Universal Design Challenge 2011

Recently myself and Alan were invited to take part in the Universal Design Challenge in Tullamore. The Universal Design Challenge is a two day competition for design teams to create a new Universal Design. It is operated by the Centre for Excellence in Universal Design at the National Disability in collaboration with the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design, Royal College of Art.

This year the theme was Everyday Consumer Products.

Teams of 6 competed over 24hrs to come up with new product concepts based in universal design. Teams were a mix of final year BSc, MSc and up to one year graduates from Product and Industrial Design courses across Ireland.

Myself and Alan were both selected to be team leaders which was a good start to the competition as now we could really fight it out. This was interesting as we are used to being on the same team when it comes to design so this was almost like a civil war.

Alan's team came up with a concept for a modular bag system that can be tailored to suit your exact needs for any given day. My team ended up looking at the use of keys on a daily basis and designed a pod for your keys that allows them to be easily located and used instead of fumbling around with small keys.

Check out more of our designs and some more photos from the event below... photos courtesy of Jack from Mint

Design Week Ireland 2011

One of Ireland's most notable events and one that's very relevant to us is the Irish Design week. The line up of events is due to kick off next week. Starting on the 31st of October the events run from the North of ireland to the very South and continue to the 6th. From Belfast to Cork, and everywhere in between, the island will be playing host to range of activities that cater to all ages. Even we are getting involved!