Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Medical Device Design

WhiteBoard participates in the MD&M show






Medical Design and Manufacturing

The WhiteBoard booth featured industrial designer Nicole Parks sketching concepts on the Wakum tablet.



Medical Design and Manufacturing

WhiteBoard is a valuable resource for the scientists and engineers who develop new products at medical technology companies. The WhiteBoard team brings many years of experience in end-user research, form factor development, ergonomics, and user interface design in multiple product categories. Plus, our designers know how to make things look really cool. These skills nicely compliment the cutting edge technology that these companies develop into life saving products.




WhiteBoard

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Product Design Workshop



WhiteBoard inspires students to succeed one sketch at a time.




University of Wisconsin-Stout

A team of industrial designers at WhiteBoard recently hosted 14 industrial design students from the University of Wisconsin-Stout for a 3-hour sketching workshop and tour of the WhiteBoard studios and model shop.

University of Wisconsin-Stout

The focus of the workshop was to help students develop their skills in visual communication and form development. Matt Goulet led the hands-on workshop through a series of sketching exercises to help increase sketching speed and create brainstorming sketches that communicate clearly and efficiently.


Sketching workshop
Students had the chance to practice these sketching techniques while developing concepts for a headset and new forms for a medical product. After each exercise, the designers held a brief critique, sharing best practices and giving the students individual feedback.


WhiteBoard Cafe
As a result of the workshop, students gained a better understanding of some of the key skills needed to become successful product designers. They learned about WhiteBoard’s approach to brainstorming and how to generate ideas, quickly communicate them through sketches, and get them vertical for collaboration. These are skills that will help them become better designers wherever they go. 






WhiteBoard

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Soft Water...Refreshing Style



Asking the Right Questions Leads to Value-Added Solutions

Mortens Water Softener
Sketching brainstorm
A fundamental part of the WhiteBoard product development process is the “discovery & definition” phase. During this time, the WhiteBoard team partners with the client to identify and understand all the realities that need to be considered in order for the product to be successful (see "Form Follows Reality" below). When Ecowater, a leading OEM of water softeners, needed a new design for a key customer, the WhiteBoard team started by asking a lot of questions.

Design Trends Inspiration

Ecowater’s priority was a design that would be stylish and modern in appearance. This was accomplished by looking for inspiration outside of the product’s otherwise utilitarian category. Additionally, through the discovery & definition process, the team saw further opportunities to make improvements to the function of the product.

Mortens Water Softener
First, the opening was lowered to make it easier to load the salt. Next, the brine tank was tapered so that the product could nest, saving storage space during shipping and storage. Finally, the design was streamlined to reduce the number of parts and simplify assembly.

Mortens Water Softener

The result is a modern looking water softener that is easier for the consumer to use and more efficient for Ecowater to manufacture, successfully sold through a leading national retailer. Consumer feedback has been very positive and the new design has resulted in a significant increase in sales.

WhiteBoard