Winners of the 2013 Australian International Design Awards were announced at a presentation event in Sydney last night in association with Vivid.
This year, 66 products and services were awarded the coveted Australian International Design Award in recognition of innovation and design excellence in the prestigious design competition, presented by Good Design Australia.
The top price of Design Award of the Year was taken out by the Blackmagic Cinema Camera – a professional-grade video camera in a smartly designed compact size, with an intuitive user interface and affordable price tag that puts Hollywood filmmaking into the hands of the everyday user. Judges were impressed by the design features and enormous market potential of the product.
More than 250 entries were received this year with a wide range of objects including, cars, cameras, barbecues, baby strollers, kitchen tongs, computer tablets, personal accessories, portable radios, manufacturing equipment, homewares, street furniture and scientific diagnostic equipment.
Six panels of Australian and international design experts judged the entries, assessing each against a rigorous set of criteria including form, function, quality, safety, sustainability, commerciality and innovation.
Good Design Australia managing director Brandon Gien says, “The standard of entries in this year’s competition has yet again raised the bar for design and innovation in Australia.
“We are also excited to be joining Vivid Sydney to present the Australian International Design Festival that celebrates all things design and the importance of design thinking in business.”
Design Award of the Year – Blackmagic Cinema Camera
Victorian-based creative video technology manufacturer, Blackmagic Design has been described by judges as a brilliant piece of design in every regard.
“This product is a showcase of what professional design can do when used effectively. It will revolutionise the film industry and highlight Australia’s capability to design and develop high technology products with global appeal.”
Gien says, “For our Judges, the Blackmagic Cinema Camera ticked all the boxes. It is beautifully designed with an exceptional level of quality and overcomes a number of engineering challenges within its compact design. The designers have managed to incorporate a beautifully designed and intuitive user-interface – an important area that is often forgotten in a product in such a category. This is a shining example of Australia punching way, way above our heads in the technology space and will showcase to the rest of the world just how clever our designers are in this very specialised field.”
Patron's Prize – QuickLay Fire Attack Pack for fire fighters
A Sydney fire fighter’s innovatively designed fire hose carry pack has won the prestigious Patron’s Prize – the QuickLay Fire Attack Fire Pack designed by Innovation Realisation.
It is an innovative solution for deploying fire hoses rapidly, efficiently and reliably to overcome the challenge of charging water through a hose without it tangling. The ergonomic, colour-coded Fire Attack Packs have been designed to hold a hose in a way so that a fire fighter no longer has to bowl out the hose and can easily and quickly carry the hose to the fire. The pack is currently being used at many NSW fire stations.
Judges were impressed by the innovation and design thinking put into the product and awarded a Design Award in recognition of design excellence and innovation.
“Any product that aims to save lives should be commended. This is an igneous design solution that has significant market potential let alone the potential to save precious lives in fire fighting situations,” the judges commented.
Design Award Sustainability – Tractile Roofing System
The Tractile Roofing System from Tractile Pty Ltd is a Queensland designed roofing system with an easy-to-use interlocking system and aesthetically pleasing solar panel.
It impressed judges as a game-changing alternative to concrete roof tiles and existing solar panel units often considered an eyesore.
Ticking all the environmental and sustainability boxes, the product blends simple design, performance, ease of installation and sustainability into an affordable system with the added benefit of stylishly designed solar panels to generate electricity and hot water.
In selecting the product as the winner of the Design Award Sustainability, judges commented, “This is simple effective design that will offer a significant benefit to builders and homeowners. This is a great example of design that can make a positive impact on our environment.”
The product also won Design Award – Best in Category in the Hardware and Building Category.
For more information on the winners, visit www.gooddesignaustralia.com/awards
Images courtesy of the Australian International Design Awards, a division of Good Design Australia.
