gusto design blog

'Future of Labour' project in Japan, Sept 2011

2011-09-06T04:00:00.007+01:00

I am currently in Tokyo helping to run a Royal College of Art/ Tokyo University i-School/ Tohoku University workshop entitled 'the future of labour' in response to the earthquake and tsunami disaster of March this year. Last week we visited the area around Kesennuma city. Our arrival in the area was shocking even though we'd seen the media coverage - nothing could have prepared us for the sheer force and scale of the distruction which was evident immediately. Cars had been crunched like aluminium foil; buildings tumbled away or shattered leaving bare foundations; ships were lifted into city centres; fire damage added even more to the misery and decimated homes, businesses and communities. Evidence of bent steel girders and columns showed the raw power of the tsunami. But ultimately the most moving insight was the evidence of people and their lives - bicycles, shoes, children's cuddly toys, trading cards...

Within a short time our immersion has made us even more determined that this visit and workshop must deliver tangible positive ideas for the future of this beautiful area. More on this soon...

Tapwater.org at Limetree Festival

2011-08-18T17:26:00.005+01:00

Lifebottle and Tapwater.org will be at Limetree Festival 26th- 28th August. This is the world's first plastic packaging free music and arts festival with zero waste to landfill policy. Should be fun! Carleen Anderson is amazing.

www.limetreefestival.co.uk

tapwater.org now fully live and stocked with lifebottles

2011-08-17T13:10:00.003+01:00

One of the projects on which we've been working for 2 years has now gone completely live

www.tapwater.org

Revenue from sales of lifebottles goes into free installation of tap water dispensers in schools. The whole thrust is to reduce or eliminate disposable plastic water bottles. We've designed the identity and all of the products (lifebottles, ice stick etc). There's a great map and app which helps you find free tapwater when you are out and about. Over 1000 shops, cafes, pubs etc have already signed up (for free) to provide free tap water and to be searchable via the map and app.

Michael Green the founder of tapwater.org tracked me down after seeing my London on Tap carafe. Find out more about him here

www.julietshield.com/promote-tap-water-get-rid-of-plastic-bottles/

As it's for a good cause we'd like to promote it to as many people as possible - please spread the word and buy a lifebottle or two ;)

Spring with Gusto - Fresh Air and Fun Pegs

2011-03-03T22:22:00.010Z

OK so things are warming up a bit after a seemingly endless winter. We've designed and produced some funky laundry pegs for energy company E.ON aimed at making the whole process more fun and less energy intensive.

In their words:-

'Tumble dryers are one of the biggest energy guzzlers in the home, so E.ON has launched the Fresh Air and Fun peg bag and pegs to make hanging the washing out to dry fun.

Each peg back contains 10 pegs with a variety of unique accessories that react to the outdoor conditions. There are:

* 2 x red windmill pegs that spin round when the wind blows
* 2 x green windmill pegs
* 2 x pegs that change colour in the sun
* 4 x pegs with windchimes'

We had a lot of fun developing and testing these products.

They can be purchased from www.eonshop.co.uk following the 'latest products' link. £9.99 gets you a slice of Fresh Air and Fun.

iPulse Wins Beauty Award

2010-02-10T10:34:00.010Z

The iPulse light therapy hair removal device designed by Gusto for CyDen has picked up a Telva Beauty Award. The award is for 'best beauty device for in home use'. This is the European version of the same device as sold in Boots under the name 'Smooth Skin' and which has recently become Boots' best selling electrical item as well as the top selling product on Boots.com

This is a result of the combination of CyDen's innovative patented technology and Gusto's user centred Industrial Design. Gusto worked closely with the in-house team on this and other projects.

http://www.boots.com/en/Boots-Smooth-Skin/

Towards safer glassware in pubs, bars and clubs...

2010-02-05T12:18:00.013Z

The UK Home Office project with which we were involved last year has been progressed to prototype stage. Aimed at reducing incidences of 'glassing' attacks in pubs and clubs (at least 5000 reported incidences a year with often horrific consequences), the project is a Designing out Crime initiative for the Design and Technology Alliance. Neil Barron from Gusto worked with Innovation RCA at the Royal College of Art and a number of other parties including The Materials KTN through a series of workshops and brainstorms to generate ways forward.

