Catalyst

IDSA Awards Program

A Catalyst for Creativity

RKS Helps IDSA Create a Meaningful Program, Platform and Brand

Design Disconnect

Purposeful design is an integral part of modern life, a driving force that improves our abilities to work, play, and survive. Design as a discipline is organic and evolves as our needs and aspirations grow and change. It helps companies produce meaningful products that connect with consumers; it builds confidence and value in goods and services; it thrives on change and innovation and is the fuel for sustained economic growth. Unfortunately, there has long been a disconnect between design and general awareness of its critical contribution to the success of products and services. It has been difficult to communicate in a clear, direct manner and too often, business leaders fail to recognize design’s strategic potential.

RKS founder and CEO, Ravi K. Sawhney, saw the benefit to the industrial design profession as a whole to create a platform upon which to communicate with relevance, interest and clarity, the real-world advantages to integrating design into the development and/or improvement of any product. Sawhney’s vision and leadership galvanized competitive design talents to a common goal—to develop a meaningful narrative that could be shared with industrial, corporate, and academic communities to make a compelling case for design.

Actual Case Studies

The program focused on actual case studies of commercially successful products, and the design’s contribution to that success. These are compelling stories of challenges, inspiration, processes and results, serving to inform, educate, and inspire others to consider the advantage to incorporating design into their development programs. It would be a catalyst for new opportunities. And thus, in 2002 the Catalyst® program was born.

RKS then assembled a team of highly qualified professional writers that would bring honoree’s case studies to life. These writers interviewed the designers and executives behind each project, probing to understand the market dynamics, attitudes, processes and setbacks involved in each eventual design success story. To better serve business executives and students on the go, RKS then partnered with professional voice actors to record audio versions of each case available.

To be selected by a jury of your design peers for inclusion in the Catalyst® program is an honor indeed, and to further acknowledge the design excellence and corporate accomplishment of each winner, RKS designed and manufactured the coveted Catalyst® trophy. Machined from solid aluminum billet and mirror-polished, it shines as a beacon for the inspirational program and the brands it recognizes.

Making the Case for Design

The IDSA Catalyst® program now provides a library of cases for communicating design’s contribution to market performance and offers designers the tools, in the form of actual design case studies, with which to make the case for design’s strategic value. The series of in-depth cases explore how design has been leveraged successfully to generate revenue, or to positively address the social challenges of the day using intelligence, creativity and compassion. Included are great design examples from Toyota, Coca-Cola, Siemens, OXO, Apple, Oral-B, Kohler, Whirlpool, Black & Decker and others.

Today the Catalyst® program continues to accelerate change, bringing depth, clarity and transparency to the design process, while at the same time, illustrating the profession’s strategic, humanitarian and ecological impact. Download a case and learn more here.

DenMat (Discus Dental)

Oral Composite Dispenser

Nuance™: The Smart Syringe

RKS collaborated once again with Discus Dental to create a user-centered solution to deliver ease-of-use, reduction of waste, and professional presentation.

Discus Dental is a leader in whitening, restoratives, oral hygiene and endodontics. RKS has been helping Discus achieve its business goals, since they were a start-up more than 15 years ago. The most recent collaboration between Discus and resulted in Nuance, a composite delivery system designed for use by dental professionals when performing tooth restorations or filling cavities. An improved extrusion syringe delivers a superior material that replaces amalgam, resulting in benefits to both the dental professional and the patient as well.

Great Stuff Deserves Great Delivery

Discus’ chemists engineered the Nuance composite material to furnish dentists with the physical and technical properties required for beautiful, long-lasting, and natural-looking results. While Discus had great new chemistry, past attempts had shown the benefits could become compromised by not fully designing the user experience and paying close attention to the needs and aspirations of patient, dental assistant and dentist simultaneously.

To develop user insights necessary to ensure a successful offering, the RKS design team first leveraged extensive research and ethnography analysis into the dental operatory itself. The team then mapped and benchmarked competitive offerings, brands and target consumer groups to identify pain points, and set the stage for innovating an improvement in the ease and efficiency of the experience.

A Smarter Syringe

The whole delivery system was reconsidered. Control and precision metering were of paramount importance. Not only was it necessary to be able to accurately dispense exactly the amount of material required, but also to know at a glance how much material was remaining in the syringe. To this end, a calibration system was developed that dispenses a uniform “unit dose” of exactly 0.1 gram per half turn. Furthermore, to ensure that half turn is executed precisely, an audible and tactile click is produced as the user completes it. Guesswork is completely eliminated.

The plunger end was transformed into a calibrated indicator, an at-a-glance gauge of remaining material. Thread pitch and handle design were ergonomically engineered for maximum leverage and control as well as user comfort. The attached cap design prevents loss while better protecting the light-sensitive material. The overall architecture allows standing vertically and prevents rolling when laid on its side, as well as ample labeling surface for quick recognition of the specific material shade within.

Multi-tasking dental professionals can now count clicks as they accurately dispense NuanceTM—without even looking. The syringe provides easy, efficient operation, instant indication of remaining material, and enhances the operatory with a professional aesthetic. Despite the often-chaotic environment of the dental office, the new design ensures accuracy, economy, and prevents mistakes. NuanceTM has changed the game by holistically incorporating the needs and aspirations of all participants, and has been recognized with a Spark! and Silver Industrial Design Excellence Award in 2011.

GizmoLive

Interactive Retail Pavilion Platform:

The Oracle of Consumer Technology

Designing an Experience to Educate, Entertain and Empower Technology Users

Profusion and Confusion

The consumer electronics industry grosses in excess of $200 billion a year in the U.S., with a seemingly unending profusion of technological advancements, evolution and choices. So vast is the onslaught of information and variety that even the most enthusiastic and engaged consumer is usually overwhelmed with confusion. The pace by which brands and models proliferate and are constantly updated and replaced by newer versions makes it nearly impossible for any manufacturer or retailer to adequately explain and demonstrate products features, and provide meaningful customer service. While it is essential for growth, competitiveness and profitability for these companies to develop new technologies and new offerings, it has created a serious gap in what is available and what can be communicated clearly and comprehensively to consumers. This consumer/technology gap could conceivable impinge on a significant percentage of that $2B in potential sales and revenue, and RKS saw the need to address the growing problem.

