The Rescue Wizard is a gas-powered, man-portable winch capable of pulling loads as heavy as 12,000 lbs. (5,443.108kg). Designed for simple operation under the hardest circumstances, the winch can be used where destroyed roads and tight fits make heavy machinery and vehicles unfeasible and when electric power is unreliable, impractical (e.g. in or near water) or even nonexistent. As such, the winch is ideal for emergency rescue workers, forestry personnel, road crews and the military. With the Rescue Wizard, ROBRADY has surpassed the concept profile, leveraging mechanical and industrial design expertise to realize Morrison’s vision for a life-saving device with great commercial appeal. Aside from obvious rescue applications, the Rescue Wizard could be indispensable for road crews, the forestry service, the military and outdoorsmen as well.

The International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA®) competition is a celebration of the year’s most inventive and creative product and product concept designs. Of the entries submitted, the judges recognize Finalist, Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards. This year the competition received the most entries since it began 30 years ago. Out of 407 finalists, 38 were honored with the Gold award; while 64 received the Silver award and 88 won the Bronze award. IDSA has partnered with the Henry Ford in Dearborn and all finalists from this year will go into the permanent collection of the museum.

Andy Morrison of Naples, Florida founded Wizard Machines in 2008. Morrison has had the idea for the Rescue Wizard for the past 25 years. Over the years, with every disaster, Mr. Morrison thought about that ideal machine but the technology did not exist to achieve the needs he envisioned for a reliable machine that was light and durable in nature. Finally, in 2008 he became aware of a new rope that had all of the attributes of steel cable, but with 10% of the weight.  At about the same time there was a devastating earthquake in Sichuan, China that collapsed as many as 600,000 structures in a matter of seconds.  Those two events motivated him to begin a search for a firm that shared his vision.  That culminated in his collaboration with ROBRADY Design, of Sarasota, Florida, and the founding of Wizard Machines. Morrison has invested the last two years and substantial personal funds to bring the dream for the Rescue Wizard to reality.

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.

While ROBRADY is well known for their design prowess in the electric scooter and super bike world, this is their first foray into the electric bicycle market. ROBRADY’s CEO / Design Director Robert Brady said his team “took a white page look” at the opportunity and set out to design a series of bikes that would be instantly recognized as the next generation in folding bikes:

“The three new db0 bikes embody our mission to design a series of clean, bold, and innovatively simple folding bikes. Our design work promotes the folding mechanism as an integrated piece of the design- a ‘focal point’ that adds visual value to the bike design unlike it has ever been done before. We don’t hide the fact that these bikes fold- we have made it a distinguished characteristic of the series”

Several features of the bike are currently in patent process. DK City, who will be the exclusive manufacturers of the bicycle series, is also taking a fresh approach to the build, incorporating unique manufacturing processes that will deliver a bicycle of superior craftsmanship. The partnership is planning several future projects beyond this series of bicycles.

DK City Corporation was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Taichung, Taiwan with an additional facility in Shanghai, China.  They employ 1500 people and have an annual sales volume of US $400 million. They are committed to innovating, designing and manufacturing technologically advanced and environmentally friendly products. Known for their sophisticated fitness equipment, massage chairs, and recreational electric scooters and golf carts, DK City has recently expanded into the pollution-free electrical bicycle and motorcycle market. This expansion is driven by their desire to protect and preserve the planet for future generations.