Design2020 Committee Dahlerups Pakhus Langelinie Allé 17 2100 DK-Copenhagen
5 January 2011
Homework for the second meeting by Elsebeth Gerner Nielsen, Rector of Kolding School of Design
Prepare a short text with inputs to the 2020 vision.
Danish design must enrich global society by constantly insisting on humanism – social inclusion and sustainability – and as such develop into the primary innovation driver of the Danish economy. Danish design must distinguish itself by being user-driven and having a clear focus on functionality, designing, aesthetics and holism.
Provide three examples of innovative services/products/systems as well as policy, research and education initiatives driven by the integration between design design, service design and/or design thinking. The initiatives can come from individuals, companies, organisations, authorities etc. anywhere in the world.
. 1.
etrans. A user-driven innovation project aimed at making the Danes love the electric car. Participants: DONG Energy, Falck Emergency Services, Peugeot, Fredericia Municipality, Kolding School of Design, University of Southern Denmark, among others. The knowledge base of the project comprises of a number of anthropological and sociological driver field studies. Based on these, companies and users have worked together and created a list of personas (life style groups – e.g. ”the Technology Enthusiast”, the Environmental Enthusiast”, ”the Status Seeker”). For each persona, a design manual has been developed and made available to all companies and institutions in the value chain of the electric car. Example of product design: The electric car’s lack of sound turned out to be a problem for several life style groups. Therefore, a design has been developed allowing the electric car users to make their own individual car sound (cf. mobile phones). Moreover, the Music Conservatory of Southern Jutland has designed a number of sound images matching the various personas. Example of service design: Our research has shown that the electric car meets resistance from the car industry; primarily due to the fact that it requires hardly any maintenance. Looking ahead, this means less earnings for the car companies since currently, their main earnings are based on service checks. Therefore, designers and representatives from Falck Emergency Services and Peugeot, among others, have developed a ”service package”, which can supplement the electric car adhering to the concept: You buy a small electric car, and at the same
time, you receive a share in a larger, traditional car, which you can use for making
Page 2/5
longer trips. The extra service can include e.g. an enclosed luggage rack, a trailer, a picnic basket, etc. Furthermore, a number of “system initiatives” are in the pipeline – for instance city planning enabling charging of electric cars and promoting general interest in buying electric cars. Students are involved in all of the project elements on an ongoing basis to ensure that results and experiences are immediately disseminated to the future generation of designers. For more information, please visit http://www.etrans.dk/index.php?id=83
During COP15, as part of the e-collection on sustainable design from Kolding, etrans exhibited the electric car simulator e-sound in Illum, Copenhagen. Here, Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark, along with the general public, had the opportunity to create his very own car sound and go for a virtual ride. 2.
The NovoPen With hundreds of millions of people living with diabetes, NovoPen answers a need for treatment.
A) Injection with discretion In 2009, more than 250 million people worldwide were affected by diabetes – and by 2025 this disease is expected to affect 380 million, according to the International Diabetes Federation, based in Brussels. Daily injections are considered indiscreet by many diabetics, and four daily doses of insulin using disposable vials and syringes are a hassle to self-administer. An injection pen developed by Novo Nordisk eases these problems and improves the everyday lives of diabetics. By eliminating the embarrassment and inconvenience often associated with diabetes, NovoPen helps diabetics lead more normal lives. Almost 30 years ago, Novo Nordisk began the development of the first NovoPen. The Danish pharmaceutical company had at this time developed a new type of insulin called "human insulin," recognising that the treatment of diabetes was much more effective when the body received four daily injections instead of just one. These more frequent daily injections created a new burden for diabetics, which was described in an article in the Lancet in 1981.
