Think about the products you use on a daily basis. Whether they’re physical products like laptops or digital ones like apps, we’re surrounded by innovative product design examples everywhere we look. These products represent the work of product designers.

From a consumer perspective, we only see the end result and don’t know what took place behind the scenes. Today, we’re going to explain how to get started in product design.

1. Find a Community

Finding a network of people who are passionate about design is key to starting your career off on the right track. In the early stages of design, you can leverage online platforms like Behance and Facebook groups like Designers Guild and Designers League to connect with others in your field. The more you contribute to these communities, the more help you’ll receive when looking for honest feedback on your work. You’ll also want to follow your fellow designers on social media—Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn—and slowly build an online presence.

2. LEGO^®

While one of the best examples of great product design, there was a time when Legos were just colorful building blocks that were beloved by children and excruciatingly painful when stepped on. But now, the Lego universe encompasses multiple worlds filled with characters and machines that people of all ages can build, modify and mash up.

There are even Lego-sponsored competitions that give people the opportunity to test their design skills and come up with new creations using Lego parts. And Lego has done a great job in developing a story arc to go along with many of their toys and themes, so they’re not just stand-alone objects but characters in an ongoing fictional narrative that children get to participate in. We all love to play with toy soldiers, dolls or ships, so Lego simply combines this natural love of play with a lot of clever engineering education.

3. YouTube

Everyone these days has access to a video camera and to the internet. Put them together and you get YouTube and other video sharing sites like Vimeo. As an information resource generally, the internet is the greatest repository of raw knowledge we’ve ever created, but it’s a mess.

But if you’re a hands-on kind of person looking for a tutorial on how to tune up your bicycle, check out YouTube. Want to learn how to weld, build an Adirondack chair or, yes, use a 3D printer to make your first prototype – well, there’s a YouTube video (or fifty) out there to teach you how. The quality of the presentations is as variable as the people making them, but that’s why they’re so interesting. Sharing information, know-how and experience from all points of view is a wonderfully democratizing experience and encourages budding product designers to engage with one another and pick up new skills.

4. Open Source Computers

The Android operating system for cell phones is meant to be “open source”, meaning anyone with sufficient programming chops can create new apps to share with anyone else and, of course, there are millions of people doing just that. A new generation of cell phone users is perfectly comfortable with open source design, but not everyone knows how to program an app or wants to. To invite younger people to get involved in our electronic world, inventors and educators have created new hardware/software interfaces that are easy to use and program.

The award-winning Arduino and Raspberry Pi are two open source computers that are no bigger than a credit card and can be plugged into any laptop. They contain sensors and programmable chipsets that allow anyone to reconfigure them to control all kinds of other devices, like robots, flying drones or remote cameras. We’ve talked before about the Internet of Things. These kinds of inexpensive devices invite young learners to interact with our connected world in all kinds of ways, taking away the intimidation factor of black-box computers and, instead, inviting them to create something new.

5. Crowd Funding

So let’s say you’ve got a great idea, and you’ve already made a sample or prototype and you believe it might be the next big thing. Trouble is—you’re short on cash. What to do? Crowdfunding websites like Indiegogo and Kickstarter have revolutionized the concept of venture capital. Now, fledgling inventors and product designers, if they’re not affiliated with a large company that can support them, need only present what they have on a website. They can look for small outside investors to get them started in exchange for a free gift or even a share of the company—assuming the idea becomes something. There’s little risk involved other than some sweat equity, and not every idea catches fire, but once in a while, there comes along a game-changer like the amazing Oculus Rift virtual-reality headset, which started its life on Kickstarter and last year was bought out by Facebook for more than $2 billion. If that doesn’t provide some incentive for young designers to get busy making things, we don’t know what will.

We like making things ourselves and will continue to keep you updated on advances in materials, machinery and techniques for rapid prototyping and tooling. But our work doesn’t start unless there are people designing things to be made. The industrial and product designers of tomorrow will come from those young people today who are excited by the joy of learning and discovery and who now have an entire new suite of tools available to help them get started. Contact us today for a free quote on your project!

This is a very strong, thick glass jar and complies with ASTM 2179 AND 2147 testing methods. (Ensures glass is able to withstand heat and has no cracks or fractures)

Measurements: Height 9.8cm, Diameter 9cm.

Finish: Black outer spray*

Approximate Volume: 400ml

* As theses candle jars have undergone a water soluble paint finish, (rather than a solvent finish) they are more prone to scratching, so please take care when handling the jars. Washing, soaking and immersing the candle jars in soapy water will soften and deteriorate the finish. Use only a DRY – soft cloth (microfibre is best) to remove dust, prior to filling. The water soluble paint finish performs just like coloured glass during burning.

On August 3, an announcement on the "Ruling of Harbin Bearing Reorganization Plan" quietly appeared on the National Enterprise Bankruptcy and Reorganization Information Network. This marks the successful completion of the bankruptcy reorganization of Harbin Bearing Group and its affiliated companies by Beijing Jianlong Heavy Industry Group Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Jianlong Group). This old bearing manufacturer with a glorious history of 70 years is about to open a new chapter.

Talking about the reasons for this reorganization, Zhang Zhixiang, Chairman and President of Jianlong Group, emphasized: "We must retain Heilongjiang's traditional manufacturing brand!" Harbin Bearing Group (HRB Bearing) was once the top of the three major bearing production bases in China. Its products are widely used in automobiles, machine tools, metallurgy, aerospace and other fields, including supporting bearings for the "Shenzhou" series of spacecraft and Long March 2F carrier rocket.

After Harbin Bearing Group issued an announcement to recruit strategic investors, Jianlong Group immediately took action. After a series of consultations and evaluations, it finally won the approval of the reorganization plan. On July 20, the two parties officially reached a cooperation agreement.

According to the reorganization plan, Jianlong Group plans to invest 1.04 billion yuan in the construction of Harbin Bearing Group's new base, equipment renewal and technological transformation. It is expected that by the end of 2023, the annual output value of Harbin Bearing Group will reach 2 billion yuan, the annual tax payment will exceed 100 million yuan, and the net profit target will be more than 80 million yuan; by the end of 2025, the annual output value will further increase to 3 billion yuan, the annual tax payment will increase to 180 million yuan, and the net profit target will be set at more than 280 million yuan.

Through product structure optimization and business model improvement, Harbin Bearing Group will play an industry leading role in Heilongjiang Province. Zhang Zhixiang said: "We will give full play to the advantages of raw materials, market, collaborative innovation and mechanism system, ensure that while paying taxes in accordance with the law, we will achieve win-win results with suppliers and customers, and ensure that employees' income reaches the industry-leading level."

What Does Passivation Mean?

Passivation means to alter the chemical structure of a metal at or just below the surface, so that it’s more stable and doesn’t want to react with other elements in an undesirable way.

There are several different manufacturing processes that we routinely use to passivate the surface of a part. The reasons for doing this are many: to improve hardness, corrosion protection and cosmetic appearance, to name a few.

How do we achieve this? Let’s take a look at the most common methods and what they’re used for.

Anodizing

Anodizing is a way to passivate the surface of aluminum, titanium and magnesium parts. In this case, a coating or some other material is not added on top. Rather, the actual surface chemistry of the metal is changed or “converted”, so this is called a conversion coating.

The top layer of metal – about 5 microns thick – is first cleaned and stripped in a bath of sulfuric or hydrochloric acid. Then, the part is placed into another tank of liquid, called the electrolyte. When the target piece is given a positive electrical charge (the “anode” in anodizing), it will attract the negatively charged ions floating around in the electrolyte. They then bond with the surface, creating a new, strong oxide layer.

Why do you want this? Once you have aluminum oxide on the surface it’s very stable and scratch-resistant. It protects against rust or corrosion, and also makes a great primer for additional treatment like paint or powder coating. When dyes are added to the electrolyte, they make the customary colored look that we associate with anodized parts.

Bluing

Bluing is another conversion coating, but this works on steel. Like with anodizing, the target part is cleaned with acid and then dipped into a different electrolyte chemical solution which forms the familiar blue surface that is often found on gun barrels. A blued surface looks nice and it helps to reduce glare but it’s very thin, so regular treatments of oil are needed to maintain corrosion protection.

Parkerizing is similar but more robust than bluing. The surface comes out looking a dull matte grey, so this is used where cosmetic finish is not important but better environmental performance is. Dark grey or black oxide conversion coatings using this same technique are sometimes done for fairly inexpensive treatment of mass produced automotive parts.

Galvanizing

Although named after the Italian scientist Luigi Galvani, the process comes from India originally and refers to dipping steel or iron parts into molten zinc. This is called “hot-dip” galvanizing, and it’s immediately recognizable to any school kid climbing a backyard fence. The familiar flat grey, rough finish of zinc provides corrosion protection on mild steel but the finish is not especially precise and doesn’t aid in mechanical performance.

The zinc also has the secondary benefit of being a sacrificial anode. Let’s say the outer layer of zinc is damaged, exposing the steel underneath. Time for free oxygen to attack the steel and create rust, yes? Not so fast. The oxygen radicals have an easier time bonding with the zinc and making zinc oxide instead, so the zinc “sacrifices” itself to preserve the steel, at least for a little while.

Another variant here is yellow zinc plating, which is very familiar because of the typical iridescent yellow-green color that’s so common on nuts and bolts and other low-cost hardware.

Chrome Plating

A common plating process that makes the shiny, polished surface that you find on everything from kitchen faucets to hot rod engines. And it’s not just for metal; many plastics can be chrome-plated as well, so long as they’re not damaged by the chemical bath.  Chrome is beautiful, hard and durable, but there are some trade-offs.

Chrome plating uses chromium and the industrial process can be environmentally harmful so it must be carefully controlled – that’s one of the reasons for the higher cost. And if the chrome starts to flake or peel off of a surface you can’t just “touch it up” like with paint – the entire piece must be stripped and re-plated from scratch.

Hard chroming is another technique used to put a super-durable coating on moving parts like bearings and shafts.

Nickel Plating

One possible substitute for chrome is nickel plating, which can be polished to a high luster if desired. Like chrome, nickel can be used for a decorative finish, for corrosion protection, and to increase surface hardness and abrasion resistance.

Nickel is also used as a base coat for a later application of chromium. The use of nickel as a plating material is not considered as hazardous as that of chromium, though it may be more expensive in many applications.

Which Technique is Best for You?

These are the most common passivation techniques we use every day, and each has their inherent advantages, costs and limitations. If you’re still not sure which one is right for you read more about our finishing services or talk to one of our sales support engineers today for more information and a free quotation.

Stainless steel is an alloy made by incorporating chromium, nickel and other metal elements into the steel. Its non-rusting property is derived from the chromium component of the alloy. The chromium forms a firm, self-repairing chrome oxide film on the surface of the alloy. This film is invisible to the naked eye. The ratio of stainless steel to nickel we usually refer to is generally 18:10.

At the beginning of the 20th century, stainless steel began to be introduced into the field of product design as a talented person. Designers have developed a number of new ones around its toughness and corrosion resistance that have involved many areas that have never been involved before. This series of design attempts is very revolutionary: for example, equipment that can be reused after disinfection is first seen in the medical industry.

Stainless steel is divided into four main types: austenite, ferrite, ferrite-austenite (composite), martensite. The stainless steel used in household products is basically austenite.

Material characteristics: health care, anti-corrosion, fine surface treatment, high rigidity, can be formed by various processing techniques, and difficult to carry out cold processing.

Typical applications: austenitic stainless steel is mainly used in household products, industrial pipes and building structures; martensitic stainless steel is mainly used to make tools and turbine blades; ferritic stainless steel is corrosion-resistant, mainly used in durable washing machines and In boiler parts; composite stainless steel is more resistant to corrosion and is often used in aggressive environments.

