Grant Riley
Grant Riley
Placement: Tonic Studios
Placement position: Trainee Design Engineer
"Tonic Studios has given me the opportunity to work on many solo projects destined for manufacture. The skills and knowledge gained during my placement are proving incredibly valuable.
"Surprisingly, there remains a marked difference between design in academia and design as a business, and I quickly became aware of how much we take advantage of a written design brief. At first, it was difficult to adapt to changing instructions that are given intermittently throughout a project. In business, timeframes can shift and the speed of my design process has altered dramatically. I have become a far more adaptive designer.
"Using SolidWorks every day has meant that my time spent developing a concept to a final engineered drawing has dramatically decreased. Prior to my time at Tonic I had never taken a project through to its detailed engineering stages, However recently, my first injection moulded plastic parts have been produced in Southern China.
"Upon completion of my first design project, I visited China to meet with mould tool makers and managers to discuss manufacturing details. During the trip to Hong Kong and Southern China I learned a lot about Chinese people and their culture. However, the experience also opened my eyes to the difficulties of managing mass production in a foreign country.
"The placement experience has opened my eyes to the design freedom offered by the structure of a small business. To improve my adaptability, I would like to work as a designer in a number of different (larger) organisations.
"To date I have taken three design projects from concept to manufacture the finished products will hit the shelves over the next few months. However, the business trip to China was the highlight of my placement year."