Connecting the Dots

The sheer magnitude of this industry, with all its diversification, markets, categories, sources and consumer applications required a very in-depth investigation of the industry as a whole, the key consumer segments, and consumer expectations. RKS delved into the consumer mindset through its proprietary Psycho-Aesthetics® methodology, to learn and clearly understand how the consumer perceives, resonates and embraces technology and change. As clarity in the consumers’ needs and aspirations developed, RKS researchers discovered the connections between the products, the shopping/decision-making processes, and the experience itself of interacting with the products.

Studies were conducted on stores and malls, including traffic flow, regional and demographic trends, and keen observation of consumer behavior in a variety of scenarios and environments. It was essential to create an experience that would attract and resonate with the very consumers who sought to discover and understand the latest technological equipment, products and gadgets. The design team knew they had to educate, entertain, and empower these potential customers.

Magic in the Mall

The answer was an experience that embodied new technology itself, and was attractive, inspiring and easy to navigate. An interactive pavilion was the solution, offering a unique experience that would engage the consumer with an open architecture and a natural traffic flow, incorporating inviting seating, digital displays and intuitively accessed information. It shouldn’t be as complicated as the products it sought to simplify!

Gizmo Live was the result of this research and design process, bringing people and technology together in an environment that is inviting, exciting and almost irresistible to the tech consumer. Composed of modular elements, Gizmo Live is highly transformable, able to shape-shift to accommodate a variety of environments and a diverse selection of products.

Offering detailed product information, hands-on interactivity and personal one-on-one demonstrations by knowledgeable Gizmo Gurus, accurate information is quickly conveyed and confusion dispelled. Brand co-habitation creates a more realistic and real-life experience, and consumer confidence is raised.

Hamilton Co.

XRP Pipetting System

Laboratory research can be a beautiful thing.

RKS continues to empower scientific discovery with Hamilton Company

Lab research is the heart of scientific discovery, yet the level of empathetic design and researcher’s experience found in most laboratories lags behind the efforts invested in the processes themselves. From DNA discoveries to finding the next pharmacological breakthrough, answers to some of today’s biggest questions are hidden deep inside molecular structures and lab technicians play an important role in unlocking these mysteries. Their work would be impossible without the ability to effectively analyze liquid samples with the help of pipettes—lab instruments similar to medicine droppers used to transport a measured volume of liquid to tray wells, but with more precision. Today’s scientific pioneers rely on automated sample processing to accurately and cost-effectively prepare the high sample volume needed for discovery or research validity, using advanced robotic systems to perform the pipetting. But the equipment is unnecessarily clumsy and lacking in aesthetic value.

Cleaning Up the Laboratory Landscape

Having worked with RKS in the past on the Nimbus project, Hamilton Company returned with a new challenge: a high through-put, scalable pipetting system for large commercial labs working in the bio-chemical, pharmacological and forensics fields. Available equipment was lacking in modularity providing for scalability, which would integrate with numerous analyzers and improve the user’s experience during essential research and discovery. Hamilton required the equipment to visually enhance the cluttered lab environment with a clean, revolutionary appearance, while communicating the accuracy, authority, and reliability for which Hamilton’s professional systems are widely known.

Early observations revealed the cluttered, chaotic environment of the typical lab, in stark contrast to the precision and carefully considered processes used in research. Surely, this could not be conducive to the highest levels of inspiration and dedication to task required for breakthrough discoveries. There was a disconnect in the discordant array of instrument components and their necessary integration for precise, efficiently paced workflow.

A compact footprint was envisioned, in which Hamilton’s leading-edge machinery could most efficiently be deployed and used to best advantage in terms of ease-of-use, confidence and user empowerment. It would make a clear and bold statement, standing apart yet creating visual harmony amid the clutter and bringing a caché to the lab that commands notice and respect.

A Bold Centerpiece

Moving the unit out from the wall, a typical placement, created a centerpiece that would set the tone of professionalism, innovation and efficiency to the lab. Ergonomics dictated the designing of large, easy-access doors that could be opened in close quarters as well as a large, intuitive touch screen interface for quick monitoring, cycle initiation and error-free control. The simple, “soft-box” geometry, favored by the design team for optimum integration into the lab environs, is enclosed but fully open-to-view through transparent blue polycarbonate. The mechanisms and processes within are visible and easily monitored with 360-degree visual access, enhancing the user experience of all functions as well as the clinicians’ overall emotional response in the laboratory setting.

Hamilton Medical

C1/T1/MR1 Portable Ventilators

Critical Design

RKS’ research, strategy and design aids Hamilton Medical in creating a new category of mobile life-saving ventilators

When illness or injury prevents an individual from the simple task of moving precious air in and out of his lungs, death is only a few moments away. The ventilator is the essential device that takes over for the patient’s breathing functions; its availability, convenience, and functionality are absolutely critical to his survival. Whether at an accident scene, in surgery, or in the ICU, this equipment must integrate within the responders’ or caregivers’ immediate environment and task at hand.

Going Mobile

Hamilton Medical, a leader in technological innovations in respiratory ventilators, collaborated with RKS Design to develop a new and more efficient category of transport-optimized ventilators. The challenge was to incorporate the best features of full-sized, static ventilators into more compact, mobile units, designing a caregiver-centric solution that optimized the patients’ outcomes.

RKS’ methodology, based upon in-depth research as well as ethnography, insight and strategic vision, creates a design language specific to the challenge at hand. In this case, it was essential to identify the needs, aspirations, obstacles and pain points that swirled around caregivers in the critical, dynamic, often highly-charged environment in the field or in the hospital.

