The Bangor Design Conference

The Bangor Design Conference is back for a second year. Held on Monday 6 June it is a free and open event situated within the new arts and innovation space of Pontio in Bangor. The conference has three main aims:

1. Deliver current inspirational industrial practice from the Design, Design Education and manufacturing industry to students at Bangor University.
2. Developing the links with alumni of the Product Design and Design & Technology with QTS courses, through inviting them back, and having at least two speaking at the conference;
3. Making the conference an open and relevant event which will,
   1. appeal to, and strengthen the links between the Product Design team and the design and manufacturing industry by inviting companies who have offered placement opportunities to our students;
   2. appeal to local businesses who are interested in learning how Design can positively affect their businesses;
   3. appeal to practicing teachers and A-Level students interested in Design.

Spaces are limtied, registration is advisable through contacting  Peredur Williams at i.p.williams@bangor.ac.uk or find out more on their Facebook page. 

One of the key note speakers this year is RSA Director of Design and Challenges Sevra Davis, the title of her presentation being ‘Design for Social Innovation and Education: opportunities, challenges and the realities of implementation’.

The other speakers include (in no particular order):

• Chris Walker - People Systems International (www.learningjourneysco.com) ‘Innovation Success: How to be a ‘sure-Footed’ Innovation Journey Guide.
• Wyn Jones – Creative Director of Design Reality  (www.designreality.co.uk)
• Piotr Swiatek – Research assistant in the Design and Innovation Policy Team in PDR at Cardiff Metropolitan University (www.pdronline.co.uk) ‘Age of Design? Trends in Design Policy’
• Les Porter – Ideas in2 Action (www.ideasin2action.co.uk) ‘Design Fixation’
• Andy Mitchell – Deputy Chief Executive: The Design & Technology Association (www.data.org.uk) ‘Design and Technology does it: Get it!’
• Patrick Thorn – Patrick Thorn & Co. Artec Gold Partner (www.patrick-thorn.co.uk) ‘Tools for the Creative’. (3D scanners and their application)
• Spencer Nugent – Sketch a day (http://www.sketch-a-day.com) World premiere of an exclusive inspiration film on the graphical skills product designers need.
• The Alumni taking part will be Chris Thornton, who works within an R&D team within Precision Polymer Engineering, part of Idex Corp., and Jordan Burns who works at Design Reality, a product design consultancy in North Wales.
• Aled Williams – Product Design Lecturer at Bangor University and Teacher of the year 2016. ‘What we do, how we do it, and why we do it that way’
• Andy Goodman – Pontio Innovtion

Following the conference at about 15:30 all attendees are invited to the official opening of the Design Degree Show; a showcase of creative design and innovation by Product Design and Technology students at Bangor University at the White Box, Pontio.

The conference was made possible by a generous donation from The Bangor Fund, whose primary purpose is to deliver a margin of excellence or an element of ‘additionality’ to the student experience.