Karthik Mahadevan

ContentBicycle Chair

Bookmark Pencil

Wooden iPhone Case

Jarry

Graphic DesignDuchamp’s BicycleModeled in SolidWorks

Rendered in Keyshot

BicycleChairSeptember 2013

This project was done while working for Sylvn Studio, Mumbai. The brief was to develop set of outdoor furniture made of used bicycle parts. The design and development was undertaken by me with key decisions taken with consulation with the studio director.

Brainstorming Sketches

A brainstorming session was conducted where we sketched out a whole range of possibilities using bicycle parts. It started as an exploration excercise and later we gravitated towards more practical ideas.

Since it was a customised product the tastes, likes and inclination of the client towards a particular idea was given high importance.

Also, secondary requirements like the furniture being weatherproof, the seat being high enough to look over the ledge and the short time period for completion clearly came out.

The ideas which had a playful element of cycle wheel and pedals were obsereved to be more preferable, thus they were chosen for further detailing.

Concept Detailing

Once the ideas were fixed, the detailing was done

using CAD and quick renders were produced to ease the decision making

process.

For the chair, cycle wheel and pedals attached on a bar stool inspired design

was chosen. The pedal adds a playful feature as it allows people to fiddle

around with it as they sit. Other features like a bell

and handle bar covers were added as little quirks.

For the table. a simple hour glass shaped structure of cycle wheels and spokes

was finalised.

resembling bicycle handle

for playful pedaling

little quirks for cycle lovers

hour glass shape

Manufacturing

Raw Materials Welding Painting

Manufacturing

Getting these furniture made locally was no easy task. After many expeditions we found metal furniture makers who agreed to help out. Old bicycle parts along with steel tubes were procured and handed over to them.

The major operation in the making of these furniture was welding.The metal workers were extremely skilled at the task and it proved as a great hands-on learning experience.

For the paint on the furniture, due to lack of time we decided to wgo with fast and economical hand-paint option over the long and expensive powder coating option. This bargain came back to bite us later.

The table came out perfectly fine with no troubles, but the chair being slightly more complex in its function had some serious blunders.

Shorter people and children found it difficult to sit on it.

The height was decreased by shortening the middle rods.

The chair easily toppled backwards if leaned back on.

A small extension was added at the base to prevent that.

The paint work was sloppy and started peeling off.

Both chairs and table were powder coated.

Pedaling the chair was a bit uncomfortable.

The seat was reshaped to make room for leg move-

Correcting Blunders

Despite careful planning and testing of the

furniture at every stage of manufacturing we

encountered some complications once we

got the model home and started testing it. They were

immediately worked on.

Fortunately, we found innovative solutions for all the problems which could

be implemented readily and without much addition to

the cost.

Although considerable time was lost during this

rectification, we came out with a much better chair at

the end of it.

First Model Final Model

Blunders Corrections

BookmarkPencil

This project was done as a part of product development for Gemklip who were looking to produce low cost innovative products that solve everyday problems. The design and developement was solely carried out by me with occasional guidance from the studio director. April 2014

People like to scribble, doodle, underline

and highlight while they read a book.

But when you are in the most need of it, you find everything but the thing you are looking for.

So what is the one thing that people

will always keep with their book?

Hence the idea:

A bookmark.

This project stems out from trying to solve a very personal problem of mine Whenever I read I like to underline a few lines or make small notes in the

book for later reference. But most of the time I am reading at a place

or a position at which I am never able to find a

pencil. And while I am so engrossed in the book I

don’t want to get up and go look for one either. When I spoke to other book lovers

I know, I discovered that they too suffered a similar

dilemma.

Hence when I dived in to find solutions for it, I

started looking for things that are accesible to us while we read. I didn’t

have to look further than the one thing that I always

carried around with my books. A bookmark.

The Problem

We don’t need the entire pencil.

The problems in merging them together:

• It needs to be sturdy enough to hold and write.

• The pencil lead should be firmly adhered to the bookmark and should not move.

This much should do.

I quickly jumped into making prototypes by trying different ways of attaching a pencil lead on to a peice of thick paper. It became instantly clear that it was futile to attach a long lead as only a tiny portion jutting out would do. The pencil will only have minimal usage of occasional underlining and it will also prevent breakage.

The second problem that surfaced while prototyping was that of how to attach the lead on to the paper in such a way that it stays sturdy and is easy to hold and write, without being too thick. The lead also needed to be enclosed to prevent exposure.

Prototyping

The Solution: Double Sided Foam Tape

The slit holds the pencil lead in place.

The adhesive on the tape helps lock the bookmark.

The solution was found in the form a double-sided foam tape. The tape not only provided a firm grip but also helped bind the

two side of the paper.

A slit in the foam tape held the lead firmly in its place and made for a wonderful

writing and underlining experience.