Responding to First Responders

In order to develop deep understanding of the first responders’ needs and circumstances, RKS conducted in-depth interviews with EMTs, ICU nurses and others who might reply upon ventilators to keep patients alive after trauma or during transport. What emerged was the caregivers’ emphasis on intuitive, fairly simple equipment that was rugged, reliable and offering great flexibility in use. Bedside use had its requirements, as did a unit tasked to serve a patient gliding slowly through an MRI tunnel. Yet those were quite different from the attributes expected—and needed—of a unit pressed into service at an accident scene or 30,000 feet in the air. It became clear that the basic design would need to be not only flexible enough for a variety of logistical applications, but also lend itself to alternate configurations designed for specific and specialized usage.

The basic needs to elevate the user experience, simplify training and ensure life-saving performance in fast-paced, stressful situations called for the integration of Hamilton’s proprietary full touch-screen interface. On-site analysis also revealed the need for a minimalist footprint to get the machine where it was needed to be quickly and easily. Along the way, designers were mindful of cost considerations and the economic realities of customers.

Fortified with hard data, insights and strategic tools, RKS set to the task of crystallizing its knowledge into innovative solutions. The process was comprised of intensive and comprehensive creative sessions that led to a series of form studies. Developed through iterative steps from form evaluations to study models and then mock-ups, they were then field-tested to gain further insight and inspiration. Concurrently, RKS collaborated with the teams at Hamilton in Switzerland to integrate all technological aspects, service requirements, durability and COG optimization, working in parallel to develop the design language, enclosures, user experience and mobile optimization.

Less Focus on the Machine

Requiring less interaction with the equipment for monitoring patients or responding to alarms transformed the clinician’s experience. Carefully considered display layout and data, intelligent knob and control design and adaptable alert parameters allowed the caregiver to focus more on the patient and less on the machine, especially during transport.

Mobility is further optimized through well-considered battery and cord/hose design, while integrated universal attachments accommodate diverse usage scenarios—helicopter mounts, bedside attachment, etc. Within its compact footprint, benefits for both patient and care provider are enhanced, its access to tight quarters allowing it to follow both adult and pediatric patients in the air or on the ground.

One Language, Three Stories

RKS leveraged the refined design language and general features in three configurations to accommodate a diverse range of needs. The C1 model is designed to provide ventilation in a variety of mobile ground scenarios, while the M1 caters to the breathing support of ICU patients within the vicinity of an MRI. This model is optimized to service patients through the ICU-MRI procedure without comfort or safety-compromising disruption. The lightweight (6.5kg) T1 is the mobile workhorse of the bunch, designed to ventilate the adult or pediatric ICU patient at any place in the world, accompanying them within and between hospitals, in emergency vehicles, or aboard aircraft.

On-the-go patient care is essential, with minimal disruption. To that end, the T1 configuration includes built-in long-run batteries that can be “hot-swapped”, integrated chargers, power source adaptability and auto-switching between power sources for international travel.

RKS’ ventilator design provides enhanced performance, operational safety, intuitive usability, and refined ergonomics that serve the caregivers well in serving their patients. Designed-in adaptability allows the multi-functional units to meet the varying needs of all ICU patients as well as those en route. With cost-effectiveness, efficiency, ease-of-use as well as the ruggedness essential to mobile medical equipment, the design breathes new life into the world of the emergency caregiver.

Hope App

Disaster Relief

Designing an Easier Way to Prepare for Disasters, and Respond

"American citizens are extraordinarily underprepared for disasters” ~ Irwin Redlener, Director for the National Center for Disaster Preparedness

Nearly a decade after the 9/11 attacks less than 50% of US households have a family emergency plan, and confidence in healthcare’s response capabilities has continually dropped to less than 1/3. With individual preparation insufficient, unnecessary and foreseeable suffering is just a matter of time. When disaster strikes, preparation is key. Many around the world look to leaders and government officials for help only to be disappointed. Response systems get overloaded, leaving individuals more reliant on themselves, neighbors and relief organizations than expected.  Communication, relief coordination and hope are vital to minimize human suffering.

Empowering Preparation, Connection, Information and Hope RKS was compelled to action after discovering the startling lack of disaster preparedness in the US and elsewhere, and decided to help inform the Red Cross with a smartphone application that would raise individual preparation and societal awareness.  All were engaged by this pro bono work that aims to inspire how empathy could better marry technology to bring comfort and hope.

The team wanted an application that could not only encourage and aid preparation, but also provide a quick and simple way to connect with loved ones during a disaster, help with relief coordination, and channel goodwill. They envisioned the simplicity and empowerment from combining together these multiple functionalities into one application serving different audiences.

Designers sought a solution that would help people before, during and after a disaster, continually raising levels of preparation, awareness and interaction along the way. We challenged each other to empower preparation, connection, compassion and hope in one integrated solution, to offer a compelling alternative to existing applications more narrow in focus.

RKS teamed with InterFUEL Interactive Agency , to create the application’s strategy, revealing a new inspiration for the Red Cross. InterFUEL’s expertise in application development, and passion for the project, complimented RKS’ command of design research, strategy and system/service design.

Empowering Preparation, Connection, Information and Hope

The team quickly centered on developing four main modes of use: Being Prepared, Being Connected, Being Informed and Being Hope. They then set about conceptualizing how to best attract and engage diverse audiences to the critical but neglected task of readying themselves and loved ones to weather the worst.

Be Prepared

The old adage that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure rings true not just in medicine but in disaster mitigation. That’s easy to rationalize, but follow-through lags considerably. Research revealed that once a disaster hits, people are eager to help and most aware of their inadequate preparations. Designers sought to tap this fleeting opportunity to motivate and support individuals, by developing a system of checklists that would guide proactive engagement and raise awareness through social media.

Be Connected

When a disaster hits the thing people want most is to know loved ones are alive and well, or to convey the same. They also want to find each other and reconnect. Social media platforms are playing an important role in communication when a disaster happens and in its immediate aftermath. Text messages may get through even when calls cannot. So, designers sought to enable people to quickly connect with loved ones and needed resources by harnessing the strengths of various technologies.

