Our view can be summed up in one idea: industrial design is not an art form or a means of self-expression. It is painstaking, responsible work for the benefit of society — and that is no exaggeration. When people hear “industrial design”, they usually picture expensive sports cars, exclusive furniture, works of art, luxury goods and the fashion industry. Yes, that is the tip of the iceberg, a stereotype from glossy magazines. There is nothing wrong with it: it is a huge industry worth enormous sums.
But these are not the things that surround us in everyday life. Our lives are shaped and made comfortable by ordinary things: the cutlery we eat with; the door and window handles we touch; the hangers we hang our clothes on; the boxes and containers we keep our things and treats in; the appliances that cook, wash, show and tell us things; the toys that make our children happy; the tools we build and repair with — and that simply calm the nerves; the equipment that saves us money, purifies our water and gives us light, warmth and safety — and many other things that are rarely noticed but that we could not do without.
We design for people.
A new product starts with design research, which aims to give a complete picture of how people interact with the world around them and, on that basis, to consider every aspect of designing the new product. The designer's job is to predict how different consumer segments will react to a new piece of technology.
Based on the research, a product concept is developed in three stages: initial sketches, refined sketches and photorealistic renders. The most important thing at this stage is to design with the understanding that this is a real product that will be manufactured. So even at the start you need at least a rough idea of which materials to use and how to make the product functional. The final concept is approved by the client, who chooses one or two of about fifteen sketches.
Some people believe there is no demand for industrial design in Ukraine. That is not true. Here is a typical example: a business owner who has travelled the world collects the best product samples at trade fairs, puts together an idea of a new product and, with a pile of catalogues, takes it to his in-house graphic designer, who can work in Illustrator and Photoshop and once every two months draws a new “Special offer!” leaflet. Together they come up with something like a sketch, which they call “industrial design”, and then hand all the work over to an engineer. This is where it gets interesting. Traditionally, a design engineer's main task is to create a device that works and is easy to manufacture — that is what he is paid for. For an engineer, any device is usually a square box and any hanger is a nail. Simple and functional. So after several months of development the engineer issues production drawings, the factory makes a sample and presents it with great ceremony — and nobody understands why the boss is unhappy. A perfectly good box, a perfectly good nail, everything works, it has always been done this way. In the end the product goes into production because of the deadlines, and the boss goes abroad again to see whether he missed something.
Who is to blame? The industrial designer — because he is missing from this chain. The good news is that more and more Ukrainian companies now recognise the importance of industrial design and treat it as an integral part of product development.
Real industrial design is the kind that is in demand in Ukraine, at our factories — design that brings in real money.
First of all, it is no secret that the most widespread and cheapest products are made of plastic. Ukraine traditionally has a great many plastics factories; the industry has been well developed since Soviet times. Our specialists know how to make moulds, and we have good equipment — injection moulding machines, extrusion lines, blow moulding and even rotational moulding equipment, as well as metalworking machinery for mould making. That is why the development of engineered plastic products has always been and will remain in demand in Ukraine. Sheet-metal products are also very popular.
It is easy to see what is made here: all kinds of containers (tableware, basins, trays, food boxes, canisters, bottles and so on); building materials (wall plugs, profiles, structural parts of windows, doors and profile systems); wiring accessories (sockets, switches); electrical equipment (electricity meters, circuit protection, switching equipment, landline phones); weighing equipment, measuring instruments, heating equipment and ventilation equipment (fans, grilles, access panels and so on). Most of these products are made of plastic or sheet metal. All of them are made in Ukraine in huge quantities, a large share is exported, and together they are worth a great deal. Naturally, all of them need an attractive appearance and good, modern industrial design. And the real gold mine is not products for the end consumer, such as tableware or home décor, but products for business — those used in further technological processes: closures (bottle stoppers, caps and canisters for engine oil), food packaging containers, and elements of building and finishing systems. This is the B2B sector, where there is always both demand and money. Let's be realistic: there is no demand here for the industrial design of cars and mobile phones, and designer chairs, lamps and bathtubs will not sell until average incomes reach at least $2,000. Yes, in Europe this is big business, it pays off there, which is why there is demand — not because Europeans are more receptive to design than we are, but simply because they are richer. That's business.
Problem No. 1: nobody wants to work in the “real sector of industrial design” — our industrial designers are not interested in developing a better wall plug or a more convenient lid for a tin of herring.
Advice for designers No. 1: do real industrial design. Stick to the B2B model. Your gold mine is products for business and products for export.
Problem No. 2: a product's success depends on close cooperation between the industrial designer and the engineer. But, because of events we all know about, there are hardly any young engineers in our country. There are young software engineers and electronics engineers, and quite a few furniture designers. There are some young equipment developers and mechanical engineers too — but very few design engineers specialising in moulds and plastics. Now imagine the overall volume of plastic products and the share of plastic in industrial design in particular: the gap is enormous. It is also no secret that designers often find it hard to work with the “old guard” — engineers of the “Soviet school”. That is what makes industrial design in our country different.
Advice for designers No. 2: don't rely entirely on engineers. You have to be both an engineer and a production technologist yourself.
Now let's move from theory to practice and look in more detail at the stages of the industrial design development process.
Timelines depend on the complexity of the project. The process can be quite labour-intensive, with a number of additional stages and a lengthy approval process.
Once the design is approved, product design engineering begins: the internal structure and parts engineered for manufacturing. Then come prototyping and preparation for series production. See examples of our industrial design projects in the portfolio.
