Industrial design to strengthen image of consumer products
Perg, 15 January 2013 – “Industrial design does in no way mean to artificially re-label an industry or technology” Max Wesle, industrial designer at Sunlumo, emphasizes. “It is more about revising and strengthening the perception of an industry. Industrial design lifts the image of a product, not only by superficial styling: the design makes the inner qualities of the product, the high expense for development and the energy and technology inside the product more visible and a sensorial experience. Thus industrial design is a strategic instrument to provide a product with the cutting edge and with ideal sales arguments”, the design pro explains.
Extensive analysis of the status quo
With its own Department of Industrial Design, Sunlumo successfully unites different visions from the areas of marketing, technology and product design. “Product development and design are becoming increasingly important”, Max Wesle says. The reason for this is a strongly reduced product life cycle within highly dynamic markets. Sunlumo’s keys to success are their long-standing know-how as well as extensive technical, analytical and theoretical knowledge. The first step in improving a product is to carefully analyse the current situation. This includes questions about the status of the product on the market, the product environment, and the target to be reached.
Analysing product features from all angles
Subsequently the results should be visualised. Industrial designers in this process inevitably focus on drawing inspiration for new findings and approaches. The creative process as such takes place in the concept phase, a phase in which ideas and solutions are generated. The selected design is then perfected in all technical and aesthetical details and a prototype is made, the prime task of industrial designers being to explore as many aspects of the product as possible. It means, among other things, to cast a critical light on the practical, ecological and economic functions of a new product, such as functionality, ease of use, durability, manufacturing expense, or materials. The keys to any successful consumer product are attractiveness and satisfaction of basic user needs. According to Max Wesle, “products must, additionally, stand out from the crowd, arouse emotions and celebrate themselves”.