To inform family members and friends in case of a disaster, the app allows the user to send out a short message to a predefined group by pressing one single button. The messages will be sent via SMs to the phones of group members, or to their social media pages. Each message includes a status whether people are OK or need help and the location of the sender. Numerous posts provide local officials a snapshot of impact throughout a regionally-impacted area. By allowing people to store and access relevant disaster information, connection is aided when needed. SMS-enabled information is easier to broadcast, providing a simple but critical status update and location.

This feature decreases voice traffic and system stress by transferring dozens of frantic calls into a quick, simple one-button update. Sharing within personal networks helps create a real-time map of where other people are and how they’re doing, providing powerful, relevant knowledge within social communities. Pre-determined meeting locations/times and evacuation routes remain accessible when communications systems are down, as well as pre-loaded maps to area hospitals for medical and mental treatment, shelters and charitable organizations providing food, water and shelter.

In2Technologies

Engage Branding and Unity Home Theater

Friendlifying Audio

RKS partnered with In2Technologies to develop its new A/V brand, Engage, and flagship home-theater-in-a-box design.

Who is the key decision maker in decorating a living room? If you look inside most homes today, you’d think the TV was calling all the shots. All furniture faces the hearth of the digital age. Cables snake out from behind the set and into all corners of the room. Remotes clutter every available surface, or hide in every nook and cranny.

Home theatre systems only make things worse. They come with multiple components that get spread across the room, and have to be wired together. Shopping for these systems is a nightmare. Sure, a professional set up is usually tidy and sounds great but costs a lot of money and most of us aren’t A/V professionals.

In2Technologies is dedicated to bringing refreshingly simple audio and video solutions to people, with a focus on great design. Under the leadership of industry veterans Todd Beauchamp (former Apple executive) and Mike Fidler (former Sony executive) designers enhanced and implemented a unique home-theater-in-a-box configuration called tShape™ that hides a full 7.1 channel sound system in a TV stand. They then came to RKS for two things: turning their technology into Unity, a winning flagship product and creating Engage, a strong home entertainment brand for their flagship offering.

KOR Water

Hydration Vessels

Message in a Bottle

KOR teams with RKS to re-think personal re-hydration

The 60% Challenge

The human body is roughly 60 percent water, giving credence to its celebration as the most precious resource on the planet. KOR Water recognized this, as well as the cavalier attitude with which most people regard the seemingly limitless stuff. But limitless it is not, with massive waste and pollution creating shortages of potable water. Tens of millions of disposable plastic water bottles are discarded daily, exposing landfills and waterways to Bisphenol-A (BPA), a harmful chemical used in the manufacture of polycarbonate bottles. Public concerns were growing and it was clear a more responsible option to the disposable plastic bottle was needed.

KOR Founders Eric Barnes and Paul Shustak saw this as a perfect storm brewing. Wasted resources, unnecessary expense, pollution, and health dangers created consumer demand for a smarter solution, as well as an opportunity for those who could envision such. Knowing of their reputation for creating innovative, precision-engineered solutions, enhancing functionality, and heightening consumer experiences, they selected RKS Design from among the nation’s top firms to make their vision for a healthier, more sustainable option a reality. The challenge was formidable: solve the problem in a way the consumer will embrace.

Other issues quickly became apparent in the consumer experience. Ease-of-use was paramount, and existing refillable bottles often had the user fumbling with awkward lids, screw caps that required two hands, ill-conceived handles and wrong-sized openings that made filling difficult and drinking a clumsy process. Most designs lacked any elegance and looked more like something that would be found dangling from a camper’s belt than on the table of an executive boardroom.

The Right Stuff

It was essential that no new product carrying the KOR name would have any health risks associated with it, and a new material without BPA composition was needed. Each project at RKS provides new insights, opportunities and solutions to every one that follows, and the KOR project was no exception.

While creating the innovative RKS Guitar series, a close relationship with the Eastman Chemical Company was developed. Searching for a BPA-free plastic material, RKS designers contacted Eastman to see if any such material was available. To their delight, it was found that Eastman was developing just such a material at that time. While proceeding with the design process, RKS received early samples of the material—known as TritanTM—and were thrilled to discover its glass-like properties that would showcase the water to its best effect and enhance its perceived value and enjoyment.

The design team collaborated to consider form and function while experimenting with the potential of Eastman’s Tritan™, to deliver both performance and elegance. The design would need to be highly functional as well as iconic, enhancing the beauty of the pure water within. With an integrated handle and insert area for personal messages and pictures, the product would reflect the lifestyle and the life of the consumer carrying it. The design was evolving into both a solution and a personal statement.

All the elegance in the world means little if the product doesn’t perform, and where the “rubber meets the road” in this case would be where the lips meet the mouthpiece. Creating a pleasant tactile sensation resulted in a threadless cap and neck, large enough to accommodate ice cubes as well as providing either a thirst-quenching gulp, or a dribbless sip. It was deemed essential that the cap be operated easily with one hand, hinged back and out of the way of the mouth and nose. The securely locking and sealing cap would enable the user to toss the vessel onto a car seat or in a purse without fear of spillage.

Making a Splash

RKS’ standard, viral communications program generated considerable attention from consumers and Hollywood, putting KOR squarely in the public eye through cameos in summer blockbusters like Iron Man 2, and in the pages of celebrity magazines. The KOR One captured the attention not only of influencers everywhere, but the design community as well, with recognition from the International Design Awards and Spark!

The results of the RKS team’s research, strategy, design, engineering, manufacturing and brand activation was a highly successful new brand, with KOR and RKS ultimately becoming strategic partners. RKS is proud to have been responsible for KOR’s growing family of hydration vessels, driving meaningful change through design. KOR has emerged from obscurity to become a serious competitor in the refillable water vessel field, pioneering the use of an important new material—TritanTM—facilitating broad industry adoption and now found in hundreds of products that contact food or beverage. Over its lifetime, each KOR One bottle is estimated to replace 1,000 plastic bottles, only 20 percent of which are recycled, leaving the rest to decompose and pollute for hundreds of years. That’s 800 plastic bottles each KOR has removed from our landfills, our waterways, and from the concerns of our childrens’ childrens’ children.

