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Topic: And some more delays in BFL shipment plans / no shipment before 14th Jan 2013 - page 9. (Read 22730 times)

hero member
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From Jody's blog.

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If we have extended our date beyond your ability to stick with us, we at Customer Service are ready to refund money for those who want to get out of the line.

https://forums.butterflylabs.com/blogs/bfl_jody/55-so-we-get-have-holiday.html
legendary
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If a customer wants a refund, we issue a refund.  End of story.

Stop spreading mis-information. Let me show you the official BFL policy.

http://www.butterflylabs.com/faq/
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Payments made for pre-orders of ASIC based products now under development should be considered non-refundable
In cased you missed it, Inaba works for BFL. I think that part of their website needs to be updated, as I don't think it's ever been enforced. I've never heard of someone who wanted a refund, and didn't get one.

Just cuz he might scrub their toilets once a week doesn't mean he determines company policy. He doesn't even post under his offical company account here. Official BFL Policy is clearly visible on the website and has been that way for 6 months. If the website was intended to be updated, it would have been updated months ago. BFL can refuse any request for a refund.

Yes they can, but do they refuse any refund request yet ?  Never heard of it for now !  So ask your refund and let my orders comes faster to me Smiley
legendary
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BFL's fab is in china.

so yeah.

i believe it's feb 8 for the start of chinese new year this year, so if they didn't get the chip shipment by mid-january...well, expect somewhere close to summer until you can get your asics.

If that's the case, would The Fab Feb FAB Fib be added to the lexicon? (Fab = fabulous)

that'd be fabulols.
legendary
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Bitcoin: An Idea Worth Spending
BFL's fab is in china.

so yeah.

i believe it's feb 8 for the start of chinese new year this year, so if they didn't get the chip shipment by mid-january...well, expect somewhere close to summer until you can get your asics.

If that's the case, would The Fab Feb FAB Fib be added to the lexicon? (Fab = fabulous)
legendary
Activity: 1764
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BFL's fab is in china.

so yeah.

i believe it's feb 8 for the start of chinese new year this year, so if they didn't get the chip shipment by mid-january...well, expect somewhere close to summer until you can get your asics.
hero member
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Starting is one thing. I dont think people understand how long it takes for poor factory workers to get around in huge china and then back to their job. They might very well leave a week or two early early in some cases. It is a huge mess. 130 million people trying to get home and not using jets. Weeks before the holiday things gring to a halt and cause major problems for the largest customers let alone tiny ones.

We always used to count on a two month delay around Chinese New Year.  As you said, many places close early because it takes so long for people to travel home.  They often re-open late for the same reason.  Another issue is that many workers don't return at all so when businesses in the manufacturing sector do re-open they not only have orders backed up but they often have to find new employees as well.  Even a business which is not directly affected itself will often have issues because its suppliers are affected.

Of course the fab might not be in China.  If it is, though, BLF urgently needs to find out whether it will be closing around the Chinese New Year period or working at reduced capacity.
legendary
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This year Chinese New Year starts Feb 10th 2013

So BFL only needs one more 30 day delay to be affected

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_New_Year

Starting is one thing. I dont think people understand how long it takes for poor factory workers to get around in huge china and then back to their job. They might very well leave a week or two early early in some cases. It is a huge mess. 130 million people trying to get home and not using jets. Weeks before the holiday things gring to a halt and cause major problems for the largest customers let alone tiny ones.

All I can say is WOW! http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/interactive/2011/jan/27/china-railways-audio-slideshow (video slideshow with voice over)
legendary
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This year Chinese New Year starts Feb 10th 2013

So BFL only needs one more 30 day delay to be affected

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_New_Year

Starting is one thing. I dont think people understand how long it takes for poor factory workers to get around in huge china and then back to their job. They might very well leave a week or two early early in some cases. It is a huge mess. 130 million people trying to get home and not using jets. Weeks before the holiday things gring to a halt and cause major problems for the largest customers let alone tiny ones.
hero member
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You mean you didn't read the new title of your own thread?

Cheesy ... that thread/title was created last week ... much could have changed since then. It's hard to keep up with Inaba/BFLs rate of excuses / new delivery dates / "press releases".
hero member
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It's likely next on the excuse Rolodex.

The massive delays which Chinese New Year can create aren't really an "excuse", but they're one hell of a trap for the unwary.  You need to plan for it months in advance because it can slow production down so much.  That said, we don't know the location of their foundry or whether it could potentially be affected.

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Are there any new updates/announcements/delays dates scheduled by BFL/Josh already?

You mean you didn't read the new title of your own thread?
hero member
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I got lost with BFLs updates/announcements/delays. 11th December was when Josh was gonna confirm that 24th chip delivery December date.

Are there any new updates/announcements/delays dates scheduled by BFL/Josh already?
hero member
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This year Chinese New Year starts Feb 10th 2013

So BFL only needs one more 30 day delay to be affected

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_New_Year
sr. member
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It's likely next on the excuse Rolodex.
sr. member
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whether Chinese New Year is going to be an issue
What!

BFL has experience with Chinese New year.

If that could become an issue they would surely so announce.

 Wink
hero member
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Tom said he was flying around the States to facilitate production of his gear on at least one occasion I recall. No trips to Asia for obvious reasons.

I must have missed that.  My apologies to Tom.

I know that we don't know the exact location of BFL's foundry, but given that the date has been pushed back to January it might be wise to start talking to the agent about whether Chinese New Year is going to be an issue if there are any further slips in the date.
sr. member
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Tom said he was flying around the States to facilitate production of his gear on at least one occasion I recall. No trips to Asia for obvious reasons.
legendary
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That must be why it is so cheap. Some legwork is required at a boutique fab?

Am I the only one here who's gob-smacked by the fact that none of the project leads for any of the BTC ASIC vendors seem to have been flying to Asia on a regular basis to meet with their agents and manufacturers?
I thought no one else had noticed this.

It sounds incredibly stupid [of them] to spend several million on a mask (or two, or three) and not even talk about how an actual BFL rep is spending a thousand or two to keep going back and forth between their fab and the states.

I am glad someone else noticed this!

It borders on the absurd. I think Tom was doing this, but I can't be sure.
full member
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Missed a word there, 0.8 day per layer. I am not saying you can finish the whole chip in 0.8 days, for example our chip has 29 layers, as we released earlier this week in our development thread.

DOH!  That's what I get for posting before morning coffee.   Embarrassed

0.8 days per layer is totally within my experience and I believe is correct.  Sorry - I stand corrected. 
hero member
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That must be why it is so cheap. Some legwork is required at a boutique fab?

Western business people regard having good contacts as essential to success.  Relationships are also a critical part of doing business in Asia.  Not only do you need an agent who actually has the influence they say they have, you need an agent who will actively use that influence on your behalf unless you want your orders to be pushed aside repeatedly because another agent has a better relationship with the manufacturer than yours does.

Am I the only one here who's gob-smacked by the fact that none of the project leads for any of the BTC ASIC vendors seem to have been flying to Asia on a regular basis to meet with their agents and manufacturers?
hero member
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Note that this is effectively the minimum time. From what I've read TSMC and the other big players generally meet their schedules like clockwork but smaller boutique fabs tend to have more trouble giving a firm shipping date and sticking to it. I'm not actually sure why BFL felt using a smaller fab was something they should boast about...

It's been mentioned before, but doing business in Asia isn't just about the reliability of your manufacturers - your choice of professional agent is absolutely critical to timelines being met.  It's worrying that BFL is always having to chase down their agent for information rather than the agent keeping them updated.
That must be why it is so cheap. Some legwork is required at a boutique fab?

Relations are required.
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