Designs that have won a Red Dot award will be on view at the 18th Index interior design fair in Dubai this December
The label 'Made in Germany' has long been an indication of superior-quality products - Audi, Siemens, Volkswagen and Miele are just a few of the famous names originating from Germany - and it is renowned worldwide for its advanced technology and manufacturing industries.
One particular mark of distinction is Red Dot, an internationally recognised symbol of design excellence that is making its Middle East debut at the 18th Index interior design trade fair being held in Dubai this December.
According to the Red Dot concept, the basis of good design is a balance of four qualities - function, aesthetics, use and responsibility.
The Red Dot Design Award, staged by the Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen institution, recognises products and concepts considered outstanding in all four areas.
It is among the largest international design competitions in the world with entrants for this year's award alone numbering more than 10,000 from 60 countries.
There are three categories of award - product design, communication design and design concept - and recent winners include Porsche, for the 911 Targa; Nokia, for its 8800 model cell phone; and Acer, for three of its computers.
To be considered for the award products are submitted to an international panel of jurors, drawn from a cross section of design fields, who are appointed yearly in order to ensure the awards remain objective and impartial and maintain credibility.
The jury reviews and evaluates all products, and designs considered exceptional in the specified areas win a Red Dot Design Award. Products and designs of the highest quality are further awarded a Red Dot Best of the Best Award.
Winning designs are then exhibited in a Red Dot Design museum, the first of which was established in Essen, Germany, in the mid 1950s as an exhibition venue to showcase products that set standards for industries and consumers.
Today more than 1,400 current designs are exhibited in the 4,000 square metre museum, and following the success of the German museum, a second Red Dot museum was established in Singapore in November 2005.
Alongside exhibition in the museum, Red Dot Design Award winners enjoy exposure of their products during tours such as the one due to visit the Index exhibition in December.
Recent Red Dot tours have included Tokyo, Moscow and Prague, but this is the first time Red Dot designs have been showcased in the Middle East.
'Designs on stage - Index presents Red Dot winners' is set tobe a highlight at the fair, which is the largest interior design trade fair in the Middle East and Asia.
"One thousand seven hundred exhibitors are expected from 56 nations, along with an increase on the 32,755 visitors it attracted last year, and the Red Dot exhibition will be the largest display taking up a space of 400 square metres.
"The Red Dot exhibition is a central attraction of the trade fair and paves the way for the exhibiting companies to establish themselves in the Arab as well as the international market," says Kim Willis, exhibition director of Index 2008.
Some 76 companies' designs will be included in the exhibition, to be held at Dubai International Exhibition Centre from December 3 to 7.
"A presentation area in one of the fastest-growing
metropolises in the world offers the Red Dot winners an excellent stage, and we are delighted that so many companies have recognised and seized this opportunity," says Professor Dr Peter Zec, head of the Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen and initiator of the Red Dot Design Awards.
Design expert Professor Dr Zec will be present at the exhibition to give a presentation on 'Design as an Economic Factor', and there will also be a number of Red Dot specialists on hand to discuss the concept and winning products.
"Through Index, the Red Dot Design Award can become a benchmark for [the] highest design quality not only for Dubai, but also the whole Arab market," says Professor Dr Zec.
"Red Dot wants to make the outstanding achievements of the award-winning companies known worldwide, and thus lastingly strengthen the awareness of good design."
Award categories
Product design (and design team); The award for product design is the oldest of all Red Dot Design Awards.
Open to all areas of manufacturing such as cars, furniture and home appliances, this category also includes the 'Radius Challenge Trophy' - recognition of a 'design team of the year' that has consistently achieved success over a period of time. Previous winners include Bose, BMW and Apple.
Communication design; The communication design category has been awarded since 1993 for excellence in the fields of advertising, corporate design, interactive media and sound.
Design concept; Since 2005, the Red Dot Museum Singapore has recognised innovation and distinction in design concepts.
Red Dot – best of the best; The pinnacle of design excellence is recognised with the Red Dot: Best of the Best award for the highest design quality in the category.
