RKS received three awards from the Spark competition: a Spark! (the highest distinction) for the revolutionary benchtop DNA sequencer Ion Proton™, a bronze for the gaming tablet Wikipad and another bronze for the smart speakers Stagesource™ L3t.

CAir (pronounced “care”) is a service design concept that eases the burden of air travel for families, making the journey more enjoyable for everyone. A proactive initiative by the design consultancy RKS, cAir was a venture built organically from the ground up. They architected a new flying experience, based on the real-life challenges of family travelers; a stark departure and inspiration for an industry traditionally focused on efficiency.
 

The Life Technologies Ion Proton Sequencer is functional and easy to operate. It features compact housing that provides easy access to reagents behind a lower front door and a simplified design that makes it easy to keep clean and sterile.

Credits: RKS Design Team
Corporate Sponsor: Life Technologies
Contact: John Kiehle: johnk@rksdesign.com

 The Hamilton T1 Ventilator features a compact, powerful design that increases the availability of appropriate modes of therapy. It incorporates many features that facilitate use whether at an accident scene, in surgery or in the intensive care unit. It also eliminates the need for separate transport and intensive-care ventilators, providing a cost-effective all-in-one ventilator appropriate for patients of all ages.

Credits: RKS Design Team and Hamilton Medical Design Team
Corporate Sponsor: Hamilton Medical
Contact: John Kiehle: Johnk@rksdesign.com

Design researchers studied and interviewed guitarists from beginners to professionals to identify the drawbacks and pain points of existing solutions. They perceived hangers as being “primitive,” lacked proper security and interfered with the display of these beloved instruments costing from $100 to $10,000 or more. Musicians enjoy seeing their guitars as works of art and statements about their love and connection to music.

A Versatile High-Powered Loudspeaker for Musicians Features a Multi-Function Design

The StageSource L3t loudspeaker system is built on a powerful new technology platform and design that enables a single enclosure to provide best-of-class performance in multiple live sound functions.  The industrial design was developed by RKS in close cooperation with Line 6. 

An Initiative to Strengthen National Design Awareness and Brand Use Encouraged by Designers, Creative Community, Companies and Government

Say good-bye to confusing cable nests, cluttered A/V components, confusing set-up and that pile of remote controls. Meet the Unity Home Theater System. It’s a product designed to create a new category in the consumer electronics marketplace, developed through a collaborative effort between RKS Design and In2Technologies. The system debuted at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas and will enter consumer’s living rooms this summer.

Here's Some Good Economic News: U.S. Manufacturing Is Rising Once Again

"Manufacturing employment has been growing steadily in the United States for nearly two years. That’s critical, because from 1998 to 2010, manufacturing has made the largest private-sector, value-added contribution to Real GDP. Manufacturing is an engine of our economy, and every new high-quality manufacturing job has a multiplier effect on job creation."

The MiniMed insulin pump was clearly the best on the market, yet lost its grip as diabetics risked their lives rather than use it. It worked perfectly. But adoption was plummeting. The company was in trouble. It took innovative and empathetic design to crack the mystery and bring the company back from the brink.