The project was underpinned by two main questions: 'What if we could create a new type of safe drinking vessel for pubs, bars and clubs, especially those where preventing accidental or violent injury is a significant concern?' and...

'What if they were as safe as plastic or paper, operationally and commercially viable, yet gave consumers a social drinking experience equal to or better than conventional glass?'

The first phase of the project resulted in a series of design briefs which were then delivered to tender. Design Bridge won the job and developed two prototypes which were launched yesterday at the Design Council with the presence of all parties and the Home Secretary, Alan Johnson MP. The aim is to take one or both of the ideas into production. They are well explained in the film (to follow). We sincerely hope this leads to a safer drinking experience in pubs, bars and clubs.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/8495617.stm

To Seoul with Gusto: 48-hour Inclusive Design Challenge

2009-12-01T10:15:00.007Z

Last month I was involved with a great British Council project in Seoul, S Korea. This was organised and managed by Julia Cassim from the RCA and by the British Council plus the Seoul Metropolitan Government. The 48 hour Inclusive Design Challenge saw me plus 6 other professional designers lead teams of around 6 or 7 designers (from a number of different countries) each working with a Korean disabled person in order to find insights which could drive innovation into the wider world. The whole experience was amazing - involving very intensive group working and immediate engagement with the needs of someone (in our group's case) who was profoundly disabled in another country and in another language. We had brilliant interpreters, very enthusiastic student helpers (who really stepped up to the mark) and very open enthusiastic designers as part of the team.

Our innovation (branded 'Aura') was all about presence and communication and attempted to highlight physical presence and promote engagement - this was then applied to the wider world from children's buggies to courier's boxes.

There's a more detailed account of the whole project here :-

http://bit.ly/6zXiWC

Gusto harnesses pedal power to teach about electricity

2009-08-03T12:30:00.007+01:00

This summer (what summer?) Gusto have created a bicycle powered giant buzzer game to teach children about energy, electricity and alternative sources of power.

The project has toured primary schools in the Midlands as part of E.ON's Energy Experience programme. Presented by Konnie Huq, the Experience enables children to learn about energy through fun and activities. Funnily enough, they were most keen on getting their teachers to pedal the bike whilst they enjoyed the game!

TapTop water carafe is launched with Aldo Zilli & Rosie Boycott

2009-05-22T13:06:00.005+01:00

The first batch of TapTop water carafes were delivered to Aldo Zilli at his Zilli Fish Soho restaurant on Tuesday. Rosie Boycott (Chair of London Food) and I delivered a box via rickshaw (how else!). Nazeing Glass are producing the carafes and it was the culmination of their and Thames Water's hard work. The carafes will now be rolled out around London restaurants, bars, cafes and hotels. It looks like my original option of frosted glass will be available as well as clear, blue and green. Companies can have their logos produced onto the side of the carafe as an option.

The project has come at an interesting time economically and environmentally and I'm sure we'll see more people exercising their right to drink (free) tap water with their meals. Tip-top-ety-tap; it's been fun for me!

Gusto Create Boots Smooth Skin iPL Device

2009-02-12T14:32:00.005Z

Monday 10th February 2009 saw the launch in Boots of the Smooth Skin iPL device designed by Gusto for Cyden. iPL is Intense Pulsed Light which is a safe technology developed and patented by Cyden to remove hair and treat skin marks. Neil Barron worked with the Cyden team at all levels to produce a desirable, easy to use, ergonomic consumer product which takes the essence of the i400 clinical device (also designed by Gusto) and brings it into the home. So now you can take Boots vitamins or remove hair with Gusto!

Images courtesy of Boots and Cyden

TapTop water carafe is the winner!

2008-12-02T12:29:00.003Z

I'm very pleased to say that TapTop was selected as the winner for the London on Tap competition - it was announced yesterday by Boris Johnson at City Hall. Happy days - I'm now looking forward to assisting with developing the production version later this month.

(Picture with Boris Johnson courtesy of London On Tap)

http://www.londonontap.org

The Gusto Weigh-Hey! Recycled Chair Hits Cardiff Design Festival

2008-10-27T14:01:00.013Z

it’s the weigh-hey! chair from gusto
just sit on the chair, look at the dial
between your legs, lift your legs off the ground
and weigh-hey! it tells you your weight,
discretely (well sort of...)

This was our entry into this years 'Adopt a Chair' competition as part of the Cardiff Design Festival. Designers are invited to pick an unloved chair from a warehouse and inject some new life into it...

The Weigh-Hey! Chair is an interactive analogue retro object which is hopefully both charming and innovative. The idea is based around the introduction of a new fun eating related function; a new lease of life and secrecy (chair meets scales). The Weigh-Hey! chair is strangely contemporary yet reassuringly traditional and we purposely didn’t apply any surface finish to the old existing parts (apart from our ‘graffiti’ logo) – it is what it is and it was what it was.

The chair was designed by Neil Barron and made by Dai Kneath.
We're told that the chair was runner up in this year's competition, which is nice:)

Neil Barron's TapTop Recycled Glass Carafe Shortlisted

2008-09-25T10:11:00.007+01:00

It's a while since I've posted anything but hey is anybody reading this? We've been pretty busy doing lots of different types of design projects.

Last week I found out that my design for a recycled glass water carafe shortlisted in the "London on Tap" design competition. The idea is "to promote London's drinking water through restaurants, bars and hotels" as bottled water can be around 500 times the price of tap water; which in London is of a very high quality.

The carafe will be prototyped in the next month and the winning design will be made in large quantities from 10,000 - 100,000.

My entry is called TapTop and the form is derived from a stylized tap (faucet) control - this produces four pouring spouts which are drip-free and completely instinctive to use. The carafe is tall and elegant, yet quirky and contemporary like an inverted rocket.

The shortlisted designs are exhibited in the cafe at London's City Hall (Yes the onion shaped building on the South Bank).

Fingers crossed...

http://www.londonontap.org

Gusto Sticklebook in Paris, New York then Frankfurt

2008-01-22T10:49:00.000Z

Gusto's patented invisible bookshelf, Sticklebook, will be exhibited in Paris this month at Maison et Objet (from 25–29 January 2008 Hall 7 stand N39 - 40) then in New York at the International Gift Fair (from 2-6 February 2008 Made by Humans booth 2956-2958) then in Frankfurt at Ambiente (from 8-12 February 2008 Hall 6.1, stand D80). Sticklebook is being exhibited by Mode; worldwide distributors who also have their own funky products (www.modestudio.co.uk).

Gusto creates wind powered park keeper's hut for UK energy giant E.ON

2008-01-18T11:23:00.000Z

We have created a working autonomous alternative energy park keeper’s hut in a Leicestershire park for energy giant E.ON. The hut has a wind turbine which powers a low voltage system with deep cycle battery back up and enough power to run an energy efficient light, charge a mobile phone plus boil a kettle allowing award winning park keeper, Mick Eaton to make about 4 cups of tea per day - bringing a whole new meaning to the idea of green tea!

We do these kind of projects in order to learn more about particular technologies so that we can transfer the knowledge into our mainstream work. We have also done an autonomous ice cream bike where the freezer is powered by both a wind turbine and a deployable solar panel.
gusto design ltd, london, +44 (0)20 77368828, design@gusto.co.uk, www.gusto.co.uk
design for industry; consultants in new product development and innovation

Neil leads team to design victory

2007-07-18T12:10:00.001+01:00

Neil Barron led the winning team in the recent Bicycle Summer School at the Royal College of Art, London, 3-5 July 2007.
http://www.rca.ac.uk/pages/news/materials_and_design_exchange_3870.html

'Over two intensive days at the RCA and Imperial College London, up to 40 students will work together in competing multi-disciplinary teams to explore opportunities for innovation in the design of bicycles, technical clothing and accessories.'

Neil's team created a wearable bicycle lock which utilised a number of materials in a composite structure - the idea being that different cutters would be required for different strands of the material - slowing the would-be thief and hopefully detering them. The combination lock was rapid prototyped over night at the RCA's Rapidform facility and delivered by RCA's Gordon Addy on his motorbike the next day.

Here is a mock up of the lock as modelled by team member, Tom (a student at Goldsmiths College, London).

Many thanks to John Bound and all at Innovation RCA for making such an enjoyable and dynamic event.