Hot Shot Fire Pit

Background Hot Shot Fire Pit is a collaborative project of twelve California Polytechnic State industrial technology students for the program's capstone course. Hot Shot Fire Pit is an innovative fire pit dedicated to providing a positive, social experience while also providing additional utility function and an aesthetic design to compliment any outdoor setting. My team and I successfully created a business within 10 weeks’ time with the team successfully selling over 105 fire pits. Hot Shot Fire Pit is designed, prototyped, manufactured, marketed, and sold by Cal Poly industrial technology students using locally procured materials and personal financial investment. Mission Statement Hot Shot Fire Pit is dedicated to creating an innovative fire pit that aims to provide a positive, social environment. Designed to compliment all outdoor settings while providing utility functionality, the Hot Shot Fire Pit encourages people to spend more times outdoor with the people they love. Our Product Hot Shot Fire Pit features a multi-purpose 32” x 32” perimeter shelf ready to hold all your items. At the heart is a 21.75" x 21.5" fire pit providing a strong flame and heat dispersion through our CNC water jet mountain range and flame design. Hot Shot Fire Pit is offered in redwood shelf option and a granite shelf option. Our Process The project began with the opportunity identification phase where the team applied design thinking to generate potential opportunities through multiple team brainstorming sessions. Once the team agreed on an opportunity that we were collectively passionate about, each team member brought in a solution to the opportunity. Each solution was accompanied by a drawing and was voted on as a team. The best idea was then selected and a preliminary CAD model using Solidworks was created. Using the dimensions of the CAD model, a real life model was created using corrugate and foil follow by an alpha & beta prototype. Materials were procured locally and a production process was established. Using lean principals, the production process was continually improved during production ramp up. Production utilized a variety heavy machinery found in the industrial technology laboratories and architecture laboratories. A horizontal band saw was used to process angle iron into the legs and the inner and outer shelf frame. 10-gauge sheet metal was cut into pit sides and bases using a CNC plasma cutter. The detailed design of the pit sides used a high precision CNC water jet. To reduce waste, scraps of the 10-gauge sheet metal were used to create brackets that hold the fire pit in place, arms that support the shelf from the legs, and feet to prevent scratching of surfaces. The parts were then assembled together using TIG and MIG welding practices. During production, a team of students were designated to develop a marketing plan. The marketing team created media to be used as advertisements and maintained the social media page. Once a solid marketing strategy was established, the marketing team became the primary sales team. The sales team set up booths on campus and farmers market to attract sales. The team also contacted local business who were large supporters of the project. Each step of the project is documented and compiled in a production binder. The production binder includes assembly instructions, preliminary ideas, materials and suppliers, and dimensions.