Designing for the Future launches at Collyer’s Sixth Form College

Push out plug socket by Glen Crombie 2011

I was delighted last week to be back at Collyer’s Sixth Form College in Horsham launching “Designing for the Future” to the A level product design cohort.

This will be the first time we have set the brief for A level students – previously it has been part of the AS curriculum – and I am really interested to see what projects emerge from this great product design course led by tutor Kate Sharp. This year’s judges will include Denise Stephens from Enabled by Design and Holly Alexander, the 2013 winner of “Designing for the Future” at the University of Brighton.

It has been another successful year for “Designing for the Future”. Not only did the competition at University of Brighton produce some fantastic products but the ever growing DFF alumni network has had a very good year too with various showcases, exhibitions and Craft Council and Design Museum residencies. Harry Trimble, our first ever winner, is just about to start a MA in service design at the RCA.

I am looking forward to inviting the winners of the Collyer’s competition to join this talented group of designers. 

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Don’t let incontinence hold you back

To mark Carers Week this week, Attends got in touch to let us know what products are now available to help manage the often debilitating affects of incontinence which can strike at any stage of life.

Incontinence can affect both men and women, especially those at a more senior time of life. Not only can incontinence cause irritation and hygiene problems it can also affect your day to day life. IF you let it! Fortunately, there are a number of products available to help limit the effects incontinence has on your lifestyle.

Modern products mean you can still go for a walk, play golf, play tennis, catch up with friends…Of course, we always recommend getting in touch with your doctor as soon as you notice any bladder or bowel weakness as they will be able to offer treatment and advice and explain why this could be happening. Although these products are incredibly helpful and can really improve quality of life, there is no substitute for correct medical attention.

There are many companies who offer a great selection of incontinence products such as Attends, Tena and Lil. The following are products from Attends which can make a huge difference to the life of someone suffering from the effects of incontinence

1. Moisturiser- Often skin irritation is a side effect of incontinence .  Moisturiser can help prevent against any rashes and dry skin, meaning you can get about without excessive discomfort.

2. Disposable underwear- With cotton like outer materials and efficient inner layers, disposable underwear can absorb almost twenty times its own weight… so you can enjoy that coffee after all!

3. Absorbent pads- These have the same effect as disposable underwear but are designed for a lighter flow. Allowing you to wear that dress you wanted to!

4. Incontinence Slips – These are sometimes known as adult nappies and are designed to manage heavy or severe incontinence and are available in different sizes to ensure you can get a secure fit.

5. Spray- Opposed to using a perfume or deodorant, why not use a non-irritating product. Perfect for when you’re out and about.

6. Wipes- Also incredibly handy when you’re out and about. Allowing you to be clean and fresh, so you can enjoy your day.

7. Disposable bags- Disposable bags are a must, similar to the ones you find at swimming pools for wet swimwear.

8. Skin cleanser- A good skin cleanser is important;. You should look for a specialised moisturising cleanser which is formulated to clean without scrubbing.

9. Pad & Underwear combination- Some companies offer a combination of both a disposable pad liner and a washable brief. Providing that extra bit of insurance. 

It can take time to find the right products for you and some trial and error may be needed before you find what you are most comfortable with. To help you find the right product Attends have created this useful Product Selection Guide which is worth having a look at.

Stunning digital quilt impresses at Brighton Graduate Show

Communication Quilt by Joshua Barnes

One of the highlights of the “Designing for the Future” Competition over the past couple of years has been seeing the project’s alumni continuing to explore the themes from the Competition into their final year. Last year, Joshua Barnes entered the “Designing for the Future” Competiton with his Memory Decanter. This year Josh’s digital quilts were the stars of Brighton’s Faculty of Arts Graduate Show.

For many years digital experiences and physical objects have been regarded as separate entities, each restricted by their own limitations. Josh’s work looks to marry together these two realms into hybrid forms of expression, meaning and usefulness by exploring situations in which the image-recognition software ‘Augmented Reality’ can be applied to physical objects. Using the technology to create intimate moments of communication and self-reflection, he aims to look beyond its more conventional uses in marketing and advertising.

