As a design lover/ wannabe product pioneer, what would be a better idea than to work for a company who designs innovative products and provides manufacturing expertise? Doing it in CHINA.
Having this opportunity to work in China has definitely been rewarding and my experience here in China has been rich with education and adventures.
Zhuhai’s picturesque atmosphere is about as beautiful as their autumn weather and the people who live in the area. Some of the most amazing people I have met here are even housed under one roof; China 2 West!
My experience at China2West has definitely been satisfying. I am constantly learning about the Chinese culture and the practices of the design and manufacturing trade. The China 2 West team are helpful, insightful, and particularly friendly and humorous.
As an intern working in the i2Design department, I have been involved in a variety of processes including sketching, research and development, 3D modelling, product testing and much more; which has helped me to improve on my skills and knowledge of the design industry. My internship has taught me valuable lessons that will support me in future endeavours. The expertise I have gained whilst working in the i2Design department has improved my confidence in accomplishing anything I put my mind too.
The bright and intellectual people behind this company have been inspiring and supportive throughout my entire internship. I enjoyed my time here and was delighted to be part of a creative/resourceful/amusing team.
Angelica
Last week our group CEO Nick Cunningham gave a 1 hour radio interview for Got Invention Radio regarding manufacturing in China. It’s definitely worth a listen for anybody interested in R&D, manufacturing or sourcing out here in the far east.
The interview went down so well that the UIA (United Inventors Association)’s Executive Director, Mark Reyland, decided to post about it in his very interesting and informative blog, you can find the direct link here:
http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com/2012/11/let-me-tell-you-about-nick.html
“So take a moment an listen to my good friend Nick Cunningham on Got Invention Radio last night. He’s a wealth of information on sourcing from China and a good friend to all of us.”
There are a great deal of differences in skill and ability between Chinese design and western design, both with their benefits and flaws.
Western designers have a large issue that they (in most cases) have never actually made anything or been involved in manufacture, the result of this is they have no understanding of what is possible in manufacture and what can only be seen as an artistic vision. They are however, very creative and active problem solvers but when they do not understand a problem they cannot hope to solve it.
Chinese designers generally have 2 problems; the first is the lack of creativity (which is trained out of the population during their early education) and the other is the structure and mind-set which prevents people with ideas stepping forward or analysis of ideas to improve them. In general terms the system follows an over-the-wall working method with each stage blaming the stage before it for any issues that occur rather than analysing issues and finding solutions. The combination of the 2 above issues can cause lots of problems and deadlock on development projects. However the Chinese designers do have very methodical problem solving skills due to their generally higher level of manufacturing knowledge.
The only way to get through such issues is by building relationships between both sides and with experienced and helpful factories, training up either western or Chinese designers to themselves develop into designers capable of improving on their weaknesses and avoiding the usual pitfalls.
Here at China 2 West and i2Design, we have managed to overcome the individual issues raised above by creating a team of mixed backgrounds, cultures, experience and knowledge. The split is usually 50% Chinese to 50% Foreign and at the moment the foreign side is made up of English, Australian and Indian. In the past we’ve also had Belgium and American. Our team members work together on projects and interact very often in assisting and training each other with skills they don’t yet possess.
The result is a very dynamic, creative and problem-solving team very well placed to design and develop products from a vast range of fields using a multitude of different materials and solutions.
– The author is John Pitts, Head of Design at i2Design, part of the China 2 West Group
Since working at China2West as a design intern, I have been exposed to the design cycle in its entirety, from talking to suppliers and clients about the design and implementation of products, to developing my skill-set in sketching and computer software such as Solidworks (CAD). There is also a lot of implicit learning that is involved from seeing how a Chinese based manufacturing management company operates.
A further aspect that is interesting is learning how the Chinese culture works both in and out of the design studio. This is informative on a personal level but also important for the future, as China is going to be one of the biggest, if not the biggest and most influential economies of the 21st centuries.
Our accommodation that we have been given is pretty cool, with a nice open setting sitting room that has a good view, big TV and strong internet connection. There is also a pool hall in our building and a nice swimming pool that I should use more often.
On the projects I have been given free rein to a large extent in developing and exploring solutions to the design issues that occur, which I prefer, whilst being given occasional guidance when required from the team. Understanding of; technology, manufacturing in China and design have all considerably grown through this process.
It has been a highly enjoyable and informative experience so far, and I will no doubt draw from it on many levels in the future.
Ruary
i2design.asia is the new design and development consultancy operated under the China 2 West Group corporate umbrella, based in Zhuhai China with offices in the UK and US.
Whilst a new company its employees have years of experience gained through China 2 West and other companies, the employees also consist of not just Chinese but English, American and French Design Engineers providing the company with a global base of experience and perspective in design.
The company provides a number of services which include Industrial Design, Electronic and Electrical Product Development, Technical Design Evaluation, Graphic Design, Logo and Packaging Design as well as Layouts for catalogues, literature and websites.
The company’s website shows a limited array of the work previously undertaken in its portfolio section but the company’s corporate mascot ‘I2DB’ shows the level of CAD the company is capable of, in addition the entire i2design.asia website is designed by the company itself with a printable portfolio available on the home page showing its literature capabilities.
i2design.asia will offer a one stop shop for all design and development needs, an eastern base for western ideas and innovating your ideas at a fraction of its competitors costs.
i2design.asia
Innovating Ideas
www.i2design.asia
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As a design lover/ wannabe product pioneer, what would be a better idea than to work for a company who designs innovative products and provides manufacturing expertise? Doing it in CHINA.
