Originally Published EMDM November 2005
SPECIAL REPORT
Milani’s Designs Bridge Italian Flair and Swiss Precision
Christina Elston
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If quality medical device design brings together elegant form and efficient function, Milani Design & Consulting AG (Erlenbach, Switzerland) takes the idea a step further, fusing “Italian flair and Swiss perfection.” The company has been well rewarded for this effort, garnering three red dot design awards in Essen, Germany, an Industrie Forum Design award at Hannover Messe, a Designpreis Schweiz award, and two Medical Design Excellence Awards (MDEA) from Canon Communications llc.
“Products that insist upon external appearance and primarily try to convince or seduce the user through their form are useless,” says owner and CEO Britta Pukall in explaining Milani’s design philosophy. “On the other hand, products narrowly [focused] on pure utility are normally mute. They do not appeal, do not motivate, and do not trigger a real interaction.” Milani’s goal is to create products that communicate positively to the user and reduce his or her fear of contact, she says. “Our design helps people who use this device not to feel intimidated. They are able to see it as something elegant and truly stylish. Also it is ergonomic and intuitive to use.”
These ideas are especially apparent in the Savia 211 dSZ hearing system that Milani designed for Phonak AG (Stäfa, Switzerland). Unlike conventional hearing aids, which have the look of a prosthetic, Savia devices resemble fashion accessories. They even come in a range of bold colours.
Pukall says Milani set out to achieve for the hearing aids what has been achieved for another helpful prosthetic: eyeglasses. “They have become a stylish accessory, a lifestyle product that is even used by people who have good vision,” she says. Bringing the Savia hearing system up to this level of consumer acceptance was the design challenge Milani faced.
This market repositioning is one of the major reasons behind Savia’s selection for a MDEA gold award this year. But the benefits of the hearing devices go far beyond their aesthetics. The control mechanisms are convenient and intuitive, and the digital technology is state-of-the-art. “It provides effortless hearing in all situations, excellent speech understanding, even in complex environments, and natural localization ability,” Pukall explains.
With function—and form—like this, hearing aids could one day be as stylish as Prada sunglasses.
Copyright ©2005 European Medical Device Manufacturer