The Communication Quilt is designed for children spending long periods of time in hospitals, as a means to negate any separation issues that may occur. The quilt is made up of 13 animal illustrations, each one representing a real life friend or family member assigned by the child. The selected people can then record messages, and ‘attach’ them to their respective symbol on the quilt. Much like with how a

Communication Quilt by Joshua Barnes

 QR code works, the child uses an Augmented Reality app on her smart-device to scan the quilt and release the message. By merging together the tactile and physical meanings a quilt embodies, with the communication capabilities of Augmented Reality, the child is literally wrapped in a greater sense comfort and being in touch with their loved ones.

Josh Barnes’ work can be seen at the Faculty of Arts, University of Brighton Graduate Show  31 May – 12 June 2013.

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Story telling app wins Designing for the Future 2013

Holly Alexander - story telling app

A story telling app and a sensory blanket have won this year’s student design for aging competition, “Designing for the Future”.

 “Designing for the Future” run by The Future Perfect Company in conjunction with the University of Brighton is now in its fourth year and encourages student designers to think about the challenges and issues affecting our ageing population – and to create innovative and attractive and designs which allow older people to continue to live enjoyable, active and independent lives. 

Winner Holly Alexander and runner up Jack Durling have won a package of support and promotion including various opportunities to showcase their projects to the public. Winner Holly will also be invited to join the judging panel for a similar competition run by The Future Perfect Company at Collyer’s Sixth Form College.

Founder of The Future Perfect Company, Philippa Aldrich explains: “As the “Designing for the Future” Competition has grown, I have become increasingly aware that in order to create an innovation pipeline for this area of design, the students need support and encouragement beyond the initial Competition to help them develop their projects and also launch themselves into the design world after graduation. Holly and Jack will be joining an impressive group of “Designing for the Future” alumni, including Chloe Meineck who is now Designer in Residence at the Design Museum.”

The Competition received entries from two year groups of 3D Design & Craft students at the University of Brighton and was coordinated by tutor and furniture designer Gareth Neal and judged by Anne Boddington, Dean of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Brighton; Philippa Aldrich, founder of The Future Perfect Company; Gretel Jones, senior consumer markets policy adviser at Age UK; and Tom Serpell, Director of Eastbourne – Designed for all. 

Says Tom Serpell: “It was heartening to see that after 40 years in product development the well is far from dry and that there is so much talent and creativity in the coming generation. The students’ ideas and projects were without exception thoughtful yet applied a wide range of materials and methods. What was so interesting to me was the combination of modern technologies with familiar crafts and objects. This award scheme is timely and valuable for the socio-economic needs of today”. 

This year’s winner, Holly Alexander focused on using story telling to build relationships within a family community. Linking a traditional spinning top with an iPad, Holly’s app encourages families to share and record stories and store them in a digital family library.

Runner up, Jack Durling developed a sensory blanket which both stimulates and entertains people living with dementia.

Both projects will be included in a showcase of work from the “Designing for the Future” Competition in the Design Zone at the Mobility Roadshow from 27 to 29 June 2013.

Pig’s trotter jelly or “real” gummy sweets, anyone?

Real Gummy Sweets by Poppy Wilson St James

Poppy Wilson St James is another of our “Designing for the Future” alumni and her final year health-related project is concerned with communicating relevant, but sometimes inaccessible facts about food in original and engaging ways. All very topical in the light of the various recent food scandals.

I was particularly struck by the idea of the pig’s trotter jelly mould. Historically, gelatine was created by boiling the bones of animals, especially pigs and cattle. Nowadays gelatine is still made from the hides and bones of cows and pigs but is industrially extracted. As highlighted by the recent horse meat scandal we are increasingly ignorant of what exactly is in our food and how it is treated before it arrives in shops and on our plates. Poppy believes that by creating a jelly mould in the shape of a pig’s trotter consumers can be reminded of the origins of their food, specifically the intensive industrial processes and subsequent synthetic nature of jelly that removes us from the reality of its source. 

Equally striking are the “real” gummy teeth sweets. Sugar has been portrayed in recent years as the root of all current health problems and crises. Whilst there are different studies and arguments about whether sugar plays a part in causing obesity, heart disease and other conditions, it is universally accepted that sugar causes tooth decay. Consumption of sugars, of all kinds including those in dried fruit and honey, leads to acid attacking the enamel on our teeth causing decay and cavities. So why, asks Poppy are perfectly straight, white, pristine teeth shaped sweets sold in sweet shops everywhere? Poppy has created ‘real’ gummy teeth, cast in silicone to mimic gummy sweets from two real mouths, to demonstrate the one definite result of over consumption of sugar – decay and tooth loss.

