Readymade News

An Illustrated Weekly World of Design, 07 July 2009

 

Often good design uses the bare minimum to achieve great solutions. Matthias Ries has developed the Bottleclip, a simple reworked bottle cap that attaches to a bicycle frame allowing most bottled drinks to be taken for that leisurely ride. We also like this design because it is a similar to one of our ideas, the Safer Paraffin Cap. Via designboom (and have a look at their amazing article on bamboo scaffolding).

More clever stuff, this time from Royal College of Art graduate Min-Kyu Choi, who has designed a folding version of the standard UK electrical plug. The solution seeks to address the problem of the large size of a standard UK plug, see how it works here. 'When people carry laptops with U.K plugs in a bag, it always causes problems such as tearing paper, scratching laptop surfaces and, sometimes, it breaks other stuff. The main problem is the UK standard 3-pin plug is not considered in the process of designing for mobility. Min-Kyu Choi has also designed a USB charger version and Multi Flat Plug, which allows three devices to share power from one plug that takes up more or less the same amount of space as a standard plug.' Dezeen.

Good interview at Product Design Hub with Mikael Lugnegård an industrial designer who prefers to be a called a concept artist. Here is some advice from Mikael; 'practice is without a doubt the key when it comes to this kind of craftsmanship. But I have found one other personal quality that is just as important. Passion!! You really need to love this stuff otherwise you won´t have the endurance to develop your skills, have the energy to experiment, spend long hours on intricate renderings etc etc. Passion is KEY. Sure practice is essential, but if you lack the "internal fire", the passion, your work will never be as charismatic as it really could be. It´s very easy to see if people love what they´re doing by just looking at their work. Just look at Slatan and Ronaldo, they love football and we love to watch them play. It´s the same thing with design. We love to watch passionate designers at work.' Read more on how to be the best designer in the world from Brian Ling writing for Yanko Design. 

Another interview worth reading, this time between Design Droplets' Raph Goldsworthy and Ralf Beuker discussing design and business, design management and strategic design. Ralf has some good slides from on flickr, the one above is Design Strategy, download the full size here.

We mentioned WikID last week, a wiki based site that documents design tools, methods and techniques, now the Design Council UK has launched Methodbank, an open source collection of design methods.

   

An Illustrated Weekly World of Design, 30 June 2009

 

The Sustainer is a unique solution to produce fuel and electricity in remote rural areas, for example in the African countryside where only 5 to 20 percent of the population have electricity. In many of these situations, access to energy would facilitate development, higher productivity and better education. Moreover, locally available resources can be used instead of expensive imports. 

Says Jan Hein Hoitsma: 'The Sustainer is a containerised installation which can be used in rural areas to convert oil-bearing crops and seeds into edible oil and biodiesel. The seeds are stored in an integrated bunker which feeds the oil press. After the oil has been extracted, it is then refined into edible oil or it can be used as raw material for the biodiesel process. The 'press cake' by-product can be used as livestock feed. Many nuts have shells/husks which can be used as fuel for cooking. An integrated tank unit allows for the biodiesel to be directly dispensed into, for instance, diesel vehicles. The Sustainer is fitted with 4 wind turbines and its side panels consist of foldable solar panels which generate electricity. The electricity can be supplied directly to the grid or can be stored/buffered in a battery pack which can, for instance, provide electricity in the evenings or at night. The Sustainer is also fitted with a 25 kVA generator which runs on diesel or biodiesel and which guarantees a constant supply of electricity. The availability of electricity can make life more comfortable in many areas - just think of a refrigerator, lighting and a computer.' Via Innovation Africa. 

On the topic of sustainable energy, there is continuing support for large farms of solar panels in the Sahara desert that could provide clean electricity for the whole of Europe, according to EU scientists working on a plan to pool the region's renewable energy. The Desertec Foundation is proposing to erect 100 GW of concentrating solar power plants throughout Northern Africa. 

