This past week has been a blast, and I’ve learned a lot during it, primarily about professional engineering and design. I also had the opportunity to educate others about some of the work that 3rd Stone does.
On Wednesday evening, Robert took all of the interns to the city for San Francisco Design Week.1 We got to stop by several different venues and ended up getting a broad picture of the design community in San Francisco. First, we visited Faraday Bikes, a small start-up who make incredibly stylish electric bicycles, where the motor is contained in the frame.2 We then visited Propeller, a furniture and design store.3 They were showcasing a range of 3D printed items, including printed kitchenware, shoes, casts, and prosthetics. The mediums for printing included plastic, sugar, and even ceramic. It was amazing to see the range of needs that can be met with 3D printers. Next, we visited Public Bikes, who produce stylishly colorful European-inspired bikes.4 Following that, we visited the office of Lunar, a product design company somewhat similar (though much larger than) 3SD.5 We finished with Fuse, another product design company, who is responsible for the Jambox and helping to rebrand PayPal, among other notable things.6 It was really great to explore the design culture in San Francisco and see the firms that are behind some incredible products. I would encourage you to check out the websites of some of these companies, as my short summaries don’t do justice to the amazing work they are all conducting.
Though all of the places we visited were creating stylish, efficient designs, they were all pretty different from one another. Of course, each company was making a different set of products. But beyond that, each company was serving a different population and was running with a different motivation. All businesses must start with a vision, and it is that vision that drives all aspects of that company—from the products it produces to how it treats its employees to where its priorities lie. Each company had a markedly different vision. Take for instance Faraday and Public Bikes. While Faraday is creating sleek, electric bikes that are likely to attract true bicycle enthusiasts, Public Bikes seeks to serve those who do not consider themselves serious cyclists. Analyzing the motivation behind the designs at these companies has been an interesting process, and it has helped to further solidify my passion for global health design. Though I acknowledge that design is an important component for nearly all products in my life, I find that I am most motivated to work on projects that address pressing needs specific to healthcare and specific to resource-poor areas. However, I think it’s awesome that design opportunities exist for a very broad range of items and there are people who are passionate about all items in this range.
On Thursday, 3SD held a party to celebrate the 5th Birthday of PlanetBox. It was a packed day preparing for the party, and a long day overall, but I really enjoyed it. My job during the party was to teach about the Pumani CPAP to anyone who wanted to know more about the medical devices side of 3rd Stone. I had Jocelyn help me prepare my remarks, and in turn I got to learn several things about the project. I really enjoy presenting about the CPAP, especially because I know it’s a device that Rice and 3rd Stone should really be proud of. It has already made an impact, and I think that it has a bright future. People seemed very interested in the project, and even the caterer asked for an explanation. At the party, I got to meet several of Robert’s colleagues, who range from designers and engineers to businessmen and lawyers. I had the pleasure of meeting Andy Miller, who designed the BTB microscope several years ago. With Andy, Jocelyn, Katharine, and myself present, Rice was very well represented at the party.
For the past 2 weeks, one of the consultants at 3SD, Malcolm, has taught a short class about professional engineering. His teachings have focused on the differences between engineering education and engineering as a job, and so far we’ve touched subjects such as keeping organized, working within a team, managing and estimating your time, and much more. It’s been a useful class and should last through the summer. Though I’ve felt like he has talked about some subjects I already know, they are often concepts that I’ve never quite been able to put into words. Here are some of the points he’s taught:
– Make a task list, and know what the deliverable is for each task.
– As an engineer, a large part of your job will be to make a compelling engineering argument.
– Most of the time, the things you are working on will not be working correctly. That’s why you’re working on them.
– When planning a project, it is often useful to start with what you know least about.
Malcolm’s talks have been enlightening, and I’ll be sure to write more about them in the near future!
Relevant sites:
1. http://www.sfdesignweek.org/
2. http://www.faradaybikes.com/
3. http://www.propellermodern.com/
4. http://publicbikes.com/
5. http://www.lunar.com/
6. http://www.fuseproject.com/