The Surface Design Show is an annual event showcasing the latest internal and external surface materials and architectural lighting. We went along this year to see what’s new and inspiring in the world of surface materials. Here’s a roundup of what caught our eye…

With more than 80% of people living in urban areas and air pollution a hot news topic, it was no great surprise to see that one of the biggest themes at CES this year was ‘air quality’.

eMagin has been named a CES 2017 Innovation Awards Honoree in the Digital Imaging product category for PDD-designed BlazeSpark. The innovative product offers the most advanced NIR night vision technology for consumers.

The consumer goods sector (FMCG, apparel, automotive, electronics) has always had greater freedom to explore design research in comparison to the Pharma industry, which is significantly more restricted. One of the problems with a stricter and more constrained set of rules is that it can curb innovation by creating limitations in the approach Pharma companies take during the development process and justification for when Patient Centred Design comes into debate. Often regulatory walls can slow the development of a new products and services and directly affect the time taken to introduce a new product to market.

IFA, held in Berlin, is one of the most important global consumer electronics and appliance events, presenting the latest products and innovations in the heart of Europe’s most important regional markets.

In my recent blog post on patient-centricity, I highlighted that the pharma industry has over the past years embarked on a journey towards more patient-centricity and that this trend actually has broad support across key players. At the same time, even with the best of intentions, it will take time for this new ethos to be truly embedded in the business practices of all pharma companies.

Karsten Fischer – CEO at PDD, along with leading figures from across the industrial design industry offer their response to the result of June’s referendum on the United Kingdom’s membership of the European Union.

One of PDD’s objectives has been to build on the success of its Innovation Training programme and expand it into Asia. Last year, PDD organised several taster HCD workshops during IXDC and delivered a private customised workshop to one of its clients in Asia. PDD’s first Asia specific public ‘Accelerating Innovation through Human-Centred Design (HCD)’ workshop took place in Shanghai on 19th and 20th July, and thankfully it occurred just before the heatwave hit 40℃!

PDD’s London team took part in the J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge®. The 5.6K run was to raise funds for charity, Age UK. It was also a great opportunity for some good old team bonding and camaraderie…

In my career I have been lucky enough to gain varying perspectives on the role of usability during the development of medical devices. I’ve worked as part of a design team with a responsibility for concept generation, preliminary research and detailed design. I’ve also worked as part of a human factors team with a broader remit for integrating human factors process across an organisation. One thing experience has taught me is that there is no ‘one size fits all’ when it comes to usability work.

Last Thursday I got the opportunity to learn about the latest and greatest in VR and its applications in healthcare, courtesy of Health Tech Women. Over the course of 2 hours, the Virtual Reality Breakfast event in London showed how VR really is no longer just about video gaming and is being used to transform healthcare across a range of therapy areas.

In this first post of a three-part series, we look at the state of patient-centricity in the pharma industry today. In recent times, the pharma industry has increasingly adopted the mantra of“patient-centricity” which aims to put the patient at the heart of the company’s operation. The reality, however, still looks very different. Many are quick […]

The Hozelock Cloud Controller smart garden watering system has picked up its third major award since its recent launch, receiving the Garden Product of the Year Award 2016 from Chelsea Flower Show organisers The Royal Horticultural Society.

So the waiting list for London’s first naked restaurant has gone through the roof. The Bunyadi opens in June 2016 for three months and claims to offer diners an experience “free and unadulterated from the trappings of modern life” including phones, electric lights and even clothing. According to a press release, the naked themed menu includes vegan and omnivore dishes made with all-natural ingredients an d cooking methods, served on handmade clay plates, with edible cutlery.

What happens when usability research is conducted abroad? A team from PDD have been working closely with international manufacturing organisations to develop medical devices for the Chinese inpatient market. This means that usability research has been conducted in Chinese and reported in English. This blog explores the benefit that usability research provides when implemented across international teams and how to overcome issues that may be encountered along the way. It amalgamates our insights taken from a number of usability projects conducted in China.

It’s been a great start to 2016. The first quarter is not yet over and already PDD has 3 new prestigious design awards to its name. PDD’s work with the health & personal care brand Swisslux and the Zyliss kitchenware brand has been awarded with Red Dot design awards. This was followed by a German Design Award for the Testo 870 Thermal Imager.

Design Shanghai is China’s biggest design show. The four-day-long annual event centres on the high-end contemporary market, showcasing designer products ranging from home furnishings to office supplies.

The hype surrounding 3D printing has swelled substantially in the past few years, largely driven by accessible design platforms, customisation and distributed manufacturing. While aesthetic design applications can be fascinating in their own right, are all of the functional benefits of 3D printing technologies receiving the attention they deserve?

We’re proud to announce that this month, the PDD designed T870 Thermo Imaging Camera, won the 2016 German Design Award.

All too often our health care is taken for granted, and we assume it will always be available to serve our community’s needs. The question is “How healthy are our healthcare facilities to handle the diversity of services and to produce healthy outcomes for an expansive and unprecedented market of six (6) living generations – all distinctively different with a diverse set of needs and priorities?”