Teresa Joeken, a student at Rhein-Waal University of Applied Sciences, has won the competition organised by the ‘Information and Communication Design’ degree programme on the theme of digital production with her book cover design
Kleve/Kamp-Lintfort, 21 July 2015: Digitalisation in manufacturing is advancing and transforming companies’ value chains. In the long term, this could significantly change the way we live and work. This trend is characterised above all by virtual networking within value-added systems and the local intelligence of machines and products. This makes it easier to tailor products to customers’ specific requirements. The manufacture of fully customised products (‘batch size 1’) under cost-effective conditions is becoming an increasingly realistic scenario in many sectors.
Visualising this was the task of a design competition in which 39 students from the Information and Communication Design degree programme took part. The essence of digital production was to be captured for the cover of an anthology due to be published by Metropolis-Verlag this autumn. The competition’s selection committee comprised not only the two editors of the volume – Professor Dr.-Ing. Christoph Haag, Professor of Procurement and Value Chain Management, and Professor Dr. Torsten Niechoj, Professor of Economics and Political Science – but also Professor Jörg Petri, Professor of Media Production. They all teach at the Faculty of Communication and Environment in Kamp-Lintfort.
“Ms Joeken’s winning design,” says Prof. Niechoj, summarising the jury’s decision, “illustrates the concept of product customisation in a way that is both elegantly simple and striking.” The central element, which is repeated with slight variations, is a component reminiscent of a cogwheel, symbolising the customisation possibilities offered by new manufacturing technologies. “The criteria for good typography are met here in an exemplary manner,” adds Prof. Petri.
Teresa Joeken, a second-semester student on the Information and Communication Design course, receives the prize of 150 euros for her cover design, as well as the assurance that the design will form the basis of the anthology on digital production to be published by Metropolis-Verlag this autumn. The volume stems from a symposium held in February, at which experts from various disciplines discussed the potential changes and consequences. It will include contributions from the symposium and further publications by experts in the field of digital production – as well as Ms Joeken’s book cover.
