‘breathe’ (secret product language), by george watson, 2008

the young british designer, george watson came to our attention last year when he won the designboom competition ‘ceramics for breakfast‘ (co-organized by macef) with his ceramic toaster ‘glide’. since then he has been busy completing his degree – and recently graduated from northumbria university, UK.

george sent us these images of his recent project ‘breathe’

‘for ‘breathe’ I re-designed the asthma management system and introduced a new product which both dispenses
preventer medication and obtains peak-flow readings within one breath, its all about giving the sufferer
more confidence (which is currently lacking) and allowing them to make their own descisions about the
management of their asthma by adjusting their medication regime through the ‘breathe’ software interface.‘

breathe by george watson ‘breathe’ (secret product language), by george watson, 2008

‘the ‘breathe’ service and accompanying product languages empower sufferers to take control of managing their

condition by combining a daily preventer dose with peak-flow monitoring. the system increases members confidence
in, and compliance with a daily preventer routine reducing long-term side affects associated with overuse of
reactive medication. through the supporting software members can facilitate understandable changes to their
medication regime whilst receiving flexible online support from physicians. two product languages were
co-designed with young asthma sufferers, secret reflecting anonymity for users conscious of their condition
whilst jewel boldly removing the stigma attached to medical products.‘

breathe by george watson ‘breathe’ (jewel product language), by george watson, 2008

breathe by george watson ‘breathe’ (jewel product language), by george watson, 2008breathe by george watson ‘breathe’ (breathe service), by george watson, 2008

the project was highly commended in the RSA design directions, which judging panel which included an NHS doctor and leading service and product designers from the UK. the project illustrates the new confidence of designers to attack social issues as well as take a multidisciplinary approach to problem spaces, in this case spanning service, product and interaction design.

breathe by george watson ‘glide’ ceramic toaster, by george watson, 2006

george watson’s website: http://www.watsongeorge.co.uk