Page 3/5 B) User-driven innovation In the Lancet article, a young English girl explained how she filled a disposable syringe with insulin every morning with enough to last the whole day, in order to avoid refilling the syringe during the course of the day. She had always felt that it was awkward and indiscreet to administer these doses of insulin from a vial using a disposable syringe, and therefore asked an English company to develop a dosing tool. As this story came to the attention of the marketing director of Novo Nordisk, it inspired the development of the first NovoPen. The shape and design of NovoPen is like that of a common fountain pen – the user feels more comfortable working with it than with something that looks overtly like a the medical device it is. The pen makes it easy for the user to select the required dose, to place and remove the needle and to inject the insulin. After use, the NovoPen converts quickly into a pen-like cylinder, which can be carried discreetly in a handbag or pocket. The NovoPen has undergone several improvements over the past 30 years, with NovoPen 4 the most recent addition in 2004. The design has gained widespread attention and has attained several prizes for design and function. Novo Nordisk reports that today, more than 3.5 million diabetics worldwide benefit from the safe and reliable injections of NovoPen. Reference:http://www.indexaward.dk/index.php?option=com_content_custo m&view=article&id=98:danish-case-1&catid=23:danish-cases&Itemid=194 The Ostomy Bag developed by Coloplast is a different but similar example. The Ostomy Bag is developed by Astrid Krogh, Textile Designer, among others.
3.
Sea Shelter Based on the experiences of survivors from the Estonia disaster and other similar events, the Sea Shelter project was a graduation project by Nikhil Garde at Kolding School of Design in conjunction with Viking Life Saving Equipment A/S. The project idea was to improve life raft access once you are in the sea. An ingenious ladder system allows you to climb easily into the raft, and a sea anchor keeps the door in the best position for access in relation to the wind. It is of particular interest because it exemplifies how a design-driven approach can be used to develop new products in industries that traditionally do not recognise the added value that design can bring to the process of product development or perceive of design as an aesthetic activity.
Page 4/5
This project is now part of the permanent collection of The Museum of Modern Art in New York and was exhibited at the Safe: Design Takes On Risk Exhibition at the museum.
4.
Web 3.0 Since its inception as a tool for the wider public from around 1995 and onwards, the Internet has gone through two major transformations. In its first stage – Web 1.0 – it was simply a medium that allowed the user to access information independently from where it was stored. Following that, social media evolved and expanded to accommodate the needs of the user to relate, communicate and contribute to communities that are tied together in fields of interest rather than geographical locality. In the six years since its inception, Facebook now has a market value of 50 billion dollars. Led by the founding father of the Internet Tim Berners-Lee, both of these factors are combined in Web 3.0 introducing technologies that allow for raw data to be uploaded and converted into visually powerful communicative tools. This change is leading to the web becoming a place that represents the now of what is happening across the world both in terms of social organisation and real-time information.
Denmark cannot realistically be “THE design nation” in all industries/markets. Please indicate three fields (contexts of life, challenges, industries, markets) in which we could focus our vision 2020. These are the areas in which to integrate the different dimensions of design (design design, service design and design thinking) and to foster collaboration between the different players of the system (manufacturers, designers, education, etc.). 1.
Product design in general – so that we maintain and develop our current brand of beautiful designing (e.g. within the field of furniture). Fashion should be given particular attention as it represents the third largest export sector. It is important that in general, the fashion industry perceives itself as a design industry rather than an industry of merchants. Basis/system: Among others, a public sector which demands quality Danish design. The current state procurement agreements and injunctions do not necessarily promote such a demand.
2.
Welfare design. A further development of Denmark’s brand within the field of medicine (the NovoPen, the Ostomy Bag, etc.). Possible area of particular
focus: the elderly – not least including the service area (meal design,
Page 5/5
decoration design in relation to reduced functionality, etc.). Basis/system: The Scandinavian welfare state model which should be further developed through public-private partnership agreements. 3.
Green technology. Further developing the wind turbine industry – including designing intelligent energy systems, electric cars, etc. Basis/system: A tax system based on government imposed levies on nonrenewable resources rather than minds and hands.

Should any of these fields be based on a national or regional system? Please, refer to the above.