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Fabyan Blomme to Take Part in the 2016 Global Grad Show, Dubai
Posted on June 10, 2016 | Updated August 06, 2019, 9:06am
MountainRim uses 'interactive folding’, creating a confident grip, and by virtue, a different user experience.
MountainRim Coffee Sleeve
- A better grip, a different experience.
Industrial Design student Fabyan Blomme has been invited to exhibit his product design MountainRim at the Global Grad Show during Dubai Design Week (October 24-29, 2016). The exhibition will feature over 30 design and engineering programs from six continents, and is expected to be visited by more than 40,000 people.
MountainRim is a redesign of the traditional coffee sleeve, a product which has had little to no modification since it was introduced in 1995. MountainRim uses what Fabyan like to call ‘interactive folding’, creating a confident grip, and by virtue, a different user experience.
Fabyan says that the idea came to him while visiting a senior’s home, where he witnessed a resident having difficulties holding onto her cup of take-out coffee. A conversation ensued and he learned that clutching an object was something of a challenge for her. With that in mind, he began his research -- literally filling his apartment with paper cups until he notes, 'people were questioning my well-being' to begin the process of testing.
"A fellow designer once showed me a piece of paper; staring intently at it, he stated 'flat' then rapidly crumpled it up and dropped it onto a table and looked at me with a smile, 'see, three-dimensional'. And so sparked my exploration of the art of folding to bring form to this paper cylinder."
He began by looking at the shape of the cup and how he could improve the grip by playing with the surface and its structure. After a few iterations, he returned to ideation and realized that he wanted the user to have an experience, an aspect that would be something out of the ordinary. It was then that he started to look into the world of origami. Folding paper to make a form that would give a better grip, yet keeping in mind the characteristics of manufacturing.
With a series of simple die cut slits, the paper tube can be folded upwards to create a rim around the cup. The rim then rests on your hand allowing for minimal gripping force.
MountainRim is currently in the running for the James Dyson Foundation Awards and has made it to the final judging round for the RedDot Design Awards in Singapore. Stay tuned!