The President's Design Award in Singapore is awarded to designers who have pushed the envelope to make a significant difference to the community through design that improves the quality of life. This year's recipients include two 70 year old veteran architects, Chan Sau Yan Sonny (below left) and Tang Guan Bee (below right), whom were both named Designer of the Year for their architectural contributions to Singapore. Ten 'Design of the Year' awards went to varied projects including a skateboard, magazine, bicycle and range of architectural projects. President's Design Award Steering Committee chairman Robert Tomlin said: "The nice thing is that this year, there's a very high number of Singaporeans being recognised as opposed to foreign organisations that happen to be operating in Singapore." (ref: channelnewsasia). There is an exhibition of all the recipients at Singapore's ION Orchard from 12 to 27 November and then the URA Centre from December 2011 to February 2012, well worth a visit if you're able.

The Design for Asia Awards recognise the best and most influential designs across Asia. Products were judged in September of this year by a panel of leading design professionals at the Hong Kong Design Institute. We are thrilled to have won a number of awards in the product and industrial design category with Setu winning Gold, Arras awarded Silver and SAYL merit. Setu and SAYL’s awards add to their growing lists of recognition from across the globe and Arras’ Silver award builds on its recent success at the 2011 Australian International Design Awards. We look forward to receiving our awards at the Gala Dinner to be held in December, we'll be sure to post back after the event.

(from left) The award winning Setu, Arras and SAYL

We're thrilled to once again be included on the Fast Company list of Thirty Companies Who Get It for "creating furniture that inspires - and solves prolems". It's part of Fast Comany's feature on United States of Design and we're keeping good company with 29 other design greats including Apple, Nike and 3M. We've always been a design led company and hold a strong belief that design can help create a better world, so it's great to be recognised. We think Fast Company's stylised graphic for each company is pretty cute too (a few below), check out the complete graphic slideshow here.

Well its official, our two newest products, SAYL and Arras have been recognised by a panel of esteemed judges to both win Good Design Awards at the 2011 Australian International Design Awards - SAYL also went on to win Best in Category for Architecture and Interior Products.

Marc Fond, Head of Research and Development for Herman Miller Asia Pacific and designer of Arras, was on hand to receive the award.  Arras was described as a gorgeous new take on the workspace of the future.  Arras was designed specifically for the Asia Pacific market and was the result of workplace research undertaken across the region from Japan to Sydney. 

SAYL received a Good Design Award and went on to be crowned Best in Category, beating some heavyweight names in the field of design including Dyson's Airblade and Air New Zealand's Skycouch.  This award joins a growing list of international acknowledgements for SAYL since its launch in October 2010.  Paul MacDonald, Sales Director of Herman Miller Australia and New Zealand, accepted the award.

The  Australian International Design Awards are regarded as one of the longest standing and most prestigious design awards in the world.  The judging panel are drawn from a wide range of design fields and all are experts in their areas.

Steve Frykholm is Creative Director and Vice President of Herman Miller. He has been with us since 1970 and throughout his career he has created some of our most memorable and iconic pieces of graphic design. Late last year he was awarded with America's highest honour in the graphic design industry, the 2010 AIGA Silver Medal, joining the ranks of previous winners isuch as Paul Rand and Milton Glaser. Of the three designers awarded this year, Richard Grefé, AIGA's executive director said “Each has contributed to the way design can intrigue the spirit, engage curiosity, enhance business, explore creative use of visual technique, and communicate value that is respected by business, society and our popular culture.”

As our Creative Director of 40 years, Frykholm has shaped our visual identity and helped develop and promote Herman Miller as a truly design-led company. He's said of his long term association “Herman Miller trusted designers; that’s why I’ve been able to do what I’ve done.” In turn, Frykholm has trusted the designers who have worked along with him, who commonly speak of his enthusiasm and encouragement to embrace all ideas and his respect and integrity of design, from process through to product. 

(above) Composite: 20 Herman Miller Picnic posters, 1970–1989 [source: AIGA website]

Frykholm's work has been widely acknowledged and exhibited by many leading Museums including the Museum of Modern Art, the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum and the Danish Museum of Decorative Art. A series of 'picnic' posters he designed for Herman Miller's annual company picnic in the 1970's and 80's (see above) are part of the permanent collection at MoMA and among his best known work. His annual reports have always been much talked about (and apparently much copied) for what the AIGA desicribe as his 'tireless reinvention'. His sense of humour shows through in more than a few, with the 2002 report a notable standout, published after a very trying economic year, illustrated through a wild weather chart and plastic rain poncho attached to the cover.

Of course we're as proud as punch of Frykholm's accomplishments, so we thought we'd leave you with a few of his most memorable pieces thus far, in the safe knowledge that there's yet more to come...

(above) The notorious 2002 annual report featuring desposable rain poncho. [source: AIGA website]

(above) 1985's much lauded annual report 'Say Hello to the Owners' featuring a full length portrait of every employee of Herman Miller. [source: AIGA website]

(above) Still from Herman Miller “Get Real” video, 2003. [source: AIGA website]

(above)  Design Now posters, six from a series of 24, 2003–2007. [source: AIGA website]

To read more, check out the following links.