Both projects raise interesting questions about how much we know about the food we eat  – where it comes from and what affect it has on our health – and how we go about communicating that information. Poppy’s fun approach may well be a good start.

Poppy Wilson St James’ work can be seen at the Faculty of Arts, University of Brighton Graduate Show  31 May – 12 June 2013.

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On being an entrepreneur – the eureka moment

Peter Thornton talks to Dermatuff user, Flo Lees

In the latest of his guest blogs, Peter Thornton, former chairman of Thorntons chocolates, writes about how he had the idea for his new business, Dermatuff and some of the challenges along the way.

During 1998 whilst living still in Wensley in Derbyshire, I started to commute on a weekly basis to the South-West. Some years earlier I had bought a biscuit business which had originally been in Kingsbridge in the South Hams, was now based in Exeter and was doing seriously badly.

Having had a very successful big business background in a very well established and very well known confectionery company, I had imagined that remotely turning around a small loss-making speciality biscuit business would be easy. I had never intended to manage it myself having assumed in a big business style that I would be able to put in a manager and then sit back in Derbyshire watching the profits roll in. It was not like this at all.

Actually what happened was that I sat back in Derbyshire and watched my own finance gradually pour down a black hole in the West Country.  Eventually in the middle of 1998 I decided that I would just have to do something about it personally and that with my experience and entrepreneurial ability I would soon be able to solve it.

Trying to turn around a business which has extreme cash shortage and no particular differential advantage is an almost impossible situation. It is even more difficult when you have come from a business like Thorntons which was very profitable and never short of money. One could make serious mistakes with very little negative impact on the business because of its inherent strength.

By 2003 after five years of commuting 550 miles every weekend we decided to sell up in Derbyshire and move to the South West.  After trying for another two years, we couldn’t save the business and so put it into administration in 2005. It was immensely costly but an intense relief to be out of it.

When I left Thorntons I thought I knew everything about running business and that most important factor human behaviour but I learnt a great deal more by having been in that small business. In the latter six months of the businesses existence I thought that I had saved it by finding a new investor. In those highly stressful circumstances it is too easy to team up with the wrong person who makes extensive promises of high investment. The promises were not fulfilled, but he did introduce a finance director, Nick Pitts who proved to be the foil that I needed.

In October 2005 Julia and I and our children took a one week’s holiday in Brittany in a beautiful old château called Le Manoir de Hilguy. Whilst walking in the local town of Quimper with my family I walked into a low bollard and the inevitable happened, I acquired a huge skin tear on my leg. We walked to the pharmacist across the road and bought some plasters with which I attempted to strap my wound together. A few days later I was coming down the large staircase in the château when I slipped on the steep steps. My arm hit the handrail and my undamaged leg hit the steps. Two more skin tears. This time I spent three hours in the local hospital being stitched and bandaged up.

Not only did I suffer the pain and the physical damage but also the personal distress caused by appearing to be a doddering old fool to my younger wife and family.

I decided then and there that I had to do something about this serious problem and by the time we got home a few days later the obvious answer was already in my mind. It was such a simple solution that I could hardly believe that a suitable product was not already on the market. All I needed was some sort of protective wear for my arms and my legs which would prevent these impacts doing me any harm. Immediately after our return I spent an hour on the Internet trying to find some existing product which matched my concept. The nearest I could get was protective clothing for use in glass factories.

The company was very helpful and agreed to send me the sleeves from a protective shirt. They were a very unattractive yellow colour but after wearing them for about three months with no further skin tears I decided that I had solved the problem.

By this time Nick Pitts and I were in business together, I was mostly responsible for product ideas, Nick, being an interim finance director primarily looked after administration and finance but also had ideas. One day when we were not getting anywhere I said to Nick “well there are these stockings that I’ve been developing”. From then on we moved further and further forward. It is interesting that when one hits upon a really good idea it can be exceptionally hard work but things do seem to fall into place.

For more information about Dermatuff, visit http://www.dermatuff.com/

Stairlifts – cost and design

ThyssenKrupp Encasa contacted us to tell us about their accessibility products which include stairlifts, platform lifts and home elevators. Two of the biggest gripes we hear about stairlifts in general is lack of transparency on pricing and ugly design.  Here ThyssenKrupp Encasa explain how they approach both cost and design.

