Hasta La Ideas

Intelligently designed wellness products from fuseproject founder Yves Béhar

From Yves Béhar of fuseproject, the design mind behind the “XO” laptop for the One Laptop per Child program, Jawbone UP and Jambox, comes Sabi, a line of medication vessels aimed at bringing beauty and efficiency to an everyday necessity. The “Vitality Line” includes holsters, crushers, choppers, folios, shakers—in short, every pill accessory you will ever need or want. So wether you’re halving a Xanax or dosing out a weekly allotment of fish oil, Sabi has you covered.

Rather than focusing on pure innovation, Sabi’s goal was to enhance the everyday experience through a simple solution. Sabi was careful to keep the user needs in mind, ensuring easy access for people with special needs. The intelligent ergonomics exemplify a rare union of form and function, exactly the kind of thinking we’ve come to expect from Béhar.

Showing awareness to the last detail, all products are minimally packaged. The blue and white look is a touch more discrete than prescription bottles, and storage options ensure you won’t be mixing up your meds. The tools and accessories for such daily essentials often lack the attention they deserve in terms of aesthetics, but Sabi’s mission to rework medicinal storage reflects a shift in the expectations of consumers, who now demand smart design at every turn.

Among the selections from the line are Crush and Chop, which grind up and split pills into accurate segments. Carafe unites pill storage with a handy water bottle, and Folio is a weekly “pill book” that uses an elastic strap to lock prescriptions into daily chambers.The full Sabi collection will be launched later this year—”Agility” will address domestic carrying and lifting problems while “Mobility” takes on travel accessories for wellness items. Find the current offerings at Sabi online.

Rapid-prototyping company Proto Labs recently announced the third award-winner in their ongoing “Cool Idea!” program, an open call for designers and entrepreneurs to enter their projects for a chance to win up to $100,000 worth of Firstcut CNC-machined and/or Protomold injection molded parts: Whirlwind Wheelchair’s RoughRider.

Whirlwind Wheelchair International is a San Francisco-based non-profit organization that it is “dedicated to improving the lives of people with disabilities in the developing world while also promoting sustainable local economic development in the process,” with a specific focus on providing high-quality wheelchairs to those who need them.

Their flagship product, the RoughRider, is a durable, low-cost, all-purpose wheelchair, which has found an enthusiastic audience of over 25,000 riders in over 40 countries. Now, after over three decades of improving the lives of the less fortunate, they are making the assistive device available in the United States.

In preparation for the release to a mainstream U.S. audience, the RoughRider underwent a redesign with the addition of lightweight side panels to make it better looking and customizable, something U.S. customers will love. As a Cool Idea! Award recipient, Proto Labs provided Whirlwind Wheelchair International with the key side panels needed for an initial U.S. launch.

Existing features of the RoughRider, which was developed for use on “muddy village paths [and] rough pot-holed urban streets” alike, include a long wheelbase for stability, heavy-duty casters in front and mountain bike wheels in back, and five-position rear axle.

Perhaps most importantly, the tires, tubes, hardware and bearings are readily available in nearly every corner of the world—”in bicycle shops, motorcycle shops, and hardware stores wherever you go.”

Whirlwind Wheelchair International founder Ralf Hotchkiss believes that it is high time for American riders to have a more rugged option for a wheelchair: “Scores of wheelchair riders in the U.S. have inquired about purchasing the RoughRider specifically for off-pavement adventures that are difficult with U.S. style wheelchairs. Entering the U.S. market at this time will provide Whirlwind with a wealth of critical feedback from well-informed consumers, and may raise enough funds to do much-needed development of the innovations coming in from riders in developing countries. Besides, some U.S. riders who have ridden the Rough Rider had so much fun that they would love to get one for themselves. We will do whatever is necessary to make this happen.”

See it in action after the jump:

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Designer Kiseung Lee of Helsinki wants people to fill stockings with more vital gifts this Christmas: donations to the blood bank.

His conceptual stocking-shaped blood packs were on show as part of Helsinki Design Week in September, although they were filled with red pigment rather than actual blood.

Lee wants to stimulate donations as a generous gesture that’s easy to make but could mean the difference between life and death to someone else.

Here are some more details from Kiseung Lee:

“Put your present in the socks, somewhen it will be back to you”

In generally, people tend to show a stiff motivation and response to donation. This phenomenon has caused passive dedication to society and human being lives. Naturally, it has weaken a bond between mankind. I suggest new blood bag design and hope to inspire active blood donating boom or event across the world and dedicate to improve a quality of our lives. By donating warmness with pleasure, people would feel being a “Santa-claus” alike . Also, the socks shape welfare and sharing love – written by Kiseung, Lee

The richest countries in the world suffer from overproduction and goods bulimia. The biggest problem is no longer a lack of possessions, but homes changed to warehouses for them. The question from the beginning of the 1970s, “Necessary or not?”, is more timely than ever. What do we really need? Goods and product design have developed through different eras and isms, but we people, whether we are millionaires or not, always and forever have but one heart. Neither has the number or shape of our hands changed over the millennia. Whether we want to be or not, we are all anatomically ancient in the midst of all these novelty products. The act of being brings inevitable vulnerability and uncertainty. Our only certainty is our daily trade in dreams and lies. The important things are always very simple. The greatest gift is to just at the right moment find a personal unquestioning and intimate closeness in another human. Santa’s stockings has not been filled with useless Chinese plastic junk – written by Kaj Kalin, Exhibition “to declare” curator, Helsinki design week 2011.

The complexity of the healthcare system is hard to wrap your head around. Even (maybe especially) after a long day of conversing on and listening to ideas on the topic. The Mayo Transform2011 Symposium seeks to both open up and tear down this complexity, with its varied roster of passionate people working in a tough arena where the past, present and future in healthcare converge.

And hospitals are (or should be) a thing of the past in healthcare. At least, hospitals as we think of them: giant institutional campuses where we go when we are sick. (That this came up repeatedly today at the Mayo Clinic, one of the most renowned of these institutions, is indicative of the terrific work being done there.)

As many of the speakers noted today, the key to future healthcare is in designing for the patient, from a holistic perspective, rather than merely at the touchpoint of the hospital. The most insightful and exciting ideas expressed at Transform were with those finding the opportunities to break away from the institution of the traditional hospital.

The concept was exemplified in the breakout session, “Unlocking the Power of Sharing Data,” in which the speakers emphasized the necessity and eventuality of every individual’s health records being in a shared system for managing their health. This concept immediately seems scary—health data is private, and very personal. To share it, or have it sitting on some server somewhere, feels exposed.

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Square box windows provide seating areas at a hospital unit in Bath, UK, for sick and premature babies.

Designed by local architects Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, the Dyson Centre for Neonatal Care comprises the refurbishment of existing facilities and a new single-storey extension.

Treatment rooms are arranged around a clockwise route that begins with intensive care units and ends with recovering patient rooms.

This circulating corridor is naturally lit through a series of skylights.

Two further corridors connect the extension to the existing building and surround a private courtyard.

The unit is constructed of cross-laminated timber, which is exposed on the interior.

Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios were one the designers of the Accordia housing development, which won the RIBA Stirling Prize in 2008 – see our earlier story.

See also: another healthcare building in Bath by Foster + Partners.

Photography is by Craig Aukland / Fotohaus.

The following information is from Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios:

New Neonatal Unit by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios opens in Bath

The Dyson Centre for Neonatal Care opened its doors on the 23rd July to its first babies. The Royal United Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), in Bath, has been transferred from its existing small, cramped facilities into its pioneering new home.

The project, funded as a 50/50 partnership by NHS budgets and fundraising by The Forever Friends Appeal, has resulted in a dramatically different and improved environment in which the RUH can care for the 500 premature and sick babies that it looks after each year. A pioneering holistic and therapeutic approach towards the new building has created a new low carbon unit allowing the staff to practice new methods of care for premature and sick babies. The building consists of a single storey new‐build extension, and the refurbishment of the space occupied by the existing NICU facility. The new‐build element accommodates the clinical, support and reception functions as a discreet but contemporary intervention. The refurbished element comprises staff and parents’ facilities. The two elements are linked by a new ‘umbilicus’ which also provides an access point for emergency vehicles. The new building encloses an external courtyard space which provides both vista and breakout from reception and parents areas. The grouping of the care rooms forms a route around the staff base which is the heart of the unit.

The clockwise circuit of cot rooms forms a diagram of intensity of care, beginning with intensive care, then on to high dependency, then special care, on to the parents’ rooms, then finally home. From parents’ feedback progress along this ‘route’ is very important psychologically – it is important that the ever‐decreasing intensity of care is legible to parents. The consulting examination and treatment spaces are carefully daylit. Parents and staff can now perceive changing external conditions through day and night, increasing well‐being. The heart of the clinical area is generously roof lit providing daylight to all the central spaces within. Sunlight is allowed to enter the building in certain controlled areas to add sparkle and delight without disturbing the working of the unit. Within the care areas light is carefully controlled to ensure that babies gain an awareness of day and night as they develop.

Sustainability in construction and use has been central to the design of the new unit. The team were adamant that the new NICU should not be a one‐off showcase for sustainability, but should serve as a template and catalyst for sustainable healthcare design by challenging existing standards, defining new targets and developing strategies replicable elsewhere in the health sector. The unit is constructed entirely in cross laminated timber. This construction has benefits in terms of embodied energy, and is quick and clean to construct within a healthcare environment. The timber is exposed internally, creating a more calm and domestic environment within an acute clinical setting.

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The project has achieved Breeam “Excellent”, and incorporates a sedum roof for rainwater attenuation, and to increase biodiversity on the site. These measures will combine to make the new Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Royal United Hospital a beacon for sustainability across the health sector. The building is a case study for the next generation of healthcare buildings, a benchmark for best practice which incorporates replicable strategies which are demonstrated to pay back in a defined period, in a beautiful and therapeutic environment which is of tangible benefit to parents, staff and patients.

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Architects view by Matt Vaudin

“We hope that the building will have a real influence and improve the outcomes for vulnerable babies, their parents and the amazing staff who look after them. We are especially pleased with the calmness created by the timber interior, and the quality of daylight and sunlight, which will help lower stress levels and lift the spirits for the parents and the staff.”

Parent comment

The first baby to have experienced both the cramped and noisy conditions of the old NICU and the benefits of the new facilities, Joshua Heather, was transferred to the Dyson Centre for Neonatal Care at the weekend. His mother, Cheralyn, said she is thrilled to be part of this memorable day and is amazed at the light airy conditions of the new building. “It is a real transformation and it will give me the opportunity to spend more time with Joshua in such comfortable and spacious surroundings”.

Client comment

Making this become a reality “has been a real experience” stated Steve Boxall, Project Manager for the RUH. “This sustainable building has given us many challenges and we have worked together to find the answers. It has been a fantastic project from which we have learnt a great deal. A tremendous amount of interest has been shown by other healthcare professionals and we will enjoy sharing our experiences with them”.

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Consultant comment

Dr Bernie Marden, NICU Consultant, who has been involved from the beginning of this project, added “It is a dream come true. The four years planning and building it has taken has been worth every minute. Babies, however small, respond to the right environment and this could not be better. The NICU staff and I are truly delighted and can’t wait to settle into our wonderful new Centre”.

See also:

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