Fagor Spoutnik - innovative spherical microwave

Some time ago we worked with European appliance maker Fagor on the microwave of the future as a collaborative project with the Royal College of Art (IDE programme).

One of the well received ideas we created was based around the cloche (or as I called it at the time the 'Butler' service of hot food - the shiny hemisphere used to reveal gourmet delights). Fagor developed the product true to the original concept.

The inventive step was propositional - the microwave is a box with a door on the front mainly because this is an easy shape to manufacture in terms of a casing but also significantly in terms of the Faraday cage which protects us all from the potentially harmful microwaves. The proposition was that if we changed the shape of the Faraday case we could have a much more useable form factor. This would allow access from multiple angles and allowing plates and other containers to be placed simply on a platter rather than fed through a doorway - hey presto the Fagor Spoutnik! Gratifyingly close to our original concept. Taking the microwave out from the shadows and corners. Hope it does well or at least makes people think...

http://www.fagor.co.uk/spoutnik/

'Future of Labour' project in Japan, Sept 2011

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...