CASE STUDIES / Hamilton MedicalMiniMedDiscus DentalZylissSprintMaugetLGKOR ONEHarvardBAEAmana
What Color is Hope?
When Hamilton Medical called upon our design team to create a design for their new, light-weight ventilator, our team recognized that improving the experiences of medical personnel, patients, and loved ones would be about much more than delivering cutting-edge technology. It would be about providing a more positive emotional environment. ICU patients need more than mere dependable delivery of oxygen. They need hope. A recent Yale School of Medicine study showed that the role psychosocial factors play in surgical recovery was even bigger than anticipated. The study’s conclusion was clear: when worry, anxiousness, and other negative feelings are minimized and replaced with positive emotions and attitudes, patient recoveries are greatly improved.
Redesigning Emotional Experiences
When they first engaged RKS, MiniMed was stumped. Adoption rates on their insulin pumps, which could significantly increase both the quality and quantity of life, were low. Why would people choose a treatment option that was significantly less effective against a deadly disease?
RKS approached the problem from the first person perspective - several of our designers wore insulin pumps (delivering saline solution) to discover the emotional factors at the root of the low adoption rates. Adoption rates soared and MiniMed’s annual revenue jumped from $45M to $171M within three years. Ultimately, the MiniMed 507’s success led Medtronics to acquire MiniMed for $3.6 billion dollars. Currently, Medtronic’s insulin pump sales are over $1 billion annually.
Bringing the Professional Experience Home
Discus first approached RKS in 1997 with a desire to create and sell 100,000 catalytic tooth whitening syringes. RKS responded with engineering and design that was cost-effective to manufacture without sacrificing a premium experience for the end user.
Today, Discus Dental has long surpassed the sale of 100,000 syringes per week, and the relationship has continued to thrive through the innovation of dozens of other breakthrough products.
The Sensuality of Kitchen Artifacts
Zyliss sought to unseat their market rival, so they engaged RKS to create a new brand language and more than 30 new Zyliss products.
Building on extensive consumer research, this new line of Zyliss products was innovated and engineered to outperform the competition. While adding elegant style, increasing functionality, and generating 13 utility patents pending, RKS reduced cost of goods across the entire line an average of 15 to 25%. This low COG combined with high-design and innovation enabled Zyliss to achieve margins of 60-80% and an estimated average ROI of 500%.
Catching the Wave of Demand
Market trends and significant competitive innovation placed Sprint in the unenviable position of having to reevaluate its marketing strategy. The challenge faced by RKS was to accurately define future markets and consumers so that Sprint could take a proactive stance in terms of product and service offerings. Sprint’s goal was to meld primary research developed by outside consultancies with RKS’s Psycho-Aesthetics methodology.
Emerging from the Psycho-Aesthetics program was a final design concept that was heralded by Sprint as an inspiration and foundation for their future product lines.
The Power of Medical Design and Innovation
For better or worse, everything we interact with has emotional resonance. The key is to harness the power of emotion through designs and innovations that create the kind of deep, positive emotional resonance that creates customer loyalty and builds brands. Whether it’s ventilators that breathe hope, dental products that communicate their effectiveness, or lab equipment that imparts authority and accuracy, RKS has a nearly 30 year track record of using our Psycho-Aesthetics philosophy to create emotional connections through designs and innovations that build brands across the medical/dental/lab spectrum.
Green from the Inside Out
When Jim Mauget received I.V. drugs, supplements, inspiration hit - could he do the same for trees? In the 60 years since, countless trees have been saved through his tree-injection methods. But, until now, these methods have been time consuming and inefficient.
The Mauget Forest Saver is the first closed-system for active-delivery tree-injection. This innovative technology safely and quickly delivers tree-saving chemicals at optimal pressure. With the Forest Saver in hand, the operator is transformed from tree-watcher to Forest-Saving Super Hero, able to save ten times more trees each day. Save enough trees and we may turn back the tide of climate change. Save enough trees, and we could save our world.
LG Brand Family
RKS has been engaged by LG over a span of years to create leadership strategy, design, and innovation for market segments from cell phones through major appliances. LG sought RKS’s proprietary design strategy, Psycho-Aesthetics, and RKS design concepts to inspire their LG’s internal design teams. The challenge was to provide LG with a brand strategy across multiple product categories which would make up a cohesive family of products.
Ultimately, the results of our work were used by LG to create its current leadership position where they were once perceived as being a simply low-cost offering. RKS is very pleased to be part of the team that has created a world super brand.
KOR ONE Hydration Vessel
KOR Water hired RKS to create the KOR ONE - a healthy, sustainable, way to stay hydrated. Not intended for a trek to the Outback or the Himalayas, the KOR ONE is designed to be equally at home on an executive’s desk, in a yoga studio, and at your side throughout the day. With intuitive, one-handed operation, the innovative cap hinges back to provide clear access to a mouthpiece small enough for a sip, yet big enough for a thirst-quenching chug.
Made from BPA-free Eastman Tritan™, the KOR ONE transforms drinking water from a reusable bottle from something we’re supposed to do for the health of our bodies and our planet, to a little bit of luxury we can treat ourselves to throughout each day.
Harvard Business School
The Psycho-Aesthetics design strategy not only guides us as we create beautiful, functional, and desirable designs for our clients, it is also a regular part of the curriculum at Harvard Business School. More than 80% of HBS classes are built on the case method, in which real-world case studies are used to challenge the students to work together to analyze different business models. Harvard faculty members conducted in-depth research on the Psycho-Aesthetics methodology used to create a ground-breaking product line for RKS Guitars. This comprehensive business case study is available for purchase through Harvard’s online store.
BAE IR Security Camera
The BAE HHC100 Series project presented a multitude of challenges, not the least of which was packing an extremely sensitive electronics package into a very rugged yet still compact housing.
A number of ingenious design and engineering solutions were implemented to both meet the needs of the product as specified by BAE and enhance the overall user experience.
A high level of collaboration between RKS and BAE combined with unique design and engineering innovations to help make the HHC100 a powerful addition to the BAE Systems product line.
Amana Kitchen and Laundry
Amana’s appliances were losing market share. Our research revealed that, at all stages of consumer interaction, Amana was by far the worst of class. For their Washer and Dryer, we created engaging graphics and soft-touch controls that compel consumer to “reach out and touch.” With only increasing Cost of Goods by 30 cents, we elevated perceived value so much so that we could raise the price 25% (an incredible $100). For their refrigerator line, research led us to design in key features including a one-button, voice-messaging system and an optional Kid Zone designed to give kids their own space. In both cases, RKS helped elevate the Amana brand by using design as a strategic weapon.