The bookmarks were printed in lovely color with

graphics reminiscence of a pencil clip art. This also

allows for scope of branding and printing other details

on it.

Hence, we were able to successfully make a low-

cost product that solved a genuine problem of book-

lovers.

The Solution

USE CASE

Wooden iPhone Case

This project was carried out while working for Gemklip. The brief was to design and develop iPhone Cases in Indian Wood for sale through online and offline stores. I took over this project once the research and benchmarking was done. I was solely responsible for the design and development with regular guidance from the studio director.

June 2014

Doesn’t really give a real wood feel. The plastic ruins the organic beauty.

Plastic Case with Wooden Veneer or Panel.

What market offers:

Two-piece sliding case. Thick snap-fit case.

Very bulky. Becomes loose over time and difficult to snap on.

We started with thorough competitor study to

understand the existing benchmarks and look for design oppurtunities. We didn’t want to make just another iPhone case, we

wanted to make a wooden case that is genuinely better

than the rest.

The results of the research were pleasantly surprising

as there were many complaints and drawbacks with the existing wooden

cases in the market.

Competitor Study

Makes the phone bulky as it engulfs it. Many complains of scratches while fixing and removing the case. Complex manufacturing.

The problem, we discovered was in the material. Wood is not an easy material to work with and the more we studied it and its properties the tougher it looked. Many experts we spoke to infact denied that a product demanding such low thicknes and high accuracy would be possible in wood.

In order to understand what would be possible in wood, we first sat down and understood what would not be possible and what difficulties lie ahead of us.

Our brief was clear: it needs to be thin, it needs to be in one piece and it needs to fit snugly on the phone.

Not as flexible as plastic, so can not

be snapped on to a phone without risk of damaging the phone or breraking the case.

Every wood is unique. Though it’s a good thing from the point of view of uniqueness, existence of

random knots and cracks in the wood can lead to a lot

of wastage.

Wood is brittle, hence small wall thicknesses

are very difficult to achieve and nearly

impossible to sustain without chipping or

breaking it.

Wood feels alive even when it is cut off from

the tree, as it constantly shrinks and expands in response to the

moisture content in the environment. Thus getting

the tolerance right is difficult.

Wood Woes

The solution: Micro Suction PadSince snapfit was not an

option, we started looking for alternative ways to hold

the iPhone tightly on a precisely machined wooden case, but not permanently. The breakthough came in the form of micro-suction

pad.

This tape like material that was available in sheets

contains millions of micro pores which when pressed

on with a flat surface creates a vaccum to hold

the object in place. When we tested it out, its suction

power proved stronger than we expected and we were

sure that it would do the job.

Thus, a concept in which suction pad would be stuck

on precisely machined wooden case was arrived

at. When the phone is pressed against it, it forms a

bond and firmly stays put.

The micro-sized pores act as tiny suctions cups.

The Solution

A lot of preparation was made before going into manufacturing. CAD models and engineering drawing were generated to communicate with the vendors. An aluminium template was also prepared to ease the quality check process.

Also, we decided to use Rosewood as it has a wonderful color and beautiful grains on it. It is also ideal for machining and engraving. We were lucky to find a local supplier to source the wood from.

The wood however needed to be planed and kept out in the sun for a few weeks for it to get seasoned.

CAD Modeling

Enineering Drawing

Template Creatiion

Wood SourcingSlicing and Planing

Natural Seasoning

Preparation

Pre-Manufacturing

For manufacturing, we found a government supported

unit in the village of Channapatna, which is well-known for its wooden toys.

They had the machines to all necessary wood works and

were also well connected with locals who can perform

post-production work like sanding and polishing.

The wood was cut into slats for convenience. The machining was done on a

8”x4” CNC router. We had to perform many trials as the

wood kept getting chipped during the machining of

outer wall. We eventually locked in on the right tool

speed and iterative removal of material to get it right.

Once successful samples were made, a template was created out of MDF to hold the wood slats. This allowed

for mass manufacturing to take place smoothly .

Manufacturing

1.5mm thin wall

Suction Pad goes here.

Each case has a unique wood grain.

Just one piece.

Final Product

After the production, the case was hand-sanded to

smoothen the surface and to remove the burrs. It was

then polished with food-grade mineral oil.

We managed to make the product we set out

to make, meeting all the requirements of the brief

and a better wooden case than what exists in the

market.

We are now in the process of cataloging the cases and designing packaging for the same. We are also exploring options for engraving Indian inspired artwork on it. It will

soon be available for sale on online and offline stores.

JarryThis project is a work-in-progress for Gemklip which aims to create products for the creative minded people. The design and developement of the project is solely done by me under the guidance of studio director. September 2014

We all have used jars at home. Peanut butter, jam, olives, pickles, sauces, spices, coffee powders, tea leaves. They all come in jars. And after use these sturdy glass jars usually face the darkness of a dumpster.

