Author Archive

May 5th marked the kick-off race of the 2012 Wisconsin Off Road Series (WORS) season, and our own team of talented mountain bikers were there. WORS is the country’s largest state mountain bike racing series with a long history of challenging races for the last 21 years.

This year’s series began with the Iola Bump & Jump sponsored by the Iola Winter Sports Club. Racers included (pictured l to r) Kent K, Justen, Randy, Kevin W. and the father-son team of Doug and Matt R. (taking the photos!). The team competed on a course that took bikers over hills that wound around the competitive ski jumps of Iola and through the jump bowl. Beyond the rigor of the racing loop, the weather added to the challenge.

Kent shares, “It was a mudfest. We drove through torrential downpours wondering what the future would hold. Fortunately the rains stopped for race time.

Congratulations racers!

We’re thrilled to be participating in the Madison Musuem of Contemporary Art (MMOCA) Design MMOCA event this year! And, if you didn’t have a chance to make it to the gala preview, we hope you’ll stop by the exhibit on Sunday, May 29th, 2-4 pm. That day is a chance for all of us to meet the designers who participated and learn a little bit more about the art that inspired them. We’re looking forward to seeing you there – we’d love to show you our installation. Until then, here are a few images from the preview April 25th to show you a little bit about what we’ve been working on.

Read A Review in the Badger Herald and 77 Square

On April 18th, Dave Franchino, president and principal of Design Concepts, joined colleagues to share his insights on new product development at a University of Wisconsin-Madison Wisconsin Business School Executive Education course entitled, “Beyond the Eureka Myth!” Franchino joined UW-Madison Executive Education program faculty member Linda Gorschels, Cory Boettcher of New Page Corporation and Brad Rogers of TIAA-CREF in teaching the course to 20 executives from a variety of consumer and commercial industries.

The course shared strategies and tactics to help mitigate the risks involved when introducing new products and increase the probability of success. Topics covered included fine tuning product strategies, developing business cases, forming cohesive teams, planning a launch, and more.

Learn more about the course and the University of Wisconsin-Madison Wisconsin School of Business Executive Education Program.

Dave Franchino’s sculptural salute to Jim Womble, director of business development + principal!

Our projects continue as we move to South America and Asia to gain valuable contextual research and indepth knowledge of user experiences. Cory Boudreau, senior industrial designer + studio lead, and Corin Ludwig, design researcher, began in Madison, traveled to Sao Paolo, Brazil then directly to Shanghai, China before returning to Madison – nearly 24,000 miles traveled. Here are just a few of the things that turned their heads along the way!

In Brazil, interesting consumer options we don’t routinely see here including restrooms stocked with mouthwash and dental floss.

Car upgrade options include bullet proof glass.

Grey water car washes give an environmentally friendly option to consumers for maintaining their vehicles.

And in China, something is definitely gained in the translation of our ever-familiar “stay off the grass” signage.

Intricately designed sinks with vivid colors and ornate glass adorn these restrooms.

In Yu Gardens, architectural references to Chinese culture feature beautiful patterns and details are central to the designs.