Pricing in the stairlift industry is somewhat of an unknown as the product is not part of everyday life for the majority of the UK population. It carries the stigma of a medical product which symbolises a lack of independence and old age. Ultimately it is a purchase out of need and not aspiration.    

However times are changing. We are seeing a shift in the stairlift market for many different reasons.  The ageing population is living longer which is causing their everyday life to become a challenge, especially mobility. One of the biggest challenges people face is tackling the stairs, a daily task which is taken for granted by many.  Within the UK there is a Government Facilities Grant scheme (DFG) supported through local authority social services which is designed to help people who may not be in a position to finance adaption’s to enhance their mobility.  Given the recent times and Government austerity measures, the amount of funding is being reduced with signs indicating less funding will be available as the years progress.  This will cause a major shift within the stairlift market as more and more people will have to finance the purchase themselves. This drives the need for prices to become more transparent with design, functionality and value for money becoming a major factor in making the right choice of product and supplier.

At ThyssenKrupp Encasa we design all of our stairlift products with our clients in mind.  We recognise people invest significant time, money and love in their homes and the phrase ‘home is where your heart is’ rings true throughout our business when dealing with customers.  It is our aim to help people stay in their own homes, avoid re-housing or permanent downstairs living by providing stylish, innovative, practical stairlift solutions.  Our curved stairlift, the Flow 2 is arguably the best stairlift on the market.  It holds patented technology and design with its unique ASL technology allowing people to change direction whilst travelling, this eliminates small narrow stairs where typically a stairlift would not fit.  Each lift is bespoke to individual stairs and therefore offers a taylor made solution that meets the needs of the customer, and not a standard off the shelf product. 

ThyssenKrupp Encasa encourages price transparency and when asked by customers we always provide guide prices which are realistic and not misleading to give customers false hope to accept a home visit.  It is difficult to provide a set price for stairlifts as there are many different variables to take into account.  Is it a straight or curved stairlift? Does it require a powered swivel or hinge track? All of these variables can only be answered by visiting the customer’s home to assess the stairs and surrounding areas but also to measure the client to ensure the lift will fit and transport the users safely up and down the stairs.  Not only that, there is also a duty of care to other people who live or access the property to ensure their safety is not jeopardised as a result of installing a stairlift.  All ThyssenKrupp Encasa surveyors are trained to identify all aspects of installing a stairlift and will only recommend a solution if it is right for the customer.  We treat all of our customers as if they are a family member, therefore we ensure quality at all times.

In saying this, it is fair to assume that a new straight stairlift fully fitted should cost in the region of £1,200 for a basic model Depending on the options this figure could increase to around £1,600.  For a new curved stairlift you should expect to pay in the region of £4,300 for a basic model, increasing up to £5,000+ for more complex and complicated requirements.

Music Memory Box maker new Designer in Residence at Design Museum

Chloe Meineck - Music Memory Box

Great news. Chloe Meineck, one of our Designing for the Future alumni, has just been named as one of the new Designers in Residence at the Design Museum in London where she will be developing her Music Memory Box for people with dementia.

Chloe follows in the footsteps of one of our previous Designing for the Future winners, Harry Trimble who was Designer in Residence last year. 

Chloe has had a busy year, having just completed a Crafts Council residency and been nominated for a Santander University of Brighton Enterprise Award.

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“Designing for the Future” run by The Future Perfect Company in conjunction with the University of Brighton is now in its fourth year and encourages student designers to think about the challenges and issues affecting our ageing population – and to create innovative and attractive and designs which allow older people to continue to live enjoyable, active and independent lives.

Inclusive Eastbourne – 6 months on and going strong

Eastbourne - designed for all

Last October, I reported on the launch of an innovative marketing campaign, Eastbourne – Designed for All.

Whilst reputed to be one of the sunniest places in Britain, like all major towns, Eastbourne has felt the gloom of the economic downturn.  But rather than using traditional strategies for boosting local economies, Eastbourne plans to regenerate the town by encouraging local businesses to adopt the principles of Inclusive Design in order to improve their competitiveness and increase customer numbers, sales and satisfaction.

The Eastbourne- Designed for All campaign team believes that by principally targeting working age adults most UK businesses unnecessarily restrict their own potential to serve a larger number of customers. Inclusive Design – Design for All – proposes that attention to the needs of all ages expands market size and that a town and individual businesses offering excellence in meeting the needs of all will stand the best possible chance of thriving and attracting further wealth and investment.