Laundry Pod Concept

Spinning a Simpler Solution

Washing away global problems

RKS adapted a simple kitchen technology into the laundry room, designing a clean and functional brainchild to promote water and energy conservation.

A New Spin on an Old Chore

Sometimes serendipity wins the day, as was the case when RKS designers made a fascinating discovery while redesigning a simple salad spinner as part of the new Zyliss kitchen product line. It was found that some resourceful women were re-purposing the manual kitchen appliance to wash and spin-dry their delicates. This unexpected insight inspired the design team to see if the concept could be developed further, if the innovative technology of the new manual salad spinner could leap into another category entirely—that of clothes washing.

LevelStar/APH – Orion 18

Smartphone for the blind

Connecting the Blind to the Digital World

RKS Teamed with LevelStar/APH to Develop a Modern Smart Phone for the Blind that Delivers a New Vision of Empowerment

Digital Dependency

Current technology has enabled an amazing depth of digital connectivity for us all—with each other, to sources of information, entertainment, and productivity. Representing an essential portal to our world, we’ve become highly dependent upon these mobile devices and feel lost and disconnected when they’re not within our grasp. The blind community has the same needs and aspirations, but sightless people are severely hampered in their efforts to stay connected by the extreme shortage of personal electronic devices appropriate for their particular requirements.

This disparity needed to be addressed with a new mobile, digital solution. LevelStar, a provider of leading-edge assistive technologies for the blind community, took it upon themselves to innovate in this crucial category. Partnering with the American Printing House for the Blind (APH) and RKS Design, they set out to bring greater connectivity and personal freedom to the blind through a design solution that would put them on par with the sighted community. A new mobile smartphone was envisioned, with sensitivity towards and considerations for the special needs of the blind.

LG

Home Appliances

No More Boring Appliances

RKS Leads LG to a Bold and Bright Future

Consumers want products that solve solutions. They need appliances that store and protect their food and beverages, clean their dishes, floors and clothes, and myriad other functions. But simply getting the job done isn’t enough. Appliances—like that four-wheeled one in the driveway—also make a statement about the owner. It says something about your taste, your style, and your appreciation of quality. It has to reinforce your decision to purchase it by making you feel good about yourself when you use it.

From Phones to ‘Fridges

LG was feeling pretty good about its technical innovations across its brand spectrum, but integrating these into desirable products was a challenge they turned to key partners—one of whom was RKS—to execute. Knowing the depth of the RKS design strategy process and its expertise in the major appliance field from earlier success with Amana, LG had RKS collaborate with its internal design teams to re-strategize its major appliance offerings. It was essential that the new line conveyed the technical innovations within and differentiated itself from the competition. RKS was tasked with developing compelling solutions across a range from cellular products to climate control, entertainment systems to vacuum cleaners, right up to the flagship LG appliances.

The challenge was to create a line of products that bore the LG family brand, had high-perceived value, and elevated emotional engagement with the consumer. In these crowded market sectors, differentiation was crucial; there were a lot of excellent players already in the field. A new brand language would need to be developed, one that was distinctive yet not polarizing.

Business is Picking Up

An example of the design leadership incorporated into RKS’ clients’ offerings is the new direction for LG’s line of consumer vacuum cleaners. LG engineers developed three new synergistic technologies to improve the machines’ performance as well as the users’ experience while operating them. Again, it was essential that the design resonated with the consumer. It’s not enough that a vacuum cleaner can pick up dirt—the consumer must first pick up the vacuum and carry it out of the store.

Studying the experience and expectations of the consumer, RKS was able to determine which aspects users valued most. It came down to two: performance and ease-of-use. Many vacuums were clumsy, poorly conceived contraptions that evolved as features and attachments grew out of them like limbs on a tree, but were not well integrated or designed with the user in mind. The benchmark brands in the category were studied for their best attributes, and then improved upon through improved functionality and aesthetics. Options were explored, for example, as to where best to locate the canister assembly and the hose attachment point. How could the device be more easily carried through the house and down stairs? No time-honored solutions went unquestioned. A well-designed product that functioned almost effortlessly and rewarded its user with a sense of empowerment and pride provided an opportunity to enter the market with category-leading technology, style, and value.

Life Technologies

Design Language/Ion Proton Sequencer

Laboratories of Discovery, Efficiency and Harmony

RKS partnered with Life Technologies to establish categorical brand leadership and design language for enhancing medical discovery

DNA sequencing is one of the most intriguing areas of scientific discovery, holding promise to unlock the human, animal, and plant genomes, resulting in longer and higher quality life for all. It’s potentially the key to the future of humanity. The knowledge gained will revolutionize understanding and treatment in medicine, enhance our food sources and guide us to a brighter future. RKS’ experience working in the medical and scientific fields goes back more than 15 years. RKS was sought out to collaborate with Life Technologies and to develop a modern and cohesive design language leveraging our comprehensive research, strategy and design team’s experiences and methods to reposition the company and brand as the global leader in the category.

Challenge: Aligning a Mixed Bag of Medical Brands

Life Technologies was tracking a successful path through expansion by merger and acquisition, but as is often the case with fast-growing companies, its various brands were a random mix of unaligned entities. The brands stood for different things, and included reagents and consumables, sequencing systems and software, primer and probe sets, etc. To best leverage each brand’s equity, it was essential to integrate them within Life Technologies’ corporate umbrella. A comprehensive branding initiative was underway, and RKS was brought in to lead the industrial design strategy for the effort.

Diving into the Disorder

RKS’ designers and researchers began the process of observing and interviewing scientists and stakeholders to gain a holistic understanding of the processes underway in the labs. It was important to know what the current technology was and how it connected with the forms and functions of the equipment surrounding them. Was it connected at all? What attributes were desirable, what aesthetics emotional fulfilling, what elements were confidence inspiring? The answers began to paint a picture of perceived innovation, accuracy, efficiency and quality, and in what areas these values were lacking.