   

We have mentioned OXO before, more known for ergonomic kitchen tools. Now they have used their universal design expertise to innovate the medical syringe, a design that has not changed much in 40 years. The Cimzia pre-filled syringe uses several smart improvements to improve ease of use; a non-slip finger grip, over sized plunger and thumb pad, an oval syringe barrel magnifies graduation and a rounded finger loop for easy removal of pull cap. Via Core77 and Fastcompany. 

The 29th of June was World Industrial Design Day. 'This international day of observance is celebrated in order to raise awareness about the benefits of industrial design in improving our quality of life' icsid.

Plakkies are flip flops using recycled car tires for the soles, an initiative between KidsRights and students of the faculty of Industrial Design Engineering at TU Delft. The result is fashionable footwear made by economically disadvantaged people in KwaZulu Natal. 'A special factory was established to facilitate the project with the aim to offer permanent employment in one of the most socially and economically neglected parts of South Africa. The factory now employs 70 untrained residents from slum areas, many of whom are infected with HIV. This job offers them a chance to rebuild their lives, often after years of unemployment' Design.nl. 

Other news from the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering of the Delft University of Technology has developed an industrial design reference wiki; Wikid. Wikid aims to be a design tool, it has 142 articles so far, ranging from design theories to methods and techniques. Via Product Design Hub. 

Between 10 and 5 reports on the final three applicants for the 2009 South African International Young Design Entrepreneur (IYDE) award. The finalists are Given Gugulethu Nkuna, Majolandile Andile Dyalvane and Ricky Lee Gordon. The South African winner will join 8 - 10 other finalists who will visit the UK in September 2009 to undertake a common program where they will take part in valuable networking both with key UK design sector partners and amongst their IYDE peers. The tour will include elements of the London Design Festival program – openings, seminars, and events - concluding at 100% Design.

An Illustrated Weekly World of Design, 17 June 2009

We are happy to announce that our safe, economical Arivi stove is a finalist in this year's Index Award under the home category, it is a great honor to be included with other great designs to improve life.

Approximately 60 000 people are injured by paraffin use each year in South Africa, costing the country hundreds of millions of dollars and the Arivi stove is designed to address this problem.

The stove has 3 main benefits, the first is that the flame self extinguishes when knocked over, tilted, moved or refilled. The second is the increased efficiency, saving users 32% of their paraffin costs. Thirdly, the stove produces almost no particles or smoke and less than half the amount of carbon monoxide required by law, reducing indoor pollution which causes respiratory ailments. A limited number of stoves are being offered for pre-ordered sale to anyone who believes in this cause and wants to help. Please go to www.myarivi.com to find out how you can help.

Good to see that apart from the Arivi stove, this year sees another 4 finalists from South Africa; Woolworth’s "Making the Difference Through Design" Program, Design Indaba 10x10 Low Cost Housing project, Lodox® Statscan® VE1 and the Freeplay Fetal Heart Rate Monitor.

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The Woolworths "Making the Difference Through Design" program provides a platform between business, design and education, placing important tools in the hands of educators.

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Design Indaba 10x10 Low Cost Housing project; in 2007 Design Indaba commissioned ten local and international architects to design low-cost houses for ten low-income families in the Freedom Park community in Cape Town, South Africa

The idea behind the design was conceived by Ravi Naidoo during Design Indaba 2007, the 10×10 Housing Project invited leading international and South African architects to submit housing designs for lower income families. “Lets give dignity and empathy to the poorest of the poor by designinga house that pushes the envelope in terms of ingenuity, creativity and sustainability.” Ravi Naidoo; PingMag 2007.

The design from MMA Architects is a low cost, timber and sandbag infill construction, can be built with little or no electricity and uses unskilled labor from local communities. The design has also won the Curry Stone Design Prize.

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Lodox® Statscan® VE1-the Statscan can X-Ray a person in 13 seconds. “Statscan gives critical life-saving information to the medical staff by enabling them to have a complete picture—literally from head to toe—of a patient’s injuries, faster and with less interference with patient stabilization efforts than ever before possible. “ Lodox.