So, 6 months on, how is Eastbourne – Designed for All progressing?

The good news is that 32 Eastbourne businesses are now members including Southern Railway, Visit Eastbourne and the Enterprise Shopping Centre. There has been the inaugral inclusive design workshop (on digital inclusion) with more to follow.  We are hoping to showcase some of the work from our Designing for the Future student design competition in June.

The latest project was a survey of coffee shops in Eastbourne by EDA member, Shopper Anonymous. The differentiating factors? Not the coffee and food but the service and the toilets!

It is fantastic to see progress being made and the Eastbourne – Designed for All ethos being embraced by local businesses large and small.

For more information about Eastbourne – Designed for All and how to join, visit www.eastbournedesignedforall.co.uk

Peter Thornton on having the idea for Dermatuff – and a sticky moment along the way

Peter Thornton talks to Dermatuff user, Flo Lees

Formerly chairman of Thorntons, Peter Thornton was inspired by his own experiences to develop an innovative new skin protection product, Dermatuff which helps prevent skin tears.  In the third of his guest posts, Peter recalls how he had the idea for Dermatuff  and a particular sticky moment along the way.

I worked for 35 years in the family business, Thorntons, the confectioners. During that career I was really lucky because I could usually see the answers to problems without too much difficulty.  Of course the ideas had to be refined as they came to me as I said in my last blog but generally the answers to almost anything would occur if I just let the problem lie in my mind.  That business was a marvellous environment for innovation, it was very stable, in my day always made a good profit, always had lots of cash in the bank, made great products that one could be very proud of and had a social working environment which was second to none.

Having plenty of money around meant that mistakes could be made without it having a dramatic effect on the business, the start-up entrepreneur rarely has that benefit.  Actually this is probably a very good thing because having plenty of cash around is a good background to getting things wrong.  If you are very short of money then you have to think of every possible way to do what you want to do for no money or hardly any money.  You also have to be wary as to what you do because a mistake can finish you off completely.

When I lived in Wensley near Matlock in Derbyshire I became quite familiar with the local Minor Injury Unit.  My most memorable visit there had been one day when I was alone in our home some time after I had left Thorntons.  I was wandering around the house when I noticed that my wife had left a box of Thornton’s toffee on top of the piano.  Being always an addict I could not resist taking a piece.  As I wear plates in my mouth holding various teeth which have been removed, I must be very careful when eating toffee.  On this occasion the toffee stuck to my bottom plate which was immediately loosened by the chewing motion, pushing a wire hook which was on one end of the plate well into the inside of my cheek.

This was rather like a fish hook and could not be removed by any pulling strategy that I tried.  I therefore decided that I would have to go to the Minor Injury Unit where I proceeded in my car with the bottom plate hanging out of my mouth and firmly hooked into my cheek on the inside.

Of course I had to give my details to the reception staff who were quite amused to see the state that I was in.  They asked my name – Peter Thornton, what had caused this incident – I struggled to explain that I had been eating a piece of Thornton’s toffee whereupon broad smiles spread across their faces particularly when they realised that the business had been my career background.

Not long after that I had to go to the Minor Injury Unit again.  I had a vintage Aston Martin which was parked in a large garage that I had.  I was walking past it one day and inadvertently my leg knocked quite gently against the rear bumper.  Imagine my surprise when I look down at my trousers and realised that they were completely soaked in blood.  Rolling up my trouser leg I saw what appeared to be a horrific injury; a large flap of skin was hanging from my leg with blood pouring out of the wound.

They sewed it up for me and then I had to keep returning for re-dressing once per week for several weeks.  This was the first of many incidents of this nature.  Eventually I went to see my GP and said “what can I do about this?”  “Nothing,” he said, “you’ll just have to be more careful”.  “Isn’t there something that I can wear?  Pills that I can take or something that I can rub in?”.  To which he replied in the negative and told me that I had got thinning skin as a result of taking cortisone for many years.

This seemed to be a serious affliction; I began to lose my confidence and to be extremely wary about where I was and what I was doing.  The trouble about that state of mind is that it seems to make one even more vulnerable.

At that stage it had not occurred to me that I might be able to find a solution to the problem, I had to suffer several more accidents before I put this problem firmly in my mind as needing a solution.

For more information about DERMATUff, visit www.Dermatuff.com.