The analysis of the users’ protocols, expectations and emotional aspirations began to reveal the solutions. The obvious was that the equipment needed to be better integrated, easy to operate and service. But the deeper dive through RKS’ Psycho-Aesthetics methodology said more. Designs needed to not only function intuitively, but to also feel friendly, approachable and memorable. There was a sense of what looks correct in a laboratory environment and what does not; the design should be appropriate for its usage. Superfluous trim and decoration was distracting and conveyed a feeling of less precision. The visual language was an important part of the equipment’s usability. Bulky housings inferred inferior optics; color usage livened the environment but used excessively or incorrectly reduced the impression of precision and quality; footprint-to-height ratio impacted perceived stability and user confidence.

A New Medical Design Language

Spearheading Life Technologies’ new holistic visual design language is Ion Proton™, powered by innovative semiconductor chip technology, it is the first benchtop next-generation sequencer to offer fast and affordable human genome and human exome decoding. It was designed to introduce a game-changer through a revolution in cost and speed, which promises to democratize and accelerate understanding diseases, genetically targeting medical treatments, enhancing our food sources and guiding the future of science.

Line 6

Stagesource L3t

Staging a Live Sound Revolution

RKS Helps Line 6 Change the Performance Game

Most performing artists don’t actually have a huge entourage and their own sound engineer. They play all kinds of gigs, large and small, and have difficulty switching between their left and right brains when trying to get psyched for a performance creatively and when trying to make sure it sounds great. It’s also a challenge for the performing musician to choose the perfect high-performance loudspeaker system because over the course of a career they play different styles, instruments and venues.

Artists need solutions that can grow with their career and are a smart investment, but because the sound needs of a small bar or bistro are much different than when playing before an audience of 2,000, that’s been a pipe dream. The market was in need of a solution that optimizes acoustics in any scenario, with flexibility and scalability. To solve this problem, the geniuses at Line 6 who revolutionized music recording and guitars, innovated a revolutionary touch screen mixing system for live sound, a new generation of intelligent speaker technology. It makes optimizing sound insanely easy and automatic, and introduces a seismic technology shift to network awareness and scalable audio.

The RKS design team was challenged by Line 6 to create a strategic solution for their network aware powered speakers that would stand-out within the crowded category and best convey their intelligent technology. As artists would typically be bringing L3t into their bands for a lifetime, the design would also have to have to possess timeless power, style and functional beauty.

Marco Paolo Chocolates

Gourmet Flavored Chocolates

How Sweet It Is!

RKS Helps Tastemakers Discover a Passion for Marco Paolo’s Distinctive Chocolates

Entrepreneur Mark Lewis came to RKS with a hunger to turn his passion for gourmet chocolates into an e-commerce and catering business serving Southern California and the world. RKS recognized that his unique dual-layered ganache truffles filled with exotic flavor pairings were a taste of something special, and would be a journey of discovery upon which foodies and people everywhere would want to embark.

Exploring a World of Uncharted Flavor Delights

Lewis named his business Marco Paolo Chocolates, creating a brand association with adventure and world treasures embodied by the Venetian explorer Marco Polo. He had a bounty of creative and unique flavor pairings to share, but needed RKS to put real wind in his sails and get his business and brand launched.

RKS worked first to identify key target consumer groups and distribution channels, while optimizing the business to serve them with a brand as distinctive and engaging as Mark’s truffles. The team started by benchmarking the competitive landscape for gourmet chocolates on all aspects of product and service differentiation. Using traditional tools as well as RKS’ Psycho-Aesthetics® methodology helped to gain deeper insights into the varied emotions and interactivity that attract consumers within the segment.

The process of competitive benchmarking revealed an opportunity to convey the brand by selecting a distinctive color—chartreuse—that was not being used by competitors, and which was complimented by the secondary chocolate color. This combination of vivid green and brown provided deeper meaning as homage to the cacao and rainforest region, while conveying the sophistication the brand desired and required.

Discover, Define, Distinguish

Research revealed most consumers are not strangers to fine chocolate, available from a host of brands, but are always looking for gourmet experiences they can proudly share. Designers also identified the emotions and desire behind unusual culinary experiences: bliss and escape, adventure, and the power of flavor to re-awaken and excite.

During this discovery process it was found that a handcrafted approach could be taken to distinguish Marco Paolo Chocolates from other mass-market brands. Creating a “type font” with drizzled chocolate letters took hundreds of attempts; the best examples were selected and a hand-decorated, artisan look and feel were achieved. This is but one example of the cost-effective, high-impact solutions to convey “gourmet” and “unique” through the distinctive packaging RKS created to gain the attention of both consumers and vendors.

RKS then helped to define the product flavor packages and select quantity counts designed to serve identified key audiences and best compliment special occasions like wine tastings, weddings, dinner parties, Bar Mitzvahs and others. From wine pairing guides to web copy, visual language and narrative was created to help attract and engage the gourmet community.

To imbue the brand with more meaning, RKS helped develop the company’s association with eco-tourism to the tropical regions of Ecuador where much of the organic, fair-trade cacao is harvested by cooperatives of local natives in ways that are more sustainable and encourage economic justice. To accelerate e-commerce, RKS then sourced and partnered with programmers to select the best content-management system and launch a site that captivates, communicates, and enlightens.

MiniMed

Portable Insulin Pump

Pumping Up Patient Empowerment

RKS redesigns the emotional experience of the insulin user and restores a confident lifestyle.

MiniMed was stumped. Their portable insulin pump was the category leader in technology, yet adoption rate among diabetics was plummeting. Why would people purposely choose a treatment option known to be significantly less effective against a deadly disease? Declining market share spurred them to action, hiring an outside research firm to unravel the mystery. No useful answers were revealed, however, and MiniMed finally turned to RKS.

