Compass System Visualizer tool we designed for Herman Miller’s new line of modular systems.

Healthcare facilities operate in a constantly changing environment. We launched Compass System with Herman Miller to provide solutions for healthcare organizations in managing their spaces. Compass addresses evolving healthcare facility conditions with a rail system that allows components to be adjusted, modified, and re-utilized over and over.

We launched a Compass System Visualizer tool to help users understand the product in a visual, responsive way. Users can explore the systems in different room setups and watch components interactively fit into setups like an exam room or emergency room. Hot points explain why a room setup would require components like a higher cabinet or a rotating counter surface. Play with the Compass System Visualizer.

This week we launched the new website for Geiger International, a high-quality wood furnishings company. The visually driven site emphasizes Geiger’s legacy of craftsmanship by showcasing their line of products including casegoods, wood desking, and seating. We designed the site with a focus on better user experience, enabling architects and designers to quickly access images, product literature, and specs. As part of the Herman Miller family, Geiger shares the same values and commitment to quality of materials and sustainability that is reflected in every product, down to the detail of the wood grain. Explore Geiger’s legacy here.

Hello is pleased to announce that out of thousands of entries, the Herman Miller website we designed and developed has won a merit award from the One Show Interactive, one of the most prestigious awards in advertising. The awards are judged by a panel of leading creatives in the advertising and digital media industry, including Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, Wieden + Kennedy, and TBWA.

Here are some photos from the shoot we’re doing with Herman Miller. We’ve been spending the week with an awesome crew, iconic furniture, and beautiful homes. Enjoy.

Juergen Nogai (Photographer), Steve Frykholm (Creative Director, Herman Miller), and David Lai (Creative Director, Hello Design).

We’ve been on a photo shoot all week with Herman Miller. We’re collaborating with Juergen Nogai – longtime partner of renowned architectural photographer, Julius Shulman, who exposed the world to West Coast modernist architecture.

Juergen’s partnership with Shulman began in 2000, where they produced a series of architectural and fine art photography such as their famous portrayal of Richard Neutra’s Kaufmann House, the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and the Case Study House series in Los Angeles. Much of their work was featured in magazines and books including Taschen’s Case Study Houses, as well as the Los Angeles Times and the New York Times.

We’ve been observing spaces through the lens of Nogai and Frykholm, and seeing how the dimensions of architecture and furniture come together to create a home.

We’re winners of the Communication Arts Interactive Annual for the Herman Miller web site! We designed the site as a living system with a modular grid. The site is visually-driven to create an intuitive experience for users to browse, search, find products, and plan or design a space. Communication Arts Interactive winners were selected based on designers who pushed further to produce fantastic work. We’re honored to be included.

This year Herman Miller was chosen as an All-star of Fast Company’s annual issue, “The World’s Most Innovative Companies.” All-stars are chosen based on those who continued innovating amazing design despite the grim economy. Congratulations guys!

The site we designed for Herman Miller is a One Show Interactive finalist. Check it out here.

We visited the Eames House today, the former home of Charles and Ray Eames. The Eames were two of the most recognized designers that collaborated with Herman Miller since the late 1940s.

Originally the house plan was designed by Charles Eames and Eero Saarinen, and was called the Bridge House. The house was meant to float over the meadow on the hillside supported by two metal columns, however due to WWII and the shortage of materials, the steel took three years to arrive. While waiting for the materials, the Eames had picnics on the meadow and later realized its charm, thus changing the design of the house to run parallel to the meadow instead of over it.

As designers it’s intriguing to see how external circumstances created an opportunity for a new design idea to evolve. Had the materials arrived on time, the meadow where they spent the rest of their lives enjoying wouldn’t have existed.

Here's a view of the ocean from the Eame's House meadow.

We came upon this original plywood splint at the Herman Miller LA Showroom. Charles and Ray Eames designed the splint for the U.S. Navy during WWII, which led them to perfect the technique for molding plywood that resulted in their signature Eames plywood chairs. The splints are now limited collectibles that are displayed as works of art.