SENTINEL Production Guide
Full production blueprint — facility layout, 5M capital budget, equipment list, 21-person team structure, monthly operating costs, R&D timeline, GPU datacenter, and break-even analysis.
1 — Site & Facility
All SENTINEL models are manufactured at a purpose-built facility in Comuna Ciurila, Cluj County, Romania. The location offers EU single-market access, elite STEM talent from Cluj-Napoca technical universities, and operating costs 2–3x lower than Western Europe.
Total footprint: 2,400 m² with a 1,200 m² production hall, ISO 7 cleanroom for electronics assembly, a dedicated testing lab, warehouse/logistics zone, office block, and rooftop solar array (200 kWp) with grid backup targeting net-zero production by Year 2.
2 — Capital Budget (€5M)
| Category | Amount | % of Total |
|---|---|---|
| Facility Build-out | €1,200,000 | 24% |
| Production Equipment | €1,800,000 | 36% |
| Initial Inventory | €500,000 | 10% |
| Working Capital | €1,500,000 | 30% |
3 — Production Equipment
- CNC 5-axis machining centre — aluminium frame fabrication
- Laser cutter — sheet metal and composite panels
- 3D metal printer (SLM) — custom brackets and SENTINEL-LINK housings
- SMT pick-and-place line — PCB assembly
- Environmental test chamber — IP67/IP68 and MIL-STD validation
- 6-axis robot welding cell — frame joining
- Coordinate Measuring Machine (CMM) — quality control
- Battery pack assembly station with spot welding
4 — Personnel (21 staff)
| Role | Count | Gross/Month |
|---|---|---|
| Production Manager | 1 | €4,200 |
| Senior Mechanical Engineer | 2 | €3,800 |
| Embedded Systems Engineer | 2 | €4,200 |
| AI/ML Engineer | 2 | €4,500 |
| Assembly Technician | 6 | €1,800 |
| Quality Inspector | 2 | €2,200 |
| Warehouse/Logistics | 2 | €1,600 |
| R&D Intern / Junior | 2 | €1,200 |
| Admin / HR / Finance | 2 | €2,000 |
Monthly payroll: ~€55,800 (including employer social contributions at +26%).
5 — Monthly Operating Costs
| Item | Monthly |
|---|---|
| Payroll (21 staff) | €55,800 |
| Utilities & Maintenance | €4,500 |
| Insurance | €2,800 |
| IT & Software Licences | €3,200 |
| Miscellaneous | €2,500 |
6 — R&D Timeline
- Months 0–6: Facility construction, equipment procurement, SENTINEL-WH prototype refinement.
- Months 6–12: Production line commissioning. First 50 SENTINEL-WH units to pilot customers.
- Months 12–18: SENTINEL-AG line brought online. Start SENTINEL-HM prototyping.
- Months 18–24: 150 units/year steady-state. SENTINEL-MK certification begins.
- Months 24–36: SENTINEL-MK delivery. GPU datacenter expansion. 450+ units/year.
7 — GPU Datacenter
An on-site GPU datacenter equipped with NVIDIA DGX A100 systems handles AI model training, inference benchmarking, and fleet OTA update staging. The datacenter is also offered as a service to investors via QubitPage Foundation credits.
8 — Break-Even Analysis
At 150 units/year (SENTINEL-WH at €42,000), annual revenue reaches €6.3M against ~€3.2M in COGS and ~€0.8M in operating expenses, yielding positive EBITDA by Month 18. Full €5M investment ROI projected within 36 months.