Solving an Enigma

The RKS team quickly analyzed existing research, conducted surveys and interviewed patients, but despite compiling mountains of data, no clear answer emerged. Changing their approach, it was time to climb into the mind and day-in-the-life of an insulin pump user. Perhaps immersing themselves in the user experience would reveal useful clues.

To this end, four RKS designers were fitted with belt-worn insulin pumps, and actually hooked to the device by a catheter threaded through an abdominal incision, delivering inert saline solution rather than insulin. For all intents, they were now sharing the real life experience of the insulin pump wearer.

Neuma

Pneumatic Tattoo Machine

Inking a Better Tattoo Experience for Artists and Customers

RKS and Neuma re-invent the tattoo experience

The ancient practice of tattoo has enjoyed a great resurgence in popularity in recent years, yet the equipment used in the process hasn’t seen any real technological advances in well over a century. Carson Hill, a tattoo artist, was inspired to work with RKS to reinvent the motorized tattoo gun, which utilized technology from the engraving machine invented by Thomas Edison in the late 1800s. Hill’s initial brief was to design a device that could be autoclaved to prevent the transmission of blood-borne diseases, a very real concern today.

Diving into the World of Ink

The crew at RKS couldn’t boast of having too many tattoos, so a crash course in the culture was essential to understanding the existing technology, process, pain points of both artists and their human canvases, and the broader emotional needs and aspirations of the artistic community. The firm’s tried-and-true processes and methodologies would serve well to discover, find inspiration, create and execute the comprehensive program for the challenge. The design team was encouraged to learn the experiences of the artists and consumers, discovering a greater depth of opportunity to innovate than at first envisioned.

Aside from the potential transmission of diseases, other relevant issues concerning the trade were productivity, the pain involved in the process, and the healing time the consumers had to endure. Furthermore, it was discovered that tattoo artists were suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome from the repetitive stress of holding and precisely manipulating heavy, clumsy devices. There was a lot of room for improvement and innovation here.

The new design—over 50 percent lighter than traditional coil machines and less than one-third the weight of brass-framed machines—would go a long way in reducing the fatigue and carpal tunnel issues suffered by artists. Thin-walled aluminum and engineering grade plastics were utilized in the design, contributing to the radical weight savings and ergonomic benefits.

Another area of concern was found to be noise. Artists were suffering from hearing loss from prolonged exposure to the typical 82 dBA of high-pitched whine. The RKS solution produced 76 dBA in pneumatic mode and just 70 dBA in electric mode. To put this into perspective, in the U.S. a 5 dBA reduction in noise level is considered to allow a doubling in exposure time with the same level of fatiguing and potential hearing damage. In the rest of the world, only a 3dBA difference is recognized as being required.

Fresh and Edgy

The turbine used in the pneumatic unit features high-efficiency, low air consumption and high torque, providing great latitude for stroke length and motion profiles that reduce drag on the skin, again lessening pain and healing time. The mechanical aspects of the device brought a bevy of benefits over what went before, housed in an ergonomically designed casing that conveyed “edgy” and “fresh” yet has the professional, medical-grade appearance to inspire confidence and comfort into the customer’s experience.

Seeking a holistic solution for the company, RKS created a branding program that included a logo, packaging, and web site, fully integrating the parts and processes. Finally, the team realized that tattoo artists were in need of a social network to share and show off their work with each other. They took the opportunity to reverse the name Nuema to Amuen and create a compelling and self-actualizing networking site that gained immediate industry-wide adoption.

RKS Guitars

Electric Guitar Business

Business is Rockin’!

Reinventing the electric guitar….with a little help from our friends.

There’s an old saying, “A mind is like a parachute—it works best when it’s open.” And no better example could illustrate this than an opportunity stumbled upon by RKS president Ravi Sawhney when pondering the crude and clumsy design of the guitar stands offered by one of RKS’ clients. The question, “Why not build a better guitar stand?” opened the door to the more ambitious question, “Why not build a better guitar?” Thus, this open-minded approach to opportunity became the catalyst for what was to become a singularly imaginative, exciting, and highly fulfilling business venture.

Redesigning an Icon

A fan of rock music and the contribution to that genre of the electric guitar, Sawhney recognized the fact that the instrument had seen virtually no development or innovation in decades—in fact, precious little since its invention! Reinventing or innovating something as iconic as a mainstream musical instrument is an enormous challenge but one that accomplished designers dream about, as a successful effort is the stuff of legacy.

What began as a casual musing developed into a dedicated in-house project involving a dozen designers from a variety of backgrounds, none of whom played guitar or any instruments at all. At first blush this might appear a handicap, but in reality it was fortuitous, as no one on the team was stuck in long-held notions of what an electric guitar must be or had any absolutes entrenched in their minds. Coming from outside the music world, the designers felt unconstrained.

A Little Help From Our Friends

Word of a new guitar under development reached Dave Mason, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame guitarist and member of the ‘60s bands Traffic and Fleetwood Mac, and he came to RKS to see the project. To be validated by a rock legend like Mason was one thing, but he was impressed enough to became integrally involved in the instrument’s development and refinement as well. The combination of the open-minded designers’ “out there” approach and Mason’s virtuosity and supreme knowledge of what a guitar must do to perform at top professional levels resulted in an elegant simplicity, functionality and playability. This created the opportunity for differentiation through enhanced ergonomics, captivating aesthetics, and a unique user experience.

The open architecture defined the new guitar’s innovative appearance, but it also allowed the relocation of controls virtually anywhere on the guitar that made the most sense, whether outside or even inside the body. Control placement was an important touch/pain point according to the team’s analysis, and Mason’s expert input was well received. He suggested moving the pickup selector so that the right hand thumb could easily flick it between positions on the fly, one of many brilliant insights leading to yet more innovation. The contours of the neck and fingerboard and the shape of the guitar body itself were scrutinized and designed for an improved experience. The body was shaped to more closely wrap around the body of the player, for example, allowing a more natural, relaxed position, a more intimate relationship between the player and the instrument, bringing its weight—reduced several pounds in the process—closer to the player’s center of gravity for better balance and reduced fatigue over the course of long sets.