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The Freeplay Fetal Heart Rate Monitor-"Using advanced ultrasound technology, the Freeplay Fetal Heart Rate Monitor detects and measures the fetal heart rate. This vital indicator of fetal stress allows rural healthcare workers to make life-saving decisions during childbirth. Destined for use in low-resource settings, its design focuses on simplicity of use, durability and electrical-power independence. The fetal heart rate is numerically displayed, while its sounds are clearly amplified. Its efficient, human-powered electricity generation and storage technology ensures operation anywhere" Index Award. Freeplay gained recognition through its first product , the Lifeline Radio, a wind-up radio designed specifically for use in development and other humanitarian projects. Read more about the Freeplay Foundation here.

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Project Masiluleke needs to be mentioned too, Project Masiluleke is a collaboration between Praekelt Foundation (based in Johannesburg), Frog Design, Pop!tech, iTeach, Aricent, Nokia Siemens and others. See coverage from Core77, BBC and Poptech. Great use of the mobile phone as an appropriate means of communication while being culturally sensitive.

The INDEX:Award prize ceremony will take place on 28 August 2009 in Copenhagen.

An Illustrated Weekly World of Design, 09 June 2009

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News from the DMY Berlin Design Festival 09, Oskar Zieta has produced the Fidu bench which can be manufactured in lengths of 400 to 3000mm using metal sheets, CNC production and fidu technology (free inside pressure forming).

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Nils Holger Moormann has cleverly designed the knotted table, using wood, iron and rope the construction appears simple and elegant. Via Spotd.it.

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Forbes recently did a piece; Trendsetters: Industrial Design that covers designers from multiple disciplines, from pure industrial design to furniture and even Shai Agassi is mentioned. The piece is about designers who capture a "forward way of thinking" that reflects longevity rather than quick disposal. Jonathan Ives is of course mentioned for the influential designs he has worked on for Apple.  

 

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Core77 reports on 12 concepts phones from Motorola, the ideas come from 31 of Motorola's designers, from five different offices around the globe, who have been dedicating a portion of their time since late last year to a project called "Motorola 2033", resulting in a curious set of research-based blue sky concepts rooted in some fantastical, yet plausible suppositions.

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More on the development of the next big thing, Smartbooks are smaller than netbooks yet larger than smart phones. Freescale Semiconductor has commissioned six prototypes, ranging from the touchscreen-slate-with-QWERTY-ears to a modular mini-notebook and a leather-clad clamshell. Seems like these are simply new forms of MIDs (mobile internet device).

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Via Designboom, Google Sketchup and The Guggenheim have partnered to launch DESIGNIT, a virtual architecture competition which ‘invites the public to use Google earth and Google Sketchup to
create and submit designs for virtual 3-d shelters for a location of their choice anywhere on earth'. Architecture for Humanity is adding an unofficial 3rd prize, the Purpose Prize which urges people to "add a social component to the competition by selecting a community that could utilize your design to improve their living standard.It can be a homeless family in New York, a displaced group in Northern Sri Lanka or a refugee camp in Chad. Bonus points for incorporating off the grid technology. Let's shine a light on the basic human right of shelter for all." Good idea.

Stay tuned next week for some very exciting news.

An Illustrated Weekly World of Design, 02 June 2009

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200 special tools were designed for astronauts repairing the Hubble telescope, the tools were designed to reduce fatigue and make sure nothing floats off into space. They include a workstation that mounts to the chest of a space suit, pretty awesome stuff, but then again, how often do people need to do repairs in zero gravity. Via Notcot. In other orbit related news; Stalinist pantsuits are the favored fashion piece of the 'Dear Leader'.   

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Nice short interview with Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec on their design process at Spot.it. Good to know that the sketchbook is more important to the Bouroullec brothers than the computer. 

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More design brothers; Vincent and Paul Georgeson founded Misewell and have produced an outstanding first collection, with the belief that furniture should be simple, functional, and honest. Many of the pieces are a combination of metal and wood with interesting joinery methods. Via Designllama.  

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The Microsoft Zune HD looks a lot better than the last Zune, but will it be able to compete with other non mobile network devices? It would be great if it could make calls too. Via Dvice.

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An article on design thinking in the Harvard Business Review by TIm Brown and Ten Things to Demand from Design Thinkers by Mark Dziersk.