Why did you join Cambridge Design Partnership?
It was a great opportunity to join a well-regarded, successful technology consulting company, and provided a chance to design in a wide range of product areas. One of the things I particularly like about CDP is that I can bring my knowledge to a number of different areas: for example, you can take a clever idea from working on the design of a small appliance and apply it to a medical product. The wide variety of client projects here is appealing, and it certainly keeps me busy!
What background do you come from and how do you apply this knowledge to your current role?
I started off working in consumer product design engineering at Dyson, which taught me right at the start of my career how important innovation is. They prioritized innovation above all else there, which instilled in me the importance of trying out new technologies, ideas and techniques quickly and early on in the design process.
I then moved into medical device design, where I experienced designing in a heavily regulated environment, and the significance of managing risk. It was here that my interest in usability engineering developed. What I learnt was how to quantify and understand user needs – which filled a big gap for me for how to continue my career. Instead of simply responding to a spec and designing a product – to take on front end considerations, such as how to engage with users and identify their needs, even when the user isn’t itself aware of what they might be – helped to build my philosophy of design, and is something that I now apply every day.
What interesting projects are you working on at the moment?
I’m currently managing a premium consumer packaging project for a large multinational, which has included working with Far East manufacturers and Pan European suppliers – with lots of travel and meetings. I’m also working on a number of medical device projects which are not only for large multinationals but small start-ups as well – so each presents its own range of priorities and interesting challenges.
What do you see as the hot trends in your industry areas at the moment and for the future?
In the medical device area, the biggest current trend focuses on requirements and regulations for usability engineering. The US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) is on the brink of ratifying its guidance document on Human Factors Engineering for Medical Devices, which may mean that all devices submitted to the FDA will potentially need to include a Human Factors Report. This is set to shake up the industry, and enforce the importance of usability considerations.
I’m interested in how, over the next few years, usability engineering techniques move into non-medical products. User needs are already big business in some areas, such as consumer products and web design, where the driver is around engaging and retaining customers to give them the best user experience, which then hopefully instills brand loyalty and resulting market share. Medical device companies will also derive value from these benefits, but more importantly, usability engineering will give them access to the market. If you don’t have a usability report in place, then potentially you can’t sell your product.
Who has inspired you most in your life?
Two people from the world of design have directly inspired me in the past. Firstly at school, my eyes were opened to the blend of art and science that is required in good design by my graphic communications teacher, Mr Glover. I’m sure he doesn’t realize it, but his teaching and my love of his class started me on the route to where I am today.
The second person who had a significant impact was John Guenther, my design manager when doing a student internship at Tandem Computers in California. A veteran of design, he told great stories of working with Henry Dreyfuss in the 1960s. He extolled the virtues of cross pollenating ideas between industries, and had examples of how working on agricultural equipment had provided inspiration for domestic products. Working in consultancy really maximizes the potential for this type of design inspiration, and I have never forgotten his insights.
About Cambridge Design Partnership
Cambridge Design Partnership is a consulting company that develops ‘first of a kind’ products in the medical, consumer and cleantech sectors. We combine leading engineering talent with business acumen and a deep understanding of the technical and human needs that drive innovation.
Cambridge Design Partnership’s multi-disciplined experts and proven process will benefit any multinational or ambitious company aiming to maximise their return on investment in innovation.
Working as an integrated team, the company creates new products with a dynamic, flexible approach that leads to enduring client relationships, anchored by high quality work and excellent customer service. Our diverse team of engineers, scientists and designers has grown rapidly to establish a world leading reputation for technical excellence, astute project management and, above all, thinking differently.
www.cambridge-design.co.uk
[email protected]
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Contact Laura Cavaliere at CDP for more information at [email protected] / +44 (0) 1223 264428
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