Latest news from the AFOLCON organisers

 

  • Latest news from the AFOLCON organisers

    Posted by Huw, 28 Feb 2012 09:15. Filed under Events (Europe).

    The team over at AFOLCON are pleased to announce a whole raft of LEGO speakers for this year's convention!

    Joining the already announced LEGOLAND master builder and LEGO Certified Professional, are Mark Stafford (LEGO Ninjago designer), Adam Vaugn (LEGO Friends designer) and Bjarke Schonwandt (Senior Manager, Consumer Perceived quality).

     

    We're very happy to have Mark return for his second year presenting at AFOLCON. Last year he brought with him a whole host of test models that were used in the production process, and he's promised the same this year!

    Adam will be giving his first AFOLCON session looking at the development of the new LEGO Friends line. Years in development, he'll be explaining how LEGO Friends is designed to welcome a wider audience to the LEGO family.

    Finally, Bjarke will give you an exclusive insight into how LEGO manages the quality of the LEGO sets and elements. How do LEGO track what is good and what is bad? Most importantly, Bjarke is asking you to bring along any samples you have of what is not acceptable - the challenge has been set!

    We still have a few more speakers to announce for AFOLCON 2012, not least our Keynote speaker -- more details on that soon, as well as details of our auction. We've just come back from Billund actually, with all manner of goodies. There'll be more details soon, but we will say this. It's *good* !

    Once again, the organisers have offered Brickset visitors a 20% discount on the normal AFOLCON ticket price of £60. All you have to do is quote the code BRICKSET20 when you check out. This is a limited offer so order now to guarantee your discount!

    If you have any questions about AFOLCON or The LEGO Show, you can ask in the forum where Warren will be on hand to answer them.

    AFOLCON runs on the 3rd and 4th May 2012 and is open to anyone over the age of 16 (16-18yr olds must be accompanied). Tickets cost £60 and include all session, an out-of-hours visit to the LEGOLAND Discovery Centre and a goodie bag which includes 1Kg of LEGO. For more details, go to www.afolcon.com.

    The LEGO Show is open to the public on the 5th, 6th and 7th May. Tickets cost just £29 for a family of four when booked online, saving you the queue and 20%. For more details, go to www.thelegoshow.com.


    10 comments, latest one posted 15 months ago. (Commenting has ended on this article)
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Comments

Posted by LostInTranslation in United Kingdom, 28 Feb 2012 11:11

Excited to hear from Adam about the Friends sets! Excited to hear from Mark about test models! Excited about insight into Lego quality! Excited about the whole thing! Can't wait :-)

Posted by skherbeck in United States, 28 Feb 2012 14:36

I'm in the USA, so PLEASE whoever goes to this, bring samples of the so-called defective Chinese Plastic so we can settle this issue!

Posted by Elli in Australia, 28 Feb 2012 15:06

Yes! Finally!, Yes someone bring in some samples of the Chinese Plastic!, Finally a Quality Control show!

Posted by CapnRex101 in United Kingdom, 28 Feb 2012 16:11

Frustrating that this is in the school term and not in a holiday as although I am old enough to go to the adult sessions on the first two days, I cannot go because of school, oh well, GWLS for me!

Posted by Nabii in Denmark, 28 Feb 2012 17:53

Come for the public days CapnRex - I'll be present throughout (with some of my MOCs and the prototype models) and happy to talk about anything you like.

Posted by Brickfinger in New Zealand, 29 Feb 2012 03:40

I give up.

What does "Senior Manager, Consumer Perceived quality" even mean?

Defending making second rate Lego in China?

Yours, intrigued

Geoff

Posted by Nabii in Denmark, 29 Feb 2012 05:02

Really? Second rate LEGO? Have you ever tried real Chinese LEGO rip offs? Now that is poor quality.

Anyway, obviously you as a consumer of LEGO sets perceive any LEGO made in China to be low quality, you think the LEGO cow, LEGO Troll, LEGO Dragon, the rock monsters from Power Miners, the Star Wars alien heads, the Atlantis heads, etc. are all inferior to products made by other companies.

Or you compare the minifigure line figures to those made in the Billund factory and perceive these to be of lower quality. Despite them being made in identically measured molds using the same plastic and colourants, there is something that you perceive to be a problem. (Translucency is often mentioned to me as an issue, though I’m often baffled as to why – I never shine lights through any of my figures. But that’s why Bjarke exists, to fix these issues.)

Maybe it's something else, but for whatever reasons it is your consumer perception that there is a problem. It's Bjarke's job to deal with this, either by explaining to you why things are the way they are or (more often) explaining what LEGO is doing to fix the problem. Also he will take any problem he has not already seen and go right to the source and ask how it can be improved; this is why he wants to see any broken or flawed parts you have.

Basically Bjarke is the guy making sure LEGO is living up to its mantra: Only the best is good enough.
(Though more accurately in Danish this is more like: Even the being the best is not good enough for us.)

Come to AFOLCon - tell him why you think there is a problem, cynicism never solved anything, come and talk to him, help solve the problem.

Posted by cavegod1 in United Kingdom, 29 Feb 2012 09:33

Yellowed Parts is my only gripe!

Posted by Nesquik in United Kingdom, 29 Feb 2012 10:49

AFOLCON is the best reason to get my own house.

And car.

And NOT have a girlfriend.

Posted by CapnRex101 in United Kingdom, 29 Feb 2012 15:51

@Nabii - Sure, I'll be there for the public days (could not go last year due to a football match), only two years until I can go I suppose!

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