Jon Olsen, an engineer by background, enjoys tackling tough challenges. Before founding Vaask\u00ae, a hand hygiene company, he worked on projects to extend the shelf life of fruits and vegetables, reducing food waste, and also improved sleep systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Q1. Please give us a brief bio of yourself and your design background.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n With a background in engineering, I enjoy tackling seemingly insurmountable problems. Before founding hand hygiene company Vaask\u00ae, I led development of a system that reduced food waste by prolonging the shelf life of fruits and vegetables. I also worked on systems to improve sleep. These both came as part of my work leading early-stage product development at fan and light maker Big Ass Fans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After the company\u2019s sale in 2017, our early-stage team joined Founder Carey Smith as he started Unorthodox Ventures, an Austin-based investment firm that offers everything investors lacked when they approached him near daily at Big Ass Fans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We work side-by-side with founders to help them quickly break even so they\u2019re not forced to seek endless investment and give away the majority of their companies before they\u2019ve even introduced a product. It was with the assistance of my colleagues at Unorthodox Ventures that I started Vaask.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q2. What made you become\/why did you choose to become a designer\/artist?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Ever since childhood, I\u2019ve enjoyed the three-dimensional arts. What started with ceramics as a kid turned into dabbling in so many types of art in high school and even winning some state-level awards. In fact, I almost went to art school but ultimately decided to pursue an engineering degree with the idea that I could bring my preference for elegance in art to engineering projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q3. Tell us more about your agency\/company, job profile, and what you do.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In early 2020, as the pandemic took hold, I grew frustrated by the hand sanitising experience. Now more important than ever, hand sanitiser was a design failure on every level with always-empty automatic dispensers, drips and messes everywhere, and a reliance on single-use plastic bottles. With the help of the team at Unorthodox Ventures, I developed Vaask as a touchless hand sanitising fixture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the core of Vaask\u2019s design is a belief that a product should be adaptable, repairable and waste-free. To that end, all parts are accessible and designed to be repairable to extend the system’s life in perpetuity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Vaask solves the series of problems so common with traditional hand sanitising dispensers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n – No batteries to change<\/strong>: Vaask runs on AC power or Power over Ethernet (PoE).<\/p>\n\n\n\n – No replacement needed<\/strong>: Backed by a 5-year warranty, Vaask is made of cast aluminium and steel and built to last.<\/p>\n\n\n\n – No more making the rounds<\/strong>: An accompanying online dashboard and app alert staff when it\u2019s time to refill, eliminating the time-consuming chore of checking individual fixtures and also ensuring fixtures always stay filled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n – No waste<\/strong>: Vaask\u2019s high-capacity sanitiser tank can be easily refilled with any gel sanitiser, reducing costs for customers and cutting down on plastic waste.<\/p>\n\n\n\n – No drip, no mess<\/strong>: A PalmPilot\u00ae laser sensor precisely detects hands with the fixture instantly reversing flow if a person pulls their hand away. No more messy misfires causing damage to floors or creating slip-and-fall risks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q4. What does \u201cdesign\u201d mean to you?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Design to me means I get to solve problems in an elegant way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q5. What\u2019s your favorite kind of design and why?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n My favourite kind of design would definitely be three-dimensional design and sculpture! I enjoy the physical, as well as the hands-on process that comes with building something. My engineering background also influences my art with the goal of always being practical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q6. To you, what makes a \u201cgood\u201d design?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Considering all the factors that matter. Beyond an elegant appearance, a good product design has to be able to solve problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q7. How did you come up with the idea for your award-winning design?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The first step in design should always be identifying a real problem to solve and not just focusing on something that needs to look better. With Vaask, the process began by realising that hand sanitising needed a complete overhaul and then determining the many individual failures of the experience at that time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q8. What was your main source of inspiration for this design?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In designing and developing Vaask, I consulted with architects, designers and healthcare professionals throughout the process to ensure Vaask addressed all of traditional sanitiser\u2019s many shortcomings. It\u2019s so important to speak with people who will actually use your product. It\u2019s something that entrepreneurs never can do enough of as they iterate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q9. Do you think your country and its cultural heritage has an impact on your design process?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n America has such a rich history of industrial design. It\u2019s unfortunate that we\u2019re seeing so much of our manufacturing capability outsourced to other countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q10. Congratulations! As the winner of the London Design Awards, what does it mean to you and your company and team to receive this award distinction?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s truly an honour to have our work be recognised along with so many other products that are solving today\u2019s most challenging problems!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q11. Can you explain a bit about the winning work you entered into the London Design Awards, and why you chose to enter this project?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The pandemic saw the dramatic expansion of sanitiser dispensers in public spaces but design failures prevented or discouraged many from using them. Automatic dispensers, when they even have sanitiser, create messes with poor infrared sensors. Single-use plastic bottles require touching and often look unsanitary. And harsh chemical ingredients and foul-smelling formulations turns many off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Designed to permanently replace the endless array of single-use plastic hand sanitiser bottles and always-empty automatic dispensers, Vaask is the superior solution for hand hygiene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q12. What were the main challenges you faced during the design process, and how did you overcome them?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n We set out to use only American suppliers and manufacture Vaask here in Austin, Texas. While we accomplished that goal, the diminishing number of American manufacturers lengthened the design process and proved frustrating at times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q13. How do you think winning this award will impact your future as a designer?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s an honour to be recognised by the London Design Awards as this validates our approach!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q14. What are your top three (3) favorite things about the design industry?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Designers exhibit fearlessness, aspiration and the kind of optimism that you typically see only in entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q15. What sets your design apart from others in the same category?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Behind each of Vaask’s differentiating features is a focus on advanced technology, designed to create a reliable experience. Vaask incorporates a high-end stepper motor and peristaltic pump, ensuring that it dispenses the correct amount of sanitiser every time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Also, Vaask\u2019s proprietary PalmPilot sensor eliminates drips and mess. The PalmPilot technology measures the speed at which light photons leave the sensor and return. Because the component measures speed rather than light, the PalmPilot sensor precisely detects hands of all sizes, as well as hands of any shade that would otherwise flummox everyday infrared sensors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q16. Where do you see the evolution of design industry going over the next 5-10 years?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Ideally it would be a stronger focus on repairability with more products designed for forever rather than planned obsolescence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q17. What advice do you have for aspiring designers who want to create award-winning designs?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Never be afraid to do something that other people aren\u2019t doing. That\u2019s where the opportunity is!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q18. What resources would you recommend to someone who wants to improve their skills in the design industry?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Trying something out for yourself is the best way to begin honing your skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q19. Tell us something you have never told anyone else.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In college, I studied to become an environmental engineer, but after spending eight months testing emissions at a number of chemical plants, I realised that\u2019s not the kind of design and engineering career I wanted to pursue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q20. Who has inspired you in your life and why?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n My grandfather worked as a successful entrepreneur in the communications field building a company focused on microwave dishes. Up until the early 2000s, you could see his green microwave dishes all around the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q21. What is your key to success? Any parting words of wisdom?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Never assume someone understands what you\u2019re asking or trying to tell them. Finding the answer you seek often requires asking a multitude of people in a multitude of ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q22. Do you have anything else you would like to add to the interview?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I truly appreciate the recognition and would like to congratulate the other winners and their outstanding projects!<\/p>\n\n\n\n The pandemic exposed the design failure of traditional hand sanitizer options \u2014 always-empty automatic \u2026 (Read more at London Design Awards<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n