ROBRADY design stresses a comprehensive speed-to-market plan by collaborating to identify the greatest areas of opportunity and producing profitable product solutions.

ROBRADY delivers design, production, and capital solutions to its clients in support of their research-to-reality philosophy.Chaos Group provides state of the art rendering solutions for architectural, VFX, film, media and entertainment, automotive design, television and other industries.

What more can you tell us about the ROBRADY work environment? Do you work as a team or individually? Do you work in a big open space or in separate offices ? Is ROBRADY a fun place to work?
ROBRADY is an incredible place to work, and a lot of that comes from the open environment. There are no walls between the departments, industrial designers work across the aisle from the mechanical designers, which promotes the collaborative process. All projects are worked on as a team, with industrial and mechanical designers contributing at all design stages.

THE INSPIRATION
Who worked on the DBO Electric Folding Bicycle project and what is their experience in both the industry and with ROBRADY?
The concept work was a collaboration between the Design Director Rob Brady, Senior Industrial Designer Erik Holmen, Industrial Designers Andre Minoli and Antonio Molinari, and Senior Mechanical Designer David Poirier. Each designer has extensive experience in the transportation and power sports industries and has been with ROBRADY for several years. While ROBRADY has been active in this market space for decades, this was the first complete bicycle project for the team. Once the concept level 3D models were completed, they were handed off to partner DK City’s team of production engineers for the next phase.

How did the DBO Electric Folding Bicycle idea originate ? Why was it chosen as a project for ROBRADY? And how/why did DK City and ROBRADY team up for this project?
The relationship between DK City and ROBRADY was put together by an expert in the electric bicycle field – he believed that the two companies would make a great team. The DBO bike project simply started out as an exercise to design a new folding electric bicycle DK’s expanding lineup of products.

From idea to physical product, how long did this project take to create?
The industrial design phase for ROBRADY starting in May 2009, and completed in August of 2009. There were some production design modifications that took place through January 2010.

THE BACKSTAGE EXPERIENCE
How did ROBRADY use V-Ray for Rhino in this project? Why did you choose V-Ray to visualize this project? And how did V-Ray help in the production?
ROBRADY uses V-Ray for Rhino in all rendering animation applications. The quality level of the renderings is a huge asset when communicating a design to the client. Once of the nicest features of V-Ray is the ability to launch DRSpawner on multiple networked machines in the studio, drastically cutting down on render time.

What was the biggest challenge in creating the DBO Electric Folding Bicycle?
The biggest challenge centered around the folding aspect of the folding bicycle. We wanted to make a design that, at a distance, looked like a folding bike. But you have to work very carefully to make the design function and articulate correctly. It took close collaboration between ID and MD to make sure the concept was groundbreaking but feasible for production.

How long has the team at ROBRADY been using V-Ray for Rhino?
The V-Ray software has been the sole render engine at ROBRADY for about 4 years.

CUSTOMER BENEFITS
Will you share some of the V-Ray settings you used in the DBO Electric Folding Bicycle studio images?
Absolutely, the settings we use are actually very simple. We start with the standard high quality setting, and set the lighting and reflection maps to a studio HDRI environment. This is the regular setup for most renderings the studio does. We will sometimes change the lighting/reflection map depending on the subject matter, but when rendering products and vehicles, I rarely have to change the core settings.

What V-Ray features did you find most useful when rendering the DBO Electric Folding Bicycle?
The ability to map reflections and lighting is extremely useful, but the distributed rendering has to be the best feature as it has saved us countless hours of render time. The ability to use the engine with the Bongo animation plug-in was huge in communicating the folding qualities of the bike.

What are some upcoming projects in which you will rely on V-Ray for rendering?
Every project that enters the studio requiring a 3D model will be rendered with V-Ray.

As seen on the Chaos Group website. Chaos Group provides state of the art rendering solutions for architectural, VFX, film, media and entertainment, automotive design, television and other industries.

I decided to look into it further and had a an initial glance at the business summary and thought this looks pretty interesting on the basis it does what it says on the tin.  I also thought it must be a phenomenal bunch of women that had gone through this pain to understand how to develop the product.  Can you imagine my surprise when I was told the team was entirely male?  Not only was the team all male, but they were involved with the Marines, and designing motorbikes!  Now my interest was really piqued, how could a team of men come up with such an inherently female product?  As I got to know the team I began to understand why.

