The Fox Industrial Design competition was incorporated into the students’ class curriculum for two different classes, Studio Design 3, where students designed motocross or a BMX helmet, and Studio Design 1, where the challenge was to design eyewear, which included goggles and sunglasses. Fox designers worked with the students throughout the quarter to explain the brand, the market and the Fox audience. Students were able to receive feedback from the experts before presenting their final projects for consideration in the competition.
“Bringing real world experience into the classroom is as important for the companies we work with as it is for the students,” said Industrial Design instructor Rob Westerkamp. “Companies can always use a fresh perspective, and they need to know what college students see as the future.”
James Demetra was the first place winner for the helmet design competition and Michael Popp was the judges’ favorite in the eyewear design competition.
“The two first place winners were the ones that came up with innovative solutions that our customers would want,” Durham said. “We are always looking for ways to advance our products and both students had excellent ideas on how we could continue to meet our customer’s expectations.”
The entries were judged on the following four criteria: uniqueness of the design (innovation), the outward appearance (aesthetics), research and level of brand awareness that went into the design (process) and how the design would benefit the user.
Durham says, “We were all students once and we remember how important these types of experiences were to us.”