想開店或是做個自己願意投注心力的副業？我們知道這件事情很難，也需要有一定的規劃和勇氣。
但在這條路上，你並不是孤獨的。

UR HOUSE每年協助超過數千名想開店或展開自己事業的頭家們挑選絕佳的商業場域。
我們邀請到成功開業的經營者們，與我們分享他/她是如何開啟自己的事業、在過程中遇到過哪些問題，
以先進者的角度與大家分享一路上的歷程。

UR HOUSE,UR STORY.
我們用心替你尋覓最合適的場域，讓你展開屬於自己的故事。

關於Coco Brother 椰兄PLUS 

「泰國的魅力，單用口述很難表達的，只有去過之後才能體會。」

但美食只要夠道地、夠美味，那就能夠無國界的將要呈現的概念送達。
在台北市最熱、無論是觀光客還是在地客都熙攘的南西商圈，就有著這樣一間充滿泰國風情的店家-Coco Brother 椰兄PLUS 。

從2015年毅然決然放下高薪工作，拋下一切到泰國找自己，
卻意外愛上當地的椰子冰淇淋。

之後毅然決然赴泰國學藝，以10萬的資本在三重夜市擺攤、到現在旗下擁有泰式餐飲集團，
近10年的光陰過去了，除了越來越大的規模和越來越豐富的品項外，不變的是Amos的熱情和椰兄對食材品質的堅持。

成立Coco Brother 椰兄PLUS 的契機？

Amos過往創立椰兄的經歷已經廣為人知，甚至許多電視台的美食、創業專訪都曾報導過。
但相信多數人都會和筆者有同樣的疑問，那就是在椰兄本來的品牌調性已經如此鮮明的情況下，為什麼會選擇再次轉型品牌調性？

「以前走的路線是比較刻板印象的泰式，茅草屋、嘟嘟車…等，但其實你有去過泰國的話，會發現椰兄PLUS整間店的配色和藤編風格，也是泰式風格，但是比較Fusion的風格。」

Amos帶我們邊看店內的環境邊介紹，從選用的材質和裝潢的細節，都有種在泰國素坤逸路(Sukhumvit)餐廳的感覺，
比起原本比較類似於Pattaya自在放鬆的感覺更增添了一分雅緻，有一種Smart Casual的感覺。

環境和裝潢風格和整體調性的進化除了幫助椰兄這個快要10歲的品牌開拓一條新的支線，
同時也為迎接隨時隨地需要產生社群內容的新生代做足了準備。
在椰兄，如果你需要直播-沒問題！店內準備了手機支架、補廣登、拍照小物、多頭充電線…等
配上現場好拍的環境，不說還真以為是到了曼谷的某間餐廳。

同時，椰兄PLUS的環境，也更能夠將泰式餐酒的路線得到充分的發揮。
店內備有多種泰國風味的調酒和在地的啤酒，搭配上可以輕鬆組合的各式泰國料理，讓消費者在選擇上可以更輕鬆和多元。

而當我們問Amos在創立品牌的這些年來，有沒有遇到什麼挑戰。
「這些年遇過很多狀況，我開始賣冰的時候遇到台灣霸王級寒流，賣冰賣到以為自己賣心酸的。
   後來開店呀挑點呀都是挑戰，但我個人是喜歡優化和解決問題，所以不會特別覺得是困難，雖然過程是很痛苦的，但也算挑戰啦。」

Coco Brother 椰兄PLUS 的特點

Chill是最優先

Amos 希望椰兄PLUS能夠傳達出一種輕鬆自在的氛圍，讓顧客感受到如同在泰國般的自由與放鬆。
正因為這個願景，他特別選擇以獨立店面的形式經營，而非像許多開展連鎖的餐飲品牌般選擇位於商場內的店鋪。

他認為，這樣的設定更能讓顧客在最為放鬆的情況下前來用餐，無需事先訂位或穿著正式，真正做到「Chill Chill的來，自在享受」。

椰兄PLUS打破傳統泰國餐廳需多人同行才能品嚐多樣菜色的框架，讓單一顧客也能輕鬆選擇，享受多元化的泰國美食。
Amos希望每位顧客進店後，能夠感受到一種無拘無束的自由，從餐點的選擇到用餐的過程，都能夠完全按照自己的喜好來，不受任何限制。
這種輕鬆自在的用餐體驗，正是椰兄PLUS想要給予每一位顧客的獨特之處。

