Academia Partnership for Sustainability Knowledge
Press Release September 2007
The award-winning Industrial Design Consultancy Ltd (IDC) has turned to academia for the most cutting edge knowledge in green design. As part of its commitment to developing commercial sustainable designs, the consultancy has secured support from Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) for a promising partnership with London South Bank University and a graduate recruitment process.
With a portfolio of projects encompassing many sustainable elements, together with its recent selection by the Department of Trade and Investment to be part of a 12-strong task force set up to win business in an estimated £3 billion emerging Chinese market, IDC is keen to develop new sustainability tools in its design process for a green-minded future.
Its successful application to the KTP scheme will grant IDC the opportunity to expand its business for the future by accessing specialist knowledge from London South Bank University (LSBU) and gaining the funds to employ a graduate dedicated to researching, developing and deploying new sustainability tools, methods and techniques for integration into each of the company's commercial design stages as standard.
“Sustainable design has the power to change the way we live, work and do business. As product designers, we see it as our job to help lead the way. We already have a lot of experience in this area, having designed a number of environmentally focussed products, including projects in renewable energy. The award of this KTP recognises our achievements in design and will help us build more and more forward thinking sustainable designs in the future,” explains Stephen Knowles, managing director of IDC.
“Access to London South Bank University’s academic and research expertise will enable us to further our capabilities in this area and develop commercially focussed systems and tools to help us design the most sustainable products for clients, without compromising on their profitability,” continues Knowles.
Coupled with specialist advice from LSBU, the graduate’s role will equip IDC with key knowledge to employ new sustainability methods that can be backed up and implemented across the entire team. IDC is unusual in having product designers, engineers, project managers and a substantial work shop under one roof. Sustainability concepts will be applied at initial design stages to all projects and tested out onsite for their commercial viability.
Dr. Deborah Andrews of LSBU, also a member of the Centre for Sustainable Energy and Transport Studies at the university, is heading up the partnership on the academic side: “This is a great opportunity for graduates to turn the benefits of their academic knowledge into a worthwhile reality. Working with the commercial sector means applying that knowledge to help develop sustainable products for the future.”
IDC will be on the look out for an experienced industrial or product designer with a knowledge and interest in sustainability. The position will also have the added benefit of accessing the facilities and supervisors at LSBU.
