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cnx_vinyl/docs/roadmap.md
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grabowski c50417668b Press fleet: two Newbilt Duplex systems with an extruder per press, plus a Classic
The current plan (user decision, October 2026) replaces the 50/50 target
(two semi-automatic presses and two Pheenix AD12s) with an all-Newbilt
fleet of five presses: two Duplex systems in Newbilt's two-extruder
configuration (two HRP 12 presses, an extruder each, one hydraulic unit)
and one Classic fully automatic press.

- pressing-line.md: new "Current plan" section (fleet table, what it
  means, phasing from the Single 2.1 as the first half of system 1,
  re-quote questions); site requirements per Duplex system.
- scale.md: capacity table and basis (368 to 448 records/h, ~1.06 to 1.5M
  a year on two shifts, same range as before); pressing electrical row;
  steam and cooling flagged, not re-based: five presses draw ~750 to 900
  kg/h of steam and up to ~625 kW of cooling at Newbilt's per-press
  figures, against the 400 kg/h / 250 kW sized for one Duplex.
- total-investment.md: fleet change as an added-scope row (system 2
  ~230k-300k and the Classic ~290k-460k, estimates; -60k / -160k against
  the two blocks it replaces); headline unchanged until the re-base.
- roadmap items 4, 5 and 24, revenue model mature row, crane doc (the
  Classic's weight now decides 5 t or 3.2 t), vendor landscape (AD12 is
  the comparison for the Classic), README.

