A couple of weeks ago, PopFoam took advantage of an opportunity to be a sponsor at the International Design Conference (IDC) organized by the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) in Chicago. I’ve done a few of these events over the years, NYC blackout of 2004 was one, and I’m always reENERGIZED by the people – the content – the venue – the conversations and this year was no disappointment. The 2019 IDC theme was a celebration of the diversity, overlap and undeniable power of design and took place at VenueSIX10 on Michigan Ave.
PopFoam participated in the Design Gallery featuring “well designed” products that take advantage of this unique Injection Molded Foam process. Our theme was to inspire the design community to dream up the next great product that fully takes advantage of our molding process. We featured the OWPP Futbol, a designer brand handbag, and a few other items that tell the story of PopFoam.
IDSA = Collaboration
Bigger things happen in product development when the creativity of a talented designer is harnessed. That’s why we look to partner with the design profession; they most often bring out the best ideas for a product. IDSA is rich with designers and design firms creating leading-edge products for all sorts of markets. Discussing the PopFoam process and what it has to offer is a great resource for product design and development.
People = Products
Meeting and chatting with creative people is always interesting, and I met some great folks this year. I had an opportunity to chat with a few people I’ve met before but for the most part, this year’s IDC produced a bunch of new contacts who were not familiar with PopFoam. Showing product and talking about how design challenges were met is good stuff, and I know this interaction sparks thought and leads to bigger conversations. I especially enjoyed meeting Todd Kauranen – IDSA MI Chair chatting about Michigan stuff and him bringing me up to speed on what his chapter is working on. He also produced and a nice recap of IDC which you can check out here.
I enjoyed meeting everyone and learned a bit more about the current state of design and the Industrial designer as well – looking forward to seeing you again soon.
Randy Millwood is the National Key Account Manager at PopFoam and has been servicing the closed-cell foam industry for over 20 years.
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