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 has teamed with Xhale on many projects since 2007, and worked closely with them on the design, ergonomics and engineering requirements of the HyGreen™ System. ROBRADY CEO / Design Director Robert Brady feels the complimentary partnership the two companies share will continue to yield many profitable products: “Xhale Innovations’ appreciation and understanding of the importance of design working in unison with technology drives their success in product development. ROBRADY will continue to strive in positioning Xhale as a source for highly desired market-leading medical products.”

“Choosing ROBRADY has been one of the best decisions we’ve made,” says Xhale CEO Richard Allen. “We wanted a highly innovative design that would be readily brand-identifiable, but also wanted a product the customer/user would find to be completely intuitive and easy to use. ROBRADY delivered in every way. They did an outstanding job of helping us with ideation, and integrated the design concepts with customer-driven ergonomics and our unique engineering requirements.”

The 2010 Medical Design Excellence Award winners will be honored during the Medical Design & Manufacturing (MD&M) East Conference and Exposition, June 9 at New York City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.

Canon Communications LLC organizes the MDEA award competition, the only awards program that exclusively recognizes contributions and advances in medical product design. Entries are evaluated on design and engineering features, including innovative use of materials, user-related functions that improve healthcare delivery and change traditional medical attitudes or practices, features that provide enhanced patient benefit and the ability of the product development team to overcome design and engineering challenges to meet the product’s clinical objectives.

Xhale Innovations, Inc. is a subsidiary of Xhale, Inc. Xhale was formed in 2005 following six years of research and intellectual property development at the University of Florida, Gainesville. Xhale is funded by private equity investment, and has been awarded two NIH SBIR Phase I grants and one NIH SBIR Phase II grant. The company’s corporate operations are headquartered in Gainesville, Florida, near the University of Florida campus, and the company’s production and engineering facilities are located in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

ROBRADY design is a multi-disciplined product design and development studio that offers its multinational client base—including General Electric, Mercedes-Benz, Dell Computers, Parker Hannifin, AT&T, Merial and Volvo Penta—progressive industrial design, mechanical design and engineering, graphics/packaging/GUI/web and eCommerce design, market research, brand and retail development, complete rapid prototyping and production program management. ROBRADY design stresses comprehensive speed-to-market product solutions by collaborating to identify the greatest areas of opportunity and producing innovative designs to deliver profitable product solutions. ROBRADY delivers design, production and capital solutions to their clients in support of their research to reality philosophy.

UPDATE: The HyGreen™ system has been featured on Fox News. click here to check out the story.

The HyGreen™ system is designed to provide the first line of defense in the control of healthcare associated infections (HAIs). The system is comprised of a wall mounted unit, a bed mounted monitor, and badges worn by the medical staff. After cleaning their hands with an alcohol-based sanitizer, a medical staff member would place them under the wall unit sensor which ‘sniffs’ for alcohol. The unit then sends a wireless “all clean” message to the badge on the staff member’s pocket. The monitor on the patient’s bed searches for the “all clean” message. If it is not present, the badge vibrates to remind the staff member to sanitize their hands.  The system actively reminds busy healthcare workers to wash their hands and records all hand washing events and patient-staff interactions in the hospital environment, giving hospitals the first comprehensive and definitive tool to effectively monitor adherence to hand hygiene protocols.

Xhale Innovations, Inc. is a subsidiary of Xhale, Inc. Xhale was formed in 2005 following six years of research and intellectual property development at the University of Florida, Gainesville. Xhale is funded by private equity investment, and has been awarded two NIH SBIR Phase I grants and one NIH SBIR Phase II grant. The company’s corporate operations are headquartered in Gainesville, Florida, near the University of Florida campus, and the company’s production and engineering facilities are located in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

ROBRADY design is a multi-disciplined product design and development studio that offers its multinational client base—including General Electric, Mercedes-Benz, Dell Computers, Parker Hannifin, AT&T, Merial and Volvo Penta—progressive industrial design, mechanical design and engineering, graphics /packaging / GUI / web and eCommerce design, market research, brand and retail development, complete rapid prototyping and production program management. ROBRADY design stresses comprehensive speed-to-market product solutions by collaborating to identify the greatest areas of opportunity and producing innovative designs to deliver profitable product solutions. ROBRADY delivers design, production and capital solutions to their clients in support of their research to reality philosophy.