AIGA's article on Steve Frykholm's career
When you promote stuff, promote the stuff you believe in (HM Discover blog)
Herman Miller Picnic Posters, From Aba to MoMA (HM Discover Blog)

The latest additions to the Herman Miller range, Arras and SAYL have been named as finalists in the 2011 Australian International Design Awards.

The awards are recognised as being one of the longest standing and most prestigious in the world so we are delighted to be joining finalists from a range of categories in this year's awards.  Winners will be announced in Melbourne at the end of July as part of Victoria's State of Design Festival and we'll be posting as the news breaks so stay tuned.

PACT is an underwear company with a difference. Driven by a social consciousness, 10% of sales revenue is distributed amongst a number of select causes. Secondly, every aspect of the company, its product and its processes, demonstrates a firm commitment to the environment. Materials are organic, production is localised, transportation is minimised - even the packaging is 100% compostable. Finally, these elements are brought together by design, whereby each range tells the story of the cause it represents. 

The brainchild of Jason Kibbey and Jeff Denby, who met at business school, the pair were partnered by designer Yves Behar who approached the two after he judged their student project. Behar's influence is evident through the designs and the business model itself:

“We’re not doing anything artificial or superficial, not with the body, not with the packaging and not with our partnerships. Our vision is to unite fashion and design with doing good in an authentic way, building a company that truly embodies 21st century needs, showing a new way for businesses to operate in the future,” says Behar.

Indeed it is this use of design that caught the attention of the judging panel at the 2010 International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA). PACT took top honours with a Gold IDEA award in the Ecodesign category, followed by a Silver in the Personal Accessories category. 

The PACT team were jubilant over their success: "It's a big deal (like the Oscars of the design world). We're proud to be in the distinguished company of some of the world's best designed products."

The idea that design can facilitate change and lead to a better world, is one we at Herman Miller are keen to promote. To this effect, we're particularly proud to learn that our friend and colleague, Yves Behar, was recently awarded a Design of the Decade Bronze Award for his One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project.

The OLPC's mission is to "create educational opportunities for the world's poorest children, by providing each child with a rugged, low-cost, low-power, connected laptop". In a world where information is power, the OLPC project and $100 'XO' laptop have already done much to overcome the education, information and communication barriers faced by 2 million children in the developing world. In the 5 years since its first release, the XO laptop has reached more than 2 million children in over 40 countries; In Uraguay alone, almost every 6-12 year old has acccess to an XO laptop.

An initiative of the prestigious Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA), the Design of the Decade award acknowledge OLPC's outstanding contribution to the developing world. "We are honoured to be recognised for our important work with OLPC," said Yves Behar. "We spent more than four years on the research and design of the XO, and created a device that was tailor-made to the needs of children in the world's developing countries."

Herman Miller is proud to have shared a long and productive partnership with Yves, who is to promote our most recent collaboration - the SAYL chair - on tour throughout the Asia Pacific this February 13 - 18. The tour represents an excellent opportunity to meet Yves and hear his story. For more information visit the official website.

From 26 November 2010 to 25 February 2011, the Hong Kong Design Institute is hosting the prestigious red dot design award exhibition.

The red dot design award is one of the most significant product design awards in the international arena. The exhibition showcases a selection of winning designs from the renowned red dot museum in Germany.

Among the exhibits is a pair of bird watching binoculars named 'Birdgazer' created by Alan Yip, HKDI graduate in Timepiece Design and Branding, who was honoured with the red dot award (Design Concept) this year.

Alongside such exceptional student work, the exhibition also showcases products from some of the most world's most prestigious brands including our own and others such as Dyson, Tupperware, Apple and BMW. 

For the Hong Kong Design institute, the red dot exhibition celebrates the opening of the new design school - a significant new chapter in the Hong Kong design scene.

The HKDI "stands for highly successful and sustainable design promotion which, always harmoniously and with an eye on the future, advances the most diverse design disciplines in all their versatility,” says Professor Dr. Peter Zec, initiator of the red dot design award. “It is an honour for us, at this historic occasion, to set an example for all students, creative professionals, and those interested in design by presenting international top class design at this remarkable place.”

Well there's nothing like the news of winning a major award to wake us from our Christmas slumber. We're thrilled to have learned that Herman Miller's Setu chair has just won the Design of the Decade Gold Award as 'Best Sustainable Design Solution'.

The Industrial Designers Society of America holds the award in recognition of design innovation, excellence and business success. Having set a new benchmark in both sustainability and ergonomic comfort, the jury selected Setu for its exceptional impact on business and broader society. 

Setu was designed by Studio 7.5, and is noted for its single kinematic support spine, which cradles you and mimics your every move without the need for adjustment. Designed to fit all shapes and sizes, its adaptability is like no other chair in its category.

Since its launch in 2009, the chair has attracted global attention and picked up a swag of awards including Best of NeoCon and an Australian International Design Mark. Finishing 2010 with a bang, Setu now joins Herman Miller's previous Design of the Decade winners, Equa (1980s) and Aeron (1990s).