, site requirements, process schematic, service rates
+├── finance/      Project cost overviews
+└── suppliers/    PVC compound supplier contacts
+```
+
+Documents are primary sources (vendor PDFs and spreadsheets) and reflect the
+state of negotiations at their file dates — treat prices and lead times as
+snapshots, not commitments.
+
+## Roadmap for This Repo
+
+- Accumulate planning and vendor documents as decisions firm up — including
+  the mastering, cutting, and galvanics chain
+- Add structured data (inventory, orders, production batches) once operations
+  begin
+- Host the software/tooling built to run the factory (tracking, ERP-style
+  workflows)