Singapore is known as the little red dot. We are small but pack a mighty punch. Another red dot recognised internationally, which also packs a punch, is the Red Dot Design Awards.
One of the world's largest design competitions, the coveted Red Dot is awarded yearly to the best designs for Design Concept (for concepts and prototypes), Product Design (for market-ready products) and Brands and Communications Design. In 2022, three entries by students from the Division of Industrial Design (DID) were awarded the coveted label for Design Concept.
What inspired our winning designs?Â
Our teams were challenged by academic advisors to seek inspiration from around them because a key factor that makes a design great is that the design must put the user front and centre.
Red Dot Design Award: RUNE _ Modular Smart Table (red-dot.org)
Designer: Mok Zijie
Supervisor: Associate Professor Song Kee Hong
Category: Design Concept
For Zijie, what sparked this concept was the work-from-home arrangement he had to adapt to due to COVID-19 restrictions. He questioned how his workspace could stay organised while still supporting the use of his desk for work and play. Â In land-scarce Singapore, we can all relate to the frustration of needing space for multiple uses! The table accommodates all table modules, components, and electronic and technological devices. Strategically placed slots across the table house various modules of varying sizes, such as lights, speakers and storage components. RUNE then connects these modules, and with the controller, you can set presets to whatever type of setup you want, whether for studying or a game day. Magnetic attachments snap these modules perfectly into place, allowing them to be easily detached to change the table's configuration.
Watch a mockup of this table here! RUNE_mokzijie_PD+
Red Dot Design Award: Tilt - Your Abled Assistant (red-dot.org)
Designer: Siew E Ian
Supervisor: Associate Professor Song Kee Hong
Category: Design Concept
Tilt was Ian's solution to a project brief where students were challenged to create a product with an enhanced user experience. Based on this prompt, he recalled observing a family member facing difficulties with a simple everyday routine - drying their hair. The user was suffering from a frozen shoulder and was thus having a hard time operating a hair dryer.
Tilt is an ergonomic hairdryer system designed to aid people with limited arm mobility. It reduces wrist and arm fatigue, allowing the user to dry the conventional way, while the wall dock provides a hands-free feature. Tilt's sleek design would certainly draw many design-conscious admirers drawn to inclusive products!
Watch the video of this product mockup here: TILT, Your Abled Assistant
Red Dot Design Award: Verdure (red-dot.org)
Designers: Chong Zi En and Ong Kah Min
Supervisor: Associate Professor Christian Gilles Boucharenc
Category: Design Concept
Verdure is a modular green wall system which aims to foster harmony between people and nature. The brief set to the team was for them to observe their surroundings and find solutions to common daily life problems.
What struck them was how mundane views can be in an HDB estate.
Inspired by how many HDB dwellers enjoy growing plants, with many extending their hobby into common corridor spaces, Verdure was developed as a concept proposal to allow people to enjoy gardening whilst creating spaces that foster social cohesion and embrace the totality of HDB's urban facades through nature.
See how our HDB estates could potentially look like with this innovative design concept:
