----What does the Design Group do?
We are the only design division in the company
that encompasses all of Olympus' operations and we are responsible
for creating Olympus' brand image through product design. Japanese
universities have engineering departments, and art colleges usually
have design programs. Most of us come from this sort of academic
background. But some people, particularly those recruited from
within the company, have rather unusual backgrounds. They might
have majored in mechanical engineering or economics, but later
went to design school because they really wanted to pursue a career
in design work.
----Why is it a part of the Camera Development Department?
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Thirteen Olympus products were awarded
the G-Mark in 2001.
(Click on image to expand it) |
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The Design Group was originally created for
the purpose of designing cameras. We still belong to the Optical
Development Department for such historical reasons, but we really
work on the design of all Olympus products. In my own case, I work
closely with Mr. Osa's division at the Medical Systems Group and
am part of a team that designs microscopes, endoscopes, clinical
analyzers, and other medical equipment. On the other hand, there
are other teams that design a variety of consumer products including
cameras.
It's possible that the Design Group will become
independent in the future. Organizational changes that concern
the group's position within the corporate structure will be addressed
in the future.
----What are the advantages of working in-house
for a manufacturer?
Design is not my specialty. Having worked
on product development in several fields as well as in marketing,
I would say that, constantly communicating with hardware developers
is the greatest advantage. But, it is also possible that an in-house
designer can be overly influenced by requests from the hardware
developers, and in the end, may not be able to really fully express
his or her creative talent.
I communicated with hardware developers when
I worked on the design for the É -series compact camera.
In the case of the É [mju:], people involved in hardware
development, in particular, were very enthusiastic and told us
to come up with just a design proposal first, without considering
what is put inside. This was at a very early stage, before the
mechanical layout was finalized. It reflects just how much confidence
they had in the Design Group. There is also the feeling that they
give us the freedom to design any way we like, and we are expected
to know what they want. I don't know if that is easy or difficult
(laugh).
----As a design group leader, what are your thoughts
on all this?
First, let me take the G-Mark for example.
The Japan Industrial Design Promotion Organization (JIPRO) that
confers the Good Design Award had been addressing the issue of
in-house designers. When a new chairperson was appointed to the
G-Mark Screening Committee in 2001, there was a major change in
their policies, and this prompted us to apply for the award.
The original purpose of the G-Mark was to prevent counterfeit products. During
the period of high economic growth, it was a goal for many designers, in a way.
But the significance and value of the G-Mark has changed since then. In the past,
JIPRO was under the former Ministry of International Trade and Industry (presently
known is the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry), but at the turn of the
century, it was completely privatized and has now become a foundation. When Kazuo
Kawasaki, who is known as a radical designer, became chairperson of the Screening
Committee, there was a strong drive for reform. One of the main tenets of this
change was giving consideration and support to in-house designers, namely, designers
affiliated with companies, like us, who had been pretty much ignored. This made
us feel that we can contribute, and we entered 16 products for the award. |