The business plan docx is not regenerated.
2026-10-10 16:05:27 +07:00

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Markdown

# Roadmap
Next steps in dependency order. No calendar dates yet: each phase is gated
by the one before it, and the clock starts when the first-phase items move.
Rough durations are estimates.
## Phase 0: Validate and clear the gates (now)
These three run in parallel and gate everything downstream:
1. **Market validation**: test the 3.50 to 4.60 USD blended pressing price
and regional demand with Asian labels and distributors, starting at
Making Vinyl in Haarlem (Alexander and Simona). This is the biggest
assumption in the [revenue model](finance/revenue-model.md); the
financing case waits on it. **Partially started**: a first buy-side
data point and a factory tour (ResurRec Bangkok, August 2026) are
recorded in the revenue model. The prices disagree with the model on
per-title services and run size; the tour showed no plating and no
HVAC anywhere in the incumbent's operation, which is the strongest
argument yet for pulling galvanics forward from Phase 5. Making Vinyl
Europe 2026 added supply-side evidence (strong interest in the
traceability approach, see the
[exhibitor briefing](suppliers/making-vinyl-europe-2026-exhibitors.md#after-the-show)),
but no buyer prices yet. Carry the
open run-size question into these conversations. The
[artist platform](artist-platform.md)'s price calculator, published
early with indicative prices and an interest list but no payments,
collects that run-size distribution from everyone who configures a
record.
2. **BOI track**: engage a BOI-registered consultant, confirm the activity
sub-code, and structure the application so the solar, automation, and
R&D measures stack (see [boi.md](boi.md)). The application precedes
company incorporation and every machinery purchase order. Decision
timeline once filed: roughly 40 working days, 4 to 6 months to
certificate in practice.
3. **60 rai title check**: verify the forestry-classified parcel's legal
status (Chanote vs Sor Por Kor vs National Forest Reserve). Gates the
[biomass plan](biomass.md); if it clears, plant the coppice immediately
so first harvest (2 to 4 years) meets the expansion phase.
## Phase 1: Quotes and site (parallel with the BOI decision window)
4. **Newbilt re-quote** (2024 offer expired) for the current fleet: the
two-extruder Duplex as the Single 2.1 upgrade and as a second system,
the Classic automatic press, and a central hydraulic supply option
([pressing line](equipment/pressing-line.md)), with PLC/data access as a
stated purchasing requirement per the
[traceability spec](traceability.md)
5. **Pheenix Alpha**: the AD12 left the current fleet plan in October
2026 (an all-Newbilt fleet); Pheenix stays the comparison for the
Classic and a galvanics candidate (item 6). After Haarlem the CEO offered a Teams call,
reference clients and a factory visit near Stockholm; the call follows
once our questions are ready, and the next Europe trip is planned
for February 2027 ([exhibitor briefing](suppliers/making-vinyl-europe-2026-exhibitors.md#after-the-show))
6. **Galvanics quotes**: Digital Matrix, and Pheenix Alpha in the same
conversation as item 5 (it builds the electroforming line too), plus
OMS (Optical Media Services), named by Sibert as the alternative to a
Pheenix turnkey line (reference prices of 9 October 2026: EUR 224,000
basic and 311,000 advanced for a 4-cell wet room, installation extra; a
dedicated offer needs our plans, ideally after a visit to Baarlo), and
Sibert's itemised quotation for the stamper
prep machines (a USD 250k budget for all three is confirmed, its time,
spares, shipping and travel extra); equipment data in
[galvanics and stamper prep](equipment/galvanics.md). In parallel,
identify the separate water-treatment vendor for the zero-discharge
system
7. **Thai utility RFQs** from the candidates in the
[utilities CSV](finance/utilities-investment.csv), with guaranteed
northern service response as a line item; resolve the 35% vs 45% RH
floor question (the biggest HVAC cost lever)
8. **Solar/BESS engineering check**: match the Gobel rack voltage to the
chosen Deye model, request Gobel certifications and warranty terms,
confirm the EPC (Solar Nicolo or other) warrants a mixed-vendor DC bus
9. **Site selection**: candidate buildings/plots in Lamphun and Lampang
(Northern Region Industrial Estate first for its shared effluent
treatment and licensing simplicity) and, since October 2026, Payap
University land in Chiang Mai ([site candidates](site-candidates.md)),
screened against the
[scale requirements](scale.md): 6 to 8 rai, 1,400 to 2,000 m² single
story (including the workshop and visitor corridor), multiple tons per
m² slab, 500 to 1,000 kVA connection, and a frame able to carry an
overhead crane
## Phase 2: Commit (after BOI certificate and validated pricing)
10. Finalize company incorporation under the promotion certificate
11. Sign the pressing-line order (Newbilt or Pheenix path); machinery must
arrive within the ~30-month duty-free import window that runs from
certificate issuance
12. Secure the site (lease preferred for the phased entry; purchase only
with land privileges under BOI)
13. Order long-lead items: mastering lathe (Agnew or Sillitoe, both built
to order, or second-hand through the contacts OMS named, see
[vendor landscape](suppliers/vendor-landscape.md)),
stamper-prep machines, first utility packages
14. Engage Stamper Discs for the bridge-stamper relationship with written
turnaround SLAs, and settle where lacquers are cut meanwhile: SST in
Frankfurt already cuts for Poy Records and offered help after Haarlem
([vendor landscape](suppliers/vendor-landscape.md#lacquer-cutting-service-schallplatten-schneid-technik-germany))
## Phase 3: Build and commission (~6 to 12 months after commitment)
15. Building fit-out: slab verification, HVAC, clean zones, utilities,
solar and BESS installation, security systems per
[facility-security.md](facility-security.md), and the overhead crane,
maintenance workshop and visitor corridor per
[crane-workshop-tours.md](crane-workshop-tours.md) (the crane-ready
frame itself is in the construction RFQ, so it is decided before the
shell is ordered)
16. Machinery installation and vendor commissioning (Newbilt on-site
commissioning is mandatory for warranty; budget per the service rate
card)
17. Traceability software v1: intake, batch genealogy, press telemetry
capture (spec in [traceability.md](traceability.md), systems and build
order in [digital-factory.md](digital-factory.md); the network, servers
and edge collectors go in before the machinery arrives)
18. Hire and train the launch team; safety program stands up with the
equipment, not after it
## Phase 4: Launch (pressing with bridge stampers)
19. First test pressings, QC baselines, reject-rate shakedown
20. First paying releases; validate turnaround and quality against the
regional pitch. Fan-funded campaigns on the
[artist platform](artist-platform.md) open only after these first
releases have shipped and lead times are measured
21. PVC lab per-lot gate live; begin qualifying Thai/regional compound
against the European references
## Phase 5: Expand (revenue-gated)
22. Duplex expansion (second press and extruder are already quoted options)
23. Galvanics line in-house (silvering, electroforming, stamper prep; see
[galvanics and stamper prep](equipment/galvanics.md)) with the
zero-discharge water plant; Stamper Discs moves to overflow/backup.
**Open question: should this move to Phase 1?** The August 2026 market
evidence says the domestic bottleneck is imported metalwork, not press
capacity, and that a galvanics line could earn from the incumbent's
spare presses before CNX's own press hall exists — see the
[revenue model](finance/revenue-model.md). Sibert, which would sell
into this line, advised after Haarlem to get presses, boilers,
operators and live feedback loops right first and to earn some return
before every manufacturing step is in place
([exhibitor briefing](suppliers/making-vinyl-europe-2026-exhibitors.md#after-the-show));
supplier advice to weigh against the market evidence, not a decision
24. Second Duplex system and the Newbilt Classic automatic press, which
complete the five-press fleet ([pressing line](equipment/pressing-line.md))
25. Full metrology stack and the sampled audio QC station
26. Biomass boiler, fed by the by-then-mature coppice plus regional fuel
27. Mastering and cutting room (can move earlier if title-services demand
shows up in Phase 4, or to host the joint audio engineering programme
with Payap University, see [Payap partnership](payap-partnership.md))
## Standing principle
Nothing in Phases 2 to 5 starts before its gate clears: no machinery order
before the BOI certificate, no big-block spending before the market
validates the price, no coppice fuel planning before the land title check.
The phased entry (~1.7M to 2.9M USD) is the default path; the full vision
(~4.7M to 8.9M USD) is reached through it, not instead of it.