ROBRADY is a design company, not just a normal design company, but one that really thinks outside the box.  When Dr Stephen Lee approached them with what is now the Ziivaa belt, he had the technique but no real concept of how to design the device to be the most effective in capturing the technology and also allow ease of use.  ROBRADY’s team of designers, engineers, and visualists not only conceptualized the technology into a product but created something that would be easy to use and really effective; they refer to it as “humanizing”.

I had several meetings with the team, and as I got to know Rob Brady and Dr Stephen Lee, I also began to understand that these guys were pretty special, and it struck me that these men had really thought about the product, how a woman could most effectively use the product and how best to look at it from a design perspective.  Initially I thought I would be embarrassed talking to a group of men about something quite personal like menstrual cycles and the level of pain etc., but there was absolutely no awkwardness and the conversation was not only matter of fact, but refreshing in its content.

I was hooked!  I wanted to try this for myself; I haven’t suffered from really severe cramps, but enough on a monthly basis to feel uncomfortable, lethargic and unproductive.  I got one of the first prototypes and it really does work.  Simple and easy to follow instructions, no chemicals, no wires, and really effective technology that creates a solution to an age-old problem.  Yay!  I no longer need to take painkillers, try herbal medicines that tasted vile, or sit for hours with a hot water bottle feeling sorry for myself.  Wearing the belt for 15 minutes, I was ready to take on the world again!

I liked Ziivaa as a company and the people behind it so much that I wanted to be involved and be able to contribute my international and start-up experience to the company and the team.  In July 2010 I became an advisor to the company, the first female to be involved with Ziivaa at that level, and was proud to be working with such forward thinking men.  We all frequently encounter the chauvinistic male dominated culture in the corporate, venture capital and technology space, so to see this new company taking a novel approach in developing a great product was very refreshing.  More than that I love working with a group that is so open and forward thinking in trying to fill a gap in the market where no such solution exists.

What is even more intriguing is that Ziivaa has developed a product that solves an age-old problem and is in a very unique position to bring women of many ages and cultures together on a platform that has a single common denominator.  At the same time it can become so much more in terms of connecting with others around the world, sharing opinions and knowledge on culture, politics, health, and lifestyle.  The community element of Ziivaa is an exciting piece of the story that is unfolding as we speak.

Ziivaa launches commercially in the fall of 2011, it’s a company that has the adrenaline and power of the electric superbikes that ROBRADY designs, but the elegance and charisma of the women that will become the company’s powerful foundation.  One thing is certain, we all subscribe to the “25/8/366” philosophy, and Ziivaa will be a name to watch out for in the very near future.

Shimi Shah is the Executive Director of Ziivaa, LLC. She has been actively involved in fund management and venture capital for nearly 15 years. Shimi has spent over 10 years in venture capital in the US, Europe, and the Middle East. She has managed significant investments and portfolios, with several board seats. Shimi worked as a director at Partnerships UK plc (PUK), a UK Treasury entity in London for over three years. Prior to this, Shimi was Chief Investment Officer at Hanson Capital, managing an Anglo-American technology fund of over $100m, which focused on making investments in Silicon Valley and across Europe. Shimi is an active member of the Young President’s Organisation (YPO).

When Dr. Stephen Lee first approached ROBRADY design with his concept for a product that eliminates menstrual discomfort within minutes, we knew we were on the verge of something unprecedented. Dr. Lee’s concept was radically different from typical ROBRADY projects like the Vectrix Electric Superbike, the Segway or Xtools. These, and other projects for companies like Parker-Hannifin, Mercedes and Dell had a certain level of…well, testosterone. We did not let that intimidate us. In fact, we were intrigued by the challenge. We saw the spark of something great in Dr. Lee’s idea and we wanted to create something amazing from that spark.

We believe we have done that with Ziivaa.

After speaking with Stephen and seeing his original mockup, ROBRADY Founder Rob Brady knew there was more to Ziivaa than just another woman’s product. “Ziivaa goes beyond replacing pills or eliminating side effects, it puts control of a woman’s life back in her own hands,” says Brady.

