Month: November 2019
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Digital Twins
‘Digital twins’ are in the headlines this year and I have attended two events focusing on digital twins in the last few weeks. The first was in the context of the built environment and the second in aerospace and it was interesting to compare the approaches. A digital twin is a digital replica of a physical system […]
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Transformative Transport design
Sometimes something happens that represents the tipping point between simply enhancing the design of an existing product or service and when a transformative redesign happens. I am wondering if we are about to hit this for urban transport systems. The modern tram is frequently seen as a core high quality public transport system, but its […]
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Museum of Brands
We followed a recommendation from an OU tutor, Richard Coles (T317), who has been working as a packaging designer for a long while. Under his guidance, a group of students from the Design and Innovation qualification and other qualifications visited the Museum of Brands in London. We were delighted that Robert Opie, the Founder of […]
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Designing Carbon Reduction in Higher Education
The Open University held the first Climate Emergency Forum (CEF) which was attended by a wide range of stakeholders. The CEF had these respectable aims – bring together staff and students to share initiatives develop an action plan and agree next steps identify a steering group to take forward the suggestions oversee the implementation of […]
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The Design Group at TEDx – Part 1: Learning to Change Our Minds
The Open University hosted TEDx last week, providing a platform for a range of interesting and diverse speakers across the UK. The Design Group (not short of something to say in public) was represented by no less than four speakers. Claudia Eckert, Helen Lockett, Stephen Peake, and Derek Jones. Over the next few weeks each […]
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Designing Urban Atmospheres
In everyday speech, people may say that a restaurant has a very romantic atmosphere. Likewise, the atmosphere of a shopping centre may be said to be vibrant. It may be difficult so explain exactly what such an atmosphere is or how it is cultivated but we can be certain that a design expert of some […]
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Looking for a PhD in Design?
The Open University is part of the AHRC funded Open-Oxford-Cambridge Doctoral Training Partnership. The deadline for these PhD applications is the 8th January 2020. Further information on eligibility and details of the OOC studentships can be found via the OOC link. For information on OU Design project and research areas of interest, explore our Blog Research pages. […]
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Mackintosh & the Glasgow Style Gallery- Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
I was in Glasgow recently, and lucky enough to visit the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum . The grandeur of the building itself is worth a visit. The organ playing was a memorable experience, as was seeing the beautiful paintings in the Glasgow Boys Gallery and the products in the Mackintosh and The Glasgow Style Gallery. […]
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Children’s design capacity
Every year, our first-year students develop a board game for one of their design projects. I love looking at the responses to the brief because the assignment gives scope to show systemic as well as detail thinking. The students’ board game proposals curate an elaborate ensemble of the game track, action cards and playing pieces […]