Solid Surface Headwall Named 2014 IDEA Award Finalist
Overland Park, Kan. (PRWEB) April 04, 2014 -- An original headwall for the University of California – San Diego designed by Cannon Design and crafted by Shield Casework was named an International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) finalist this week.
Run by the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA), the IDEA awards are a 34-year-old competition recognizing the best and brightest designs in products, sustainability, interaction design, packaging, strategy, research and concepts.
Counted among prestigious previous winners such as the Tesla Model S and the Nest Learning Thermostat, the UCSD headwall typifies the principles of IDEA. The design team partnered to turn an institutional medical product, the patient headwall, into an architectural element that is as functional as it is beautiful.
This project did not set out to make an aesthetic statement, but instead to use design thinking and research to craft a purposeful healing space.
Merging evidence-based design with proven function, the headwall smoothly contains the room’s technology within a single element, its innovative canopy. The project team was challenged to fit hundreds of feet of infrastructure into one compact and complex hub with a difficult-to-fabricate compound curved design.
Of all the branches of industrial design, the design of scientific and medical devices is arguably the most important to society. Shield’s solid surface products are setting a new standard for this work: this is the second design award recognition within a month for the company (recognized as an Architizer A+ Award finalist in March).
After designation as an IDEA finalist, designs are judged in a second round of the award competition to select a Best in Show, as well as categorical Gold, Silver and Bronze awards. IDSA will reveal category winners in May and the Best in Show at its 2014 International Conference Aug. 18 in Austin.
About Shield Casework
Merging exceptional design into healing environments, Shield Casework manufactures the leading line of modular solid surface casework, headwalls and custom architectural products. Shield’s philosophy is to create beautiful products that are meticulously crafted, immaculately clean and unmatched in quality. Seamless construction, cleanable radius corners and patented embedded connections make Shield superior to any other casework product.
About CannonDesign
An award-winning, full service architecture, engineering and interior design firm, CannonDesign specializes in healthcare, education and corporate commercial facilities. Creating design solutions that solve the greatest challenges facing clients and society today, Cannon doesn’t just design buildings. Its talented team designs innovative solutions that offer a clear focus to clients and the design community. Design thinking isn’t just about shaping environments: it’s aimed at shaping businesses, educational models, energy strategies and even economies of entire countries.
About IDEA
Started in 1980 by IDSA, the International Design Excellence Awards program (IDEA®) fosters business and public understanding about the impact of design excellence on the quality of life and the economy. The IDEA program is considered one of the most preeminent design competitions, with thousands of entries each year from nearly 50 countries worldwide.
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Mandy Stark, Shield Casework, http://www.shieldcasework.com, 913.744.2183, [email protected]
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