This idea stemmed from an observation of how glass jars that we use at home are the perfect shape and size for making coffee mugs. The only thing missing was a handle.

It always pinged my heart when a good sturdy glass jar was dumped in the garbage as I felt they had potential to be put to better use. People do use it as a storage for their spices, pickles and other things, but not beyond a point.

Hence, we brainstormed on different ways to attach a handle and clear winner surfaced.

The Idea

We brainstormed on ways to attach handle onto a glass jar, which comes in various shapes and sizes.After ruling out ideas like

glass fusing, super glue, plastic clamp we decided

on a combination of strong elastic band and plastic

handle as the best way to go.

A quick prototype was made to test the feasibility and strength. A handle was

cut out of a cheap plastic mug and elastic bands

that came as add ons with speakers were used. The studio pantry had ample supply of used glass jars.

After putting things together, we had a working prototype and it was better

than we expected.

Quick Prototype

Coaster Saucer Take-away

The prototype served as a proof of concept. It actually was as good as the finished product and was being used as a everyday coffee and tea mug at the studio.

It proved to be an eye-catcher and made for good conversation.

We found some new quirky uses too. The lid of the jar could be used as a coaster for mug or as a saucer to keep bicuits. And when the lid is put on the jar, it is ready to take away with you to enjoy your drink on-the-go.

Proof of concept

Detailing and Engineering in progress.

Concept Detailing

I am currently working on detailing the concept and doing the necessary engineering required for

manufacturing.

The plan is to produce a plastic handle and the elastic band to be sold

online that buyers can use on any glass jar they want.

It is important to ensure that the cost is kept as

low as possible without compromising with the

quality of the product. The focus is on making the

product flat packed so that logistics becomes easier

and cost effective.

Graphic Design

Seven Hills

Seven Hills(Minimal)

Seven Hills(translucency, looks great with colors)

Seven Hills Seven Hills

Seven Hills Seven Hills

Seven Hills

Seven Hills Seven Hills

Seven Hills

Seven Hills

Seven Hills

Seven Hills

Developers and Builders Developers and Builders

Developers and Builders

Developers and Builders

Developers and Builders

Developers and BuildersConcept 1 The Heptagon

Seven Hills Seven Hills Seven Hills

The seven triangles, signifying the seven hills, converge towardsthe centre which gives it a sense of trust and dependability.

Aesthetically, converging symbols evoke a sense of closure and completeness.

Concept 2 The Flower

Inverting the heptagon, gives us these pretty seven petal flower shaped logos.

Seven Hills Seven Hills Seven Hills

SH

Seven HillsDevelopers and Builders

Exploration Detailing

Final

Logo Design

This project was undertaken by me as a freelance work

for a new Real Estate Development firm called

Seven Hills Developers and Builders. Their brief was to

come up with a professional looking logo that would appease executives and businessmen. They also

wanted the logo to convey symbolically their name -

Seven Hills.

Exploration was done to come up with various

concept with different themes. I chose to work in

black and white to arrive at a logo that would be

truly memorable. The client chose concepts to be

detailed based on his liking.

From the detailed concepts, we chose one and it was further worked upon as

per the inputs of the client. I personally was not very

happy with the final design, but that was what the client

wanted, hence I abided.

This work was done by me with a software developer as a hobby project. The idea was to build a web app that provides users with a list of the top 50 things to do in a city. We called it 50things.in. The list would be entirely crowdsourced encouraging users to upload new things that they discover in the cities. These ‘things’ would then be ranked by the community through a voting systen.

A lot of little playful details were added to the website, with the main list page serving as the pillar. The page that has details of a ‘thing’ was made to look neat like a blog article. The page where people can add a thing was a form that looked identical to details page so people get a feel of how their content would look once published as they type it.

UI/UX Design

Home Screen

List Page

Details Page

Add Page

Profile Page

Mobile App

The ‘Add a thing’ page was made identical to the ‘Details’ page with place holders, so that people can see a live render of how tect content will look.

education

education

internship

work

personal skills

software skills

B.E. Industrial EngineeringCollege of Engineering, Guindy, Anna University (CEG)Chennai (2009-2013)

CBSE Grade XIIDelhi Private School (DPS)Sharjah, U.A.E. (2013)

Product Design and DevelopmentSylvn Studio Mumbai (Aug 2013 - Dec 2014)

Product Design and Development. Gemklip - a brand of Teqzo ConsultingBangalore (Jan 2014 - Present)

Leadership, Team-work, Observation, Brainstorming, Model making

address

phone

email

birthdate

608-D, Oberoi Spelndor, JVLR, Andheri East,Mumbai - 400 060

+91 9967694216

karrmafolio@gmail.com

14th January 2014

Hello. I am Karthik Mahadevan, an aspiring industrial designer hoping to make this world a better place, one product at a time.

SolidWorks, Keyshot, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign