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Kohler Factory Tours
Attendees who made the trip up to Kohler early on Friday had a chance to tour Kohler's world-class manufacturing facilities. The tours, over 2 hours long, were led by gentleman who did more than just guide tours – they had worked on the factory floors themselves, some for as many as 50 years! The guides walked through slip casting processes for toilets and sinks that have been used for thousands of years, as well as processes that have been updated by the use of robotics. Attendees were also led through the artist-in-residence studios, where artists had free reign over the equipment to create their own works of art. Attendees had the opportunity to choose from 3 workshops: an ethnography session with HLB’s Martha Cotton, in which she discussed ways to make research worthy of the “buzz”; visceral product design with Brooks Stevens’ Matt Zabel, where blindfolded participants interacted with numerous products in order to better understand ergonomics; and a fast-paced form language workshop with the Trek Design Team, who taught designers how to create a brand identity through the development of a cohesive design language. Our goal this year was to maximize the number of one-on-one meetings, and allow students to meet with as many professionals as possible. With these goals in mind, reviews were held on 2 days instead of only one, and meetings were structured similarly to speed dating – students had a limited amount of time to “wow” reviewers with their portfolios before moving onto the next reviewer. This approach really helped students to present their work clearly and concisely. |
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