Vestalife

iPod Docks, Headphones, and Earbuds

Breakout Solutions, Breakthrough Performance

RKS’s female team helped Vestalife better connect not just with iPods, but with style-conscious young women

In a saturated market, RKS created a design strategy that connected not just with iPods, but with iPod users. These designs earned Vestalife a highly sought-after placement in Apple stores by better connecting with style-conscious young women. From the organic unfolding of Firefly, to the Faberge-egg inspired Mantis, to the trio of jewelry-like earbuds, RKS’ designs helped quickly capture the character of the brand and the imagination of users.

Lifestyle electronics company Vestalife made a big splash with the debut of their Ladybug iPod speaker, taking the Best of Show award at Macworld 2008. Though it was a great beginning for the startup Vestalife knew their second year offering had to more than live up to Ladybug’s initial promise. Vestalife had the visionary leadership of CEO Fred Faulkner and was leveraging his deep experience with Harman Consumer Group and more than 17 years with the JBL, Infinity and Harman Kardon brands, but needed to expand their product line and target audience.

They sought RKS’ expertise in connecting to consumers through redefining and expanding a visual design language for new generations of iPOD/iPhone speaker docks that elevate consumer interaction and emotional engagement. It was important to keep a young audience engaged, as they began to draw in teens and young woman with more sophisticated offerings that stood out and helped express their individuality.

Taking a Cue From High Fashion

Vestalife later re-engaged RKS to create a set of in-ear speaker designs that married consumer electronics with fashion and complemented their growing line of engaging and character-infused personal electronics.

CEO Ravi Sawhney gathered a team of his four most talented female designers and set them loose to explore blue-sky ideas for earbuds solutions and headphone concepts. The team understood that the right earbud designs could provide maturing Vestalife consumers a continuing connection to the brand – proof that the lifestyle brand was staying true to its unique character, while still growing and evolving, just like its loyal young consumers.

Mapping of competitor products, which were largely sporty and technology-driven masculine designs, confirmed the strategic opportunity to bring higher fashion to the segment. Designers sought to create earbud designs that introduced the appeal of jewelry. They examined trends and preferences before initiating design configurations and prototypes, and identified the opportunity to increase durability with grip areas that would encourage removal by the earpiece, not the cord.

With Bumblebee, Scarab, and Boa, designers also chose to bring attention to the cord, treating it, too, like jewelry that was meant to be displayed, not hidden. With more traditional earbuds the design stops at the body, but every aspect of the Vestalife fashion earbuds are meant to be seen, not just heard. By wrapping the cord in fabric, it is transformed from an unsightly piece of electronics into something that evokes the look and feel of a necklace. Cords attach at the side to hang comfortably, and each earbud design also features a finger grip area for removal. Taking a cue from high fashion, all three styles also feature the embossed Vestalife logo in a prominent location, highlighted with subtle color to harmonize with and enhance the design while reinforcing the brand.

Zyliss

Kitchen Tools

Re-Tooling Kitchen Tools

RKS’ Helped Zyliss Create a Line of Clever and Captivating Kitchen Solutions, and In the Process Rallied Retail Around a Strengthened Brand

The Kitchen Challenge

Designing for the kitchen is highly challenging. Consumer products used in the home in general is a difficult design category, but people are even more particular about what goes into their kitchen and what they use to prepare food. Kitchen tools become part of their lives and their routines; they reflect their taste in style, functionality, and value. And once a tool becomes an entrenched part of their repertoire, it’s very difficult to convince them to change.

Today’s home chefs, as well as casual cooks, look for solutions that address their needs in simple, functional ways. As the functions performed are usually very straightforward and the technology of home food preparation isn’t progressing at the breakneck pace of other industries, innovation must be meaningful and practical and not change merely for the sake of change. A highly competitive segment, tight price control is essential and penetrating the already crowded retail market requires well-considered strategy and leading-edge design.

A Bigger Piece of the Pie

Zyliss, a renowned Swiss brand, sought RKS Design’s involvement to penetrate the lucrative U.S. market and carve out market share from its rivals. A new brand language would be needed to reinvigorate Zyliss’ consumer appeal, brand value and competitive position. While many products are designed with the tastes of a particular country in mind, Zyliss wanted its new line of kitchen tools to have true international appeal.

The RKS team gleaned insights into what happens in the heads, hands, and hearts of home chefs from spending time with consumers, in and out of the kitchen environment. Watching them work, observing patterns of behavior, gauging the sense of satisfaction or frustration with a particular tool all contributed to understanding the nuances of the experience. Particular attributes rose to the surface: functionality, convenience, ease of use, beauty, safety, and ease of cleaning.

Designing in the Love

The preparation of food is an expression of love when providing for one’s family or friends, and that powerful emotion could be instilled into the user experience if the tools provided the satisfaction of a job well done. This insight inspired RKS designers to create a design language that offered not just functionality but true pleasure in the handling, use, and even washing and displaying of the tools. These kitchen gadgets were tested extensively in prototype form to achieve the best solutions possible, incorporating input from chefs and average consumers and elevating performance and benefits in the process. Both real and perceived value was increased with no impact on cost.

Award-winning Solutions

RKS’ efforts resulted in an award-winning line of kitchen tools that offers new, creative uses, enhanced user safety, improved storage solutions and an attractiveness that makes you want to reach out and pick one up. The Zyliss line captivated cooks, consumers, retailers—even the competition. Brand equity was significantly enhanced and company profits elevated.

Over a decade of collaboration, RKS has provided guidance to the design and direction of the Zyliss brand, in harmony with the company’s Smart-Simple-Swiss global brand identity. Zyliss has successfully penetrated the kitchen market worldwide with a product portfolio of over 30 kitchen product solutions in the first four years, and has carved itself a very healthy piece of the kitchen market pie.