NEWS & EVENTS

Seeking smart designs for a smart nation

Date: 25 October 2017
Company: Design Business Chamber Singapore (DBCS)

The Singapore Good Design Mark (SG Mark)—a benchmark of good design and quality for products or services—returns for the fifth time next year. Companies can now submit their applications for the prestigious mark that will be awarded next year. It was launched in 2013, in collaboration with the Japan Institute of Design Promotion (JDP) that gives out the internationally recognised Good Design Mark (G Mark).

What is new this time round is that businesses that use technology well can apply for the national design mark under a new Smart Nation category. As Singapore seeks to realise its Smart Nation vision, from self-driving vehicles to electronic payment systems and robotics in healthcare, the Design Business Chamber Singapore (DBCS) sees the need to give greater recognition to well-designed, technology-focused products or services that solve problems or enhance quality of life.

“The key to countering disruptions today is to rethink, reimagine, redesign what currently exists. Digital and infocomm technology and data analytics are key enablers of the future. Combine technology with good design and you transform the way we live,” said Andrew Pang, President of the Design Business Chamber Singapore.

For instance, Apple, Amazon Prime and Airbnb are some of the well-known, innovation-driven companies that have put design at the core of their business. Customers are lapping it up and their businesses are expanding rapidly. The mere use of technology does not equate to causing disruption, said Pang. Disruption occurs when existing customers of mainstream options are attracted by innovative solutions and switch to new offerings in masses. Design is not just about appearance. It is about addressing needs by putting the human at the centre of its functionality. Steve Jobs captured this point succinctly: “Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.”

Since the SG Mark scheme started in 2013, more than 200 products and solutions have been given the stamp of approval. Past winners have gone on to participate in Japan’s prestigious Good Design Award and the local President’s Design Award. This year’s SG Mark Gold winner—AIRMOTION Mask—went on to also win Japan’s Good Design Award last month. Technology start-up firm AIRMOTION LABS created a highly protective PM2.5 filter mask that allows users to do outdoor activities even in poor air conditions. The mask is made to take in clean air for easier breathing and designed to fit snugly even if eyewear is used.

Some of the businesses that have secured the SG Mark for their products and services have seen their bottom line and customer satisfaction rise. OCBC Bank, for example, was a 2017 SG Mark Gold award winner for its OneWealth mobile app that aims to help clients achieve and manage their investment goals through user-friendly design. It is designed in such a way that explains and presents complicated data analytics and information about investments in a simple and easily understandable manner. The bank said it saw a marked increase in the number of investments purchased by customers who use the app. “Most new investors go on to purchase multiple funds after the first purchase on the app. This shows that they have gained the confidence to take the first leap and even return to make multiple purchases,” said Jin Kang, lead designer at the experience design department in OCBC Bank.

Winners of the SG Mark will automatically qualify for the final round of the G Mark held in Japan. The G mark shows that design is more than just aesthetics; it is intimately connected with daily life and its human-centredness can even foster good health and save people.
Locally, for instance, St Luke’s Eldercare centre at Yishun won the 2017 SG Mark for looking more like a designer home than a facility catering to the needs of seniors, dementia day care patients and their loved ones. Though it was converted from an HDB void deck and had many pillars, designers put the pillars to good use by having them as natural privacy barriers. Skylight was simulated and multigenerational spaces were created to draw in the community.

Winners of the SG Mark have to fulfil six criteria to show evidence of good design, namely:
• Empathy: Solving problems, improving lives and meeting the needs of users
• Value: Contributing through design and user experience
• Inspiration: Galvanising and engaging society, community and environment
• Ethics and Responsibility: Contributing to the transformation of societies, communities, the environment and lifestyles
• Sustainability: Minimising waste and environmental footprint
• Progress: Pioneering the future and presenting strategic value to businesses and communities

For more information, visit www.sgmark.org. Entries can be submitted now at www.sgmark.org/thank-you-for-your-submission until 29 December 2017. — Construction+ Online