Kim talks about essentialism alongside Zaha Hadid Architects and SOM in Milan, courtesy of Gaggenau and Dezeen. And moderated by the lovely Max Fraser.
About us
Since establishing Industrial Facility in London in 2002, Sam Hecht and Kim Colin have worked together to form one of the most progressive studios in industrial design. With a continuous roster of pioneering clients, including Muji, Herman Miller, Emeco, Novo Nordisk, Mattiazzi, Issey Miyake and Wästberg, they are highly regarded for both their philosophical and pragmatic approach to design that continues to achieve lasting relevance . The studio's work covers everything from furniture, lighting and kitchen equipment, to digital and electronic products, exhibitions and special commissions. "Our work reflects both a thoughtful consideration of form and a unique understanding of contemporary life, creating beauty out of utility in the products, furniture and exhibitions we design". Both Hecht (from London) and Colin (from Los Angeles) are Royal Designers for Industry and Fellows of the Royal Society of Arts, honours that recognize sustained design excellence, work of aesthetic value and of significant benefit to society. Their work is held in permanent collections worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; Art Institute of Chicago; Centre Pompidou, Paris; Victoria and Albert Museum and the Design Museum, both in London. Industrial Facility's desire is to work with industry in a way that improves the things we live with. Not setting out to produce something different but rather something better, they aim to design things that will last, be effective and give satisfaction often beyond what is called for by the project. The studio has two branches; Industrial Facility that works on projects intended for production (An Incorporated Company since 2015); and Future Facility that collaborates with clients on speculative and networked products; an online retail portal Retail Facility also makes available works produced by the studio.
- Website
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http://www.industrialfacility.co.uk
External link for INDUSTRIAL FACILITY
- Industry
- Design Services
- Company size
- 2-10 employees
- Headquarters
- Clerkenwell, London
- Type
- Privately Held
- Founded
- 2002
- Specialties
- Product Design, Furniture Design, Exhibition Design, Strategic Design, Networked Products, Colour & Material, and Art Direction
Locations
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Primary
Get directions
20 Britton Street
Clerkenwell, London EC1M 5UA, GB
Employees at INDUSTRIAL FACILITY
Updates
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Brands should continually evolve their products instead of prioritising new launches, according to Magnus Wästberg, founder and CEO of Swedish lighting brand Wästberg ✍ Amy Frearson Dezeen
"Just doing new things is not the solution" says Magnus Wästberg
https://www.dezeen.com
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Projects have been a little like London buses recently - nothing for ages and suddenly along come 10 of them, being released over the next couple of months. And quite a selection they are - crossing furniture, public space and technology. Long-standing clients that include Muji, Herman Miller and Google, have been added to with newer ones such as +Halle, Landscape Forms and Kristalia. They've been years in the making and represent some of our best work, so deserve a little explanation. The first one to introduce is our recent work with Thonet. Based in the small German town of Frankenburg, they have been making chairs since 1889 ever since Michael Thonet created the astounding model 214 bentwood chair we all know and love. It represented what a chair should be - light, affordable, graceful, comfortable and somewhat indestructible. It is now regarded as the worlds most omnipresent chair. The 209 took it one step further by adding arms and was a favourite of Le Corbusier. The current design director of Thonet - Norbert Ruf - gave us somewhat of an impossible task - bring the past into the future by showing us the present. He meant it with all seriousness because he said Industrial Facility shares similar qualities to Thonet - a mix of the pragmatic with the sculptural. Oh, and could we make it stackable too. Rather than invent a new language for Thonet (a mistake that has happened too often), we borrowed. We took the outline of the 214, filling it in with a soft plywood shell that morphs into a three dimensional seat surface. It provides perfect comfort from the minimum amount of material. We then took inspiration from the arms of the 209 and the metal tubes from Breuer's contributions. It's not what we would call a hack - but more of a collage of plywood, metal and steam bending. And yes, they all stack. Norbert was so pleased with the result he gave it the number 220. When the first iterations were launched last year, some of our friends found them comfortable enough for working at home - something I had not intended. This has now led to the latest iteration, (the rather long titled S 220 DRW) a tiltable swivel chair. It launches next week in Cologne during Design Post.