Brady realized his vision was bigger than a single product concept. A passionate, focused team collaborated at the ROBRADY studio to develop the state-of-the-art product and much, much more. The development of Ziivaa grew into the design of a progressive company—dedicated to creating a dynamic solution for empowering women to live their best lives.

A Capital Idea
Firmly convinced of Ziivaa’s commercial and consumer potential, Brady also decided to make the venture a cornerstone of the newly formed ROBRADY capital division.

In a demonstration of their commitment to Ziivaa, ROBRADY capital has put the full force of its time and resources behind Ziivaa in order to guarantee that Ziivaa is brought to market by capable hands. Very soon, women around the world will be able to live better lives, free from the limitations of menstrual discomfort.

The Innovative Edge
The ROBRADY team is enthusiastic about innovative ideas that improve lives through imagination and execution. “Ziivaa is a perfect case study for what our group does,” says Brady. “We design fantastic companies that produce fantastic products.”

Achieving a great fit sometimes means stepping beyond one’s comfort zone. Rob Brady is a man with the right experience and expertise, educated at Auburn University and the Art Center College of Design. He has two decades of hands-on, integrative experience, where he has honed his design skills and the ability to create and deliver the “Innovative Edge,” time and time again.

The Ziivaa challenge, however, required something more of us. “With Ziivaa, I had to look beyond my usual design instincts and open myself to a different voice… an exclusively female voice.” Consulting with female employees, focus groups and women in his own household, Brady realized these new voices were blending to form a unique and ultimately perfect result.

“At the time, Ziivaa was a real challenge, a real departure,” reflects Brady. “But that’s what innovation is all about.”

Stay tuned. This story is just beginning.

ROBRADY was represented by Michael Spieckermann and Claus Fischer of Innovative Bikes (db0 distributors) located in Ludenscheid, Germany. Innovative Bikes distributes the db0 throughout Germany and neighboring countries. Their website is http://www.innovativebikes.de.

The Design Award of the Federal Republic of Germany is the country‘s highest distinction in the field of design. It is known as the “Prize of Prizes”. This year, the organizers of the Design Award of the Federal Republic of announced a record number of entries – over 1,500 products were submitted for the competition. 25 winners in the product design category and 24 winners in the communication design category received the Design Award.

The db0 3.0 received unanimous praise from the audience, who were impressed by its sleek designer appearance, eco-friendly message, and “humanized power”. The event also highlighted DK City’s relationship with ROBRADY by showcasing videos that introduced its studio and team. In early 2009, DK City had sought out ROBRADY design after seeing their award-winning work on the eco-friendly electric Vectrix VX-1 Maxi Scooter and Super Bike, as well as their work with designing many products for Segway. The two companies partnered in August 2009 to design, develop and manufacture the db0 folding bike line. The db0 3.0 has garnered international design recognition with the receipt of the gold Spark award in October of this year. Photos and video of the launch party can be seen on ROBRADY’s Facebook page.

The new db0 bike, which is scheduled for release to the market in the first quarter of 2010, is first in a series of electric bikes that embodies their mission to design a series of clean, bold, and innovatively simple folding bikes. The design promotes the folding mechanism unlike it has ever been done before in this market – as a “focal point” that adds visual value to the bike. The battery configuration and integrated travel handles are also treated as iconic elements that offer aesthetic as well as ergonomic benefits. The db0 bike design is currently being featured at the Autodesk Design Gallery in San Francisco, CA as part of the Spark Awards show.

One of the highlights of the show was a Thursday evening dinner with the LEV association (Light Electric Vehicle). Led by Ed Benjamin of Benjamin consulting, the evening was a great networking opportunity for all those in attendance- a real global event. Across the board the conversations were very open and optimistic. Of special note, the market guidance was very bullish going forward. We had a chance to connect with designers from major manufacturers, start-ups, and authorities on the subjects of bicycles, all aspects of electric technologies and where the two might be heading in the future. Well worth the adventure of getting back to Konstanz through the late hours of via taxis, ferries, and buses… and a bit of walking of course.

UPDATE 09.09.09: Core77 has uploaded a nice gallery of images from their time at the show as well. Follow this link to check out their shots.

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This “designers notebook” features the first in a selection of photographs we shot while touring the first day of the show. You can find several sites that are covering the news and events of the show- we’re posting imagery that we’ve noted as interesting purely from a designers perspective. Enjoy.

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