Robert Irwin

Designing in the Wild: The Industrial Design Podcast

Arts EN ↓ 13 episodes

Designing in the Wild is the podcast where industrial designers, inventors, and changemakers reveal how they turn messy, real-world constraints into market-ready solutions. Each episode unpacks the mindsets, methods, and aha-moments behind sustainable innovation—whether it’s re-thinking plastics, hacking circular supply chains, or simply sketching faster under pressure. If you’re passionate about design’s role in a resilient future (and can’t resist a good behind-the-scenes story), this is your campfire. “Real-world design stories for a world that needs better ones.”

Be sure to visit the podcast's website and support the creator: designinginthewild.buzzsprout.com

Author

Robert Irwin

Episodes

#012 Season 2: Robert Irwin - Senior Industrial Designer, Founder of LearnIndustrialDesign.com, Principal Sustainability Consultant at irwindesigned 01.05.2024 26:04

Senior Industrial Designer Rob Irwin charts two decades of sustainable practice, from biomimetic lawn-dart redesigns to net-zero houses with $12 power bills. Along the way he demystifies lifecycle thinking : extraction, processing, manufacturing, distribution, use, upgrades, end-of-life, and transport. Rob critiques the limits of current LCA tools—“CO₂ is not the whole story”—and spotlights hidden...

#011 Season 2: Jason Belaire - IDSA Chair(2021-2022) | Belworld Creative, INC. Talks of living abroad, childhood abuse, empathy, social projects around the world, and sustainability 28.09.2023 1:13:20

In this episode we speak to Jason Belaire about being different, cultural shock, designing amidst new cultures, sustainability, and the need for more to be educated on the direct impact the industrial design profession has on our environment, communities, and thought process. Have ideas or just want to say hi, shoot me a note. Support the show

#010: Andre Brown - Principal Engineer on Amazon's Transportation Sustainability Team - Digital vs. Physical Prototyping, Creating Flat Hierarchies within Teams, Innovating Faster, Designing in Virtual Reality, Eggs and Vacuum Cleaners, Procedural Design. 01.03.2022 1:22:03

Digital vs. Physical: When to Prototype—and When to Simulate Andre Brown, Principal Engineer on Amazon’s Transportation Sustainability team (and former Shark/Dyson R&D lead), joins Rob to unpack the art of knowing which problems need cardboard, which need CFD, and which belong in VR . From drag-cutting truck fairings and crowd-sourced race-car CAD to Dyson’s “egg-inspired” robot vacuum, Andre...

#009 - Unleashing Creativity Through User-Driven Storytelling - Sam Feller - Human-Centered Engineering, Team Management, Tracking Deliverables, Tactics for Problem Solving 21.02.2022 1:01:47

Have ideas or just want to say hi, shoot me a note. Support the show

#008: Blood In The Water: Americas Assault on Innovation - Kip Doyle - Patent Process, Product Innovation, Defending Patents, Napkin Sketch to Manufacturing 14.02.2022 58:45

We sit down and speak with the amazing, Kip Doyle - Author, Inventor, Patent Defender. We talk about her painful story of inventing a product and then going up against Big Tech to defend her patents. She offers up invaluable insights on how to go about protecting your IP, which lawyers to hire, and her new book release, Blood In The Water: America's Assault on Innovation. BOOK LINK: https://a...

#007: It's Time We Start Thinking Beyond the User - Dan Griner - Director of Design, Innovation, and Strategy at University of Colorado Denver 07.02.2022 1:01:01

Dan comes to the interview with a level of humility for design that we all should aspire. In this episode we walk the path of Dan's story from accident to excellence. We talk about the responsibility that designers have to go beyond just making the pretty object and expand into realms of meta-design to go beyond just the end user and truly think in terms of a products life cycle, cradle to cr...

#006: The Creators Revolution + Mid-Week Update - February 2, 2022 02.02.2022 5:14

Creative disciplines have been undervalued since the industrial revolution began. I drop a quick anecdote to the misunderstood values industrial design offers...and catch you up on what's next! Have ideas or just want to say hi, shoot me a note. Support the show

#005: Industrial Designer Turned Concept Artist, Todd Hebenstreit - Facebook Oculus Designer, VR aficionado, UI/UX Savant, Analog to Digital, Game Design, Era Specific Influence, and Process 31.01.2022 1:37:56

Buckle up! This ones a longer format interview, but much warranted. We talk with Todd Hebenstreit, a Graffiti Artist, turned, Industrial Designer, turned Concept Artist. He's worked for Dell, Facebook (Oculus Rift), and others influencing the gaming industry for nearly two decades. We dig into his story talk about through how he navigated his way through the nascent ages of UI/UX, software e...

Mid-Week Update - January 27, 2022 27.01.2022 2:17

Quick drop on what I've been up to behind the scenes at, Designing In The Wild, and what to expect in the coming weeks. You won't want to miss out! Have ideas or just want to say hi, shoot me a note. Support the show

#004: Why We Need to Be Tinkering More: Industrial Designer Jorge Paricio - Open-Ended Exploration, Sketching and Ideation, Material Knowledge, Confirmation Bias, and Getting Out To Talk With End Users. 24.01.2022 1:18:40

Jorge Paricio - We talk, self-discovery through exploring, failing, and experimenting more! Being a mentor, and being mentored. How to start your own tinker shop, Human factors, Why 200 sketches are better than 2 polished renderings, Speaking with end-users in order to make a better product, Confirmation Bias, The evolution of Industrial Design, and Tools for the trade. Jorge is currently an Asso...

#003: Getting A Design Job Out Of College 21.01.2022 9:26

Your host, Rob Irwin gives you pointers taken from his experience navigating his first design job straight out of college. He offers practical knowledge and tips for nailing your first job as a designer. Have ideas or just want to say hi, shoot me a note. Support the show

#002: Rob Irwin Takes Us On His Journey To Becoming An Industrial Designer 17.01.2022 19:00

Your host, Rob Irwin introduces himself and his story. He takes us on a journey to becoming an Industrial Designer, the mentors he had along the way, and the epiphany that shook him back to the calling of Design. Have ideas or just want to say hi, shoot me a note. Support the show

#001: Do you really want to listen to this Podcast? 14.01.2022 1:31

A quick heads up on what this podcast is all about, so you can decide if it's the right time for you to...level up! Have ideas or just want to say hi, shoot me a note. Support the show