The brief: For my former employer PF Concept I was asked to create a range of 3 drinkware items to match the Elevate wearables, bags and outdoor tools and torches.
The result: An innovative idea to reduce costs by tooling only one screw cap/lid to serve at least 2 of the 3 bottles. The cap also featured a custom double S-carabiner and special grippy areas which were both a key connection elements to all the other items in the Elevate range. All the packaging details and manuals were also designed to match.
Extensive retail and competitor research and analysis is crucial for correctly identifying the market restrictions and available opportunities: price, features, materials, size, usability and ability to decorate the bottle with a customer logo all play a crucial part in the decision-making process. How to achieve consistency of look & feel was also a great challenge.
The Rambler water bottle consists of two separate sections and a cap, this idea allows for easy cleaning of all the parts, including the removable silicone gaskets. This also allows the bottom section which is made from aluminium to be used as an emergency cooking pot. The cap and mid section have diamond knurling anti-slip areas.
The Nakiska insulated bottle initially featured the same cap as the other items but it was soon realized that this cap is insufficient for keeping the contents warm long enough. Also initially the design had two cups that nested in eachother but a pricing decision was made to keep the tooling more simple and as such only one cup remained.
The Warden flask presented a technological challenge in that we wanted to taper the shape of the bottle at the bottom. This required creative mould building from the factory but in the end this proved possible. Also the cap, with its knurling texture that ensures good grip was a small challenge but this was solved too together with the factory.
For my former employer Leed’s I designed various drinkware items including a picnic set of insulated bottle and mugs for their license Cutter and Buck. I also designed in 2004 the now iconic Tech tumbler with its strips of rubber protruding through the stainless steel casing that aid with gripping the interior of a car mug holder.