一個人的泰菜

Coco Brother 椰兄PLUS的一大特色便是其「一人泰菜」的概念，這在台灣的泰式餐廳中相當罕見。多數泰國餐廳的菜式設計是走合菜式，不易於單人食客進行點餐，
而椰兄PLUS卻能夠讓顧客以一份套餐的價格，體驗到多樣的泰國美食，用泰式定時的泰念，讓你在一盤中可以吃到多道泰菜，每一道都是精心挑選，泰味滿滿。

未來，椰兄PLUS計畫推出更多元化的泰式早午餐選擇，目標是讓品牌能夠覆蓋顧客一天中的各個時間段，無論是早晨開始的泰式Brunch，還是午餐的泰式一人食，或是夜晚的精緻泰式餐酒，
椰兄PLUS都希望能成為台灣人品嚐泰國美食的首選之地。

 

簡單聊聊怎麼知道UR HOUSE的？服務上有什麼特色？

 

Amos笑著聊到，一開始找到UR HOUSE，算是上天給的機遇。
那時候正想拓展，但因為本來在中山就已經有一間了，雖然有發現整體聲勢是往上的，但附近物件真的很難找。
所以本來已經改去找松山信義…等區域了。
但有一次半夜在租屋網站上看到UR HOUSE的物件，就立即加LINE聯繫，業務Alan也非常積極聯繫，
資訊給的快又準，所以迅速安排看物件，看第二次後就決定要租下。

但中間因為房東對於理想的房客有自己的設定，所以業務一直在中協助構通。
最後在一次會面下，房東和Amos發現彼此有些共同之後，深聊後發現都能在房東和承租方的關係下取得平衡和共識。
房東甚至還在碰面前先去吃過椰兄一店，某方面來說，房東最後也算是被Amos的產品給說服了。

而Amos覺得十分有記憶點的是Alan在接洽前，就已經準備好了給房東和房客雙方的簡報，
明確整理出了雙方的訴求，進而做到有效溝通。
也透過椰兄相關報導的整理，讓房東更加速認識租客的品牌。讓雙方的未知降到最低。

這樣的積極度和呈現，讓Amos對UR HOUSE的服務，有非常深的記憶點。

未來有哪些展望和計畫？或有什麼想和觀眾說的嗎？

今年椰兄PLUS會持續拓展，上半年預計會在北台灣再拓展2間店。
後續為了深化「一個人的泰菜」的，也會往百貨商場的美食街去拓展。

Amos也在抖音和多平台上分享許多椰兄的品牌發展和創業做生意的眉角、以及介紹更多與「一個人的泰菜」相關的內容。
對創業做生意和椰兄後續展開的朋友，也歡迎FOLLOW▼▼▼▼

摘要

本文探討如何透過數據驅動來提升品牌的市場競爭力，這對任何希望在激烈市場中脫穎而出的企業而言至關重要。 歸納要點:

• 人工智慧技術,如自然語言處理和預測性分析,幫助品牌深入理解消費者行為及市場趨勢。
• 整合線上與線下數據,建立統一平台,使品牌能更全面地描繪消費者行為,打破數據孤島。
• 遵守數據倫理與隱私規範,增強消費者信任,同時制定基於數據的差異化品牌策略以提升市場競爭力。

綜合運用先進技術和倫理規範，可以幫助品牌有效提升其市場優勢和消費者信任。

品牌分析案例：解碼數據金礦，揭秘市場競爭力提升秘訣

品牌分析案例中，資料的價值如同一座金礦，能為我們揭開市場競爭力提升的秘訣。AI驅動的預測性分析讓品牌不再只是回顧過去，而是能夠前瞻未來。想像一下，如果可以透過社群媒體上的消費者情緒來預測熱銷產品，那麼調整行銷策略將變得更加精準。跨平台資料整合使品牌能夠全方位了解消費者。例如，把線上廣告、銷售及客服資料結合在一起，就能清楚看到哪個渠道最有效。而資料驅動的品牌個性化則讓每位消費者都感受到獨特關懷。利用AI建立推薦系統，不僅提升了購物體驗，也增強了顧客忠誠度。這些方法是否也激發了你對於如何運用資料的新思考呢？
本文歸納全篇注意事項與風險如下，完整文章請往下觀看

• 須注意事項 :
  • 品牌在數據分析上的依賴可能導致忽視消費者情感與文化背景的影響,造成與市場脈絡的不匹配。
  • 若未能持續更新和優化數據分析工具,品牌可能面臨技術老化的風險,進而影響決策的時效性與準確性。
  • 過度專注於數據驅動的策略可能削弱創造力和直覺判斷,使得品牌在面對變化多端的市場需求時反應遲緩。
• 大環境可能影響:
  • 競爭對手快速採用更先進的數據分析技術,可能使本品牌在洞悉市場趨勢上落於人後,降低市場競爭力。
  • 隱私法規日益嚴格,如GDPR等政策可能限制數據收集與使用,讓品牌難以充分利用其數據資源來制定策略。
  • 消費者對數據透明度要求提高,如果品牌無法有效管理公眾信任,將面臨形象損失及客戶流失的潛在威脅。

數據驅動的品牌分析：洞悉市場脈絡，掌握先機

在當今競爭激烈的市場中，資料驅動的品牌分析成為了企業成功的關鍵。AI 驅動的預測分析讓我們能超越傳統方法，透過機器學習來預測消費者行為和市場趨勢。例如，利用自然語言處理技術，我們可以分析社群媒體上的輿情，快速掌握產品熱度與潛在風險。這樣一來，品牌能提前佈局，把握住市場先機。

多後設資料整合也變得至關重要。我們不再僅依賴單一資料來源，而是將線上線下、內外部的資訊進行整合，以建立全方位的資料洞察。例如，結合顧客交易紀錄、網站流量及社群互動資料，可以繪製出360度的客戶畫像，更加了解他們的需求和偏好。

個人化資料應用則是提升顧客滿意度的重要手段。透過深入了解顧客偏好，我們可以提供量身定製的推薦或優惠活動，不僅提高了顧客忠誠度，也優化了廣告投放效果。在這樣的一個大資料時代，你還在等什麼呢？

我們在研究許多文章後,彙整重點如下

網路文章觀點與我們總結

• E-E-A-T原則強調品牌的專業性、經驗和可信度,對於市場行銷策略至關重要。
• SoWork提供科學化和數據驅動的品牌定位服務,幫助企業進行品牌重塑。
• 《藍海策略》的理念促使企業尋求創新,以避開惡性競爭。
• 數據導向分析可以精準定位市場及了解客戶行為,提升品牌競爭力。
• 成功的品牌行銷需要扎實的基礎,包括深入的市場調研和競爭分析。
• 透過不斷的數據分析與策略調整,企業能夠靈活應對市場需求變化。

在當今瞬息萬變的商業環境中，企業若想脫穎而出，就必須重視品牌分析與數據驅動的行銷策略。不論是透過專業團隊進行深度研究，還是持續優化自己的產品與服務，都能提高自身在激烈競爭中的優勢。因此，了解用戶需求以及掌握有效工具成為了每一位品牌主不可或缺的重要課題。

觀點延伸比較:

策略類型 數據導向分析 品牌重塑 市場調研 競爭分析 創新策略 關鍵要素 客戶行為分析、趨勢預測 品牌形象更新、定位明確 目標市場識別、需求洞察 競爭者優劣勢評估、市場佔有率分析 獨特價值主張、新產品開發 最新趨勢 人工智慧與機器學習應用於數據分析 社群媒體影響力提升,需持續反思與調整 隱私保護法規對數據收集的影響 即時數據回饋提升決策效率 可持續發展理念融入企業創新 權威觀點 Gartner報告:2023年AI驅動的商業智能將成為主流 Harvard Business Review:品牌重塑是企業生存之道 Forrester Research:深入的市場研究能顯著提高營銷效果 McKinsey Insights:競爭優勢源自於精準的市場定位 BCG報告顯示,創新是長期增長的關鍵

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