UCA and Brunel launch new design research COINED

The Creative Open Innovation Network for Excellence in Design (COINED) aims to create and operate a new workflow for fashion and product designers which link academia and industry to produce new processes and ways of thinking.

The collaboration has been awarded £99,000 funding from the Joint Information Support Committee (JISC).

Uwe Derksen, Assistant Director of Research & Enterprise at UCA, said: "This project is a great opportunity for students and university researchers to engage with industry in the areas of textiles, fashion design and product design.

"We hope that documenting and evaluating workflow processes with established businesses will enhance the value of creative designs, produce faster routes to market, better quality products and promote greater innovation."

The project, which will be within UCA Rochester's School of Fashion and the School of Design at Brunel University, will focus on expanding the boundaries of user-centred design, sustainable production, micro-electronics, digital cutting and printing, electronic weaving and conductive inks.

Emphasis will be placed on the fostering of trust, openness and confidence by sharing knowledge and reflections, and the facilitation, capture and analysis of user feedback.

Sharon Baurley, Head of Design at Brunel University says: "COINED is an exciting opportunity for UCA and Brunel University London to explore commercial opportunities for research, as well as to test open innovation models for interdisciplinary design".

Uwe Derksen added: "Art and Design institutions have been identified as incubators of Britain's creativity and we hope that this project will showcase both universities' creative strengths and contribute to optimising innovation potential for industry, academics and students in the areas of fashion design and product design."

COINED will utilise UCA's consultancy service Edge, which provides businesses and organisations access to the University's creative experts and state-of-the-art facilities.

University for the Creative Arts (UCA)