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Designer and musician Colin Lake saw his two worlds collide recently when he entered a Student Design Competition sponsored by the Rosemont-based International Housewares Association.
A junior at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, he took third-place for his submission, the Beacon, a smoke detector accessory which warns hearing-impaired people about the danger of fire.
| What is it? The Beacon is a safety device that plugs directly into a wall outlet. Its strobe light is activated by the smoke detector’s sound frequency. The Beacon has back-up batteries and can be used as safety lighting in a power outage. The portable device can travel with a user for overnight stays at a friend’s home, a business function or a vacation place. |
Lake, of Carol Stream, considered his own personality when trying to come up with a product prototype.
“I analyzed things that I love, one of which is playing and listening to music,” he said.
At Glenbard North High School, Lake played on the drumline. As a college freshman, he played bass drum for the Marching Illini Drumline, and for the past four years he has been a part of the City of Chicago Pipe Band, where he plays tenor drum.
“I thought, what if that aspect of my life was taken away — (if) I were to go deaf — what sort of obstacles would I have to overcome?” he said.
After doing some research, Lake found a major obstacle for the hearing-impaired is not being able to hear warning sirens in an emergency.
“The results were staggering. More than 11 million people in the U.S. alone cannot depend on their smoke or heat detectors to warn them of a fire because they have some degree of hearing loss,” Lake said. “It was at that moment that I decided to design a fire safety product for the hearing-impaired.”
The Beacon won him third place in the competition.
Next month, he will be on-site for the 2010 International Home and Housewares Show at McCormick Place, the world’s largest housewares show.
“Many past winners have received jobs because of their experience at the show,” says Victoria Matranga, IHA’s design programs coordinator. “And some have even collaborated with our exhibitor companies to develop their concepts into saleable products.”
Lake said he has always had an interest in design.
“I had a lot of Legos when I was a kid, which definitely helped,” he said.
Designer and musician Colin Lake saw his two worlds collide recently when he entered a Student Design Competition sponsored by the Rosemont-based International Housewares Association.
A junior at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, he took third-place for his submission, the Beacon, a smoke detector accessory which warns hearing-impaired people about the danger of fire.
| What is it? The Beacon is a safety device that plugs directly into a wall outlet. Its strobe light is activated by the smoke detector’s sound frequency. The Beacon has back-up batteries and can be used as safety lighting in a power outage. The portable device can travel with a user for overnight stays at a friend’s home, a business function or a vacation place. |
Lake, of Carol Stream, considered his own personality when trying to come up with a product prototype.
“I analyzed things that I love, one of which is playing and listening to music,” he said.
At Glenbard North High School, Lake played on the drumline. As a college freshman, he played bass drum for the Marching Illini Drumline, and for the past four years he has been a part of the City of Chicago Pipe Band, where he plays tenor drum.
“I thought, what if that aspect of my life was taken away — (if) I were to go deaf — what sort of obstacles would I have to overcome?” he said.
After doing some research, Lake found a major obstacle for the hearing-impaired is not being able to hear warning sirens in an emergency.
“The results were staggering. More than 11 million people in the U.S. alone cannot depend on their smoke or heat detectors to warn them of a fire because they have some degree of hearing loss,” Lake said. “It was at that moment that I decided to design a fire safety product for the hearing-impaired.”
The Beacon won him third place in the competition.
Next month, he will be on-site for the 2010 International Home and Housewares Show at McCormick Place, the world’s largest housewares show.
“Many past winners have received jobs because of their experience at the show,” says Victoria Matranga, IHA’s design programs coordinator. “And some have even collaborated with our exhibitor companies to develop their concepts into saleable products.”
Lake said he has always had an interest in design.
“I had a lot of Legos when I was a kid, which definitely helped,” he said.
He notes, however, he was not the guy who ‘always liked to take things apart.’
“I view my first experiences with design as more imagination-based,” he said. “I enjoy thinking about things that I would love to see in reality. I would think of a problem and then try to create a solution in my head.”
His work for the past five years at a bicycle shop also has given him more of a hands-on view of design.
“(A) sort of basic overview of how things are put together and how they work,” he said.
As a student at the University of Illinois, Lake received the Talented Student Award in both 2008 and 2009. He has been a member of the Industrial Designers Society of America and the UIUC Student Chapter since fall 2008.
Lake is hoping to secure an internship opportunity with a progressive design company.
“I have not yet fallen in love with a specific field of design,” he said. “As long as it helps people and the environment they occupy, that’s enough for me to love.”
Currently, Lake is studying abroad at Northumbria University in Newcastle, England, to broaden his scope of design.
“Being a designer is more than just creating products. One has to study the society around them in order to create a product that not only works well for those using it, but also fits within the material landscape,” he said.
For Lake, design is more of a lifestyle than a job.
“If you don’t immerse yourself in it, you will never be successful,” he said. “Even sleep starts to become more of an option.”
But he has found a new way to unwind.
“I have really started to enjoy cooking,” he said. “To me, cooking is very relaxing and enjoyable.”
He also still has some time to miss life back home.
“My favorite part about Carol Stream is my backyard,” Lake said. “My parents have done a great job creating such a beautiful environment. I seriously miss that more than my own bed at home.”
He’s also missing one of his favorite restaurants.
“My favorite part about living in Carol Stream is Village Tavern’s chicken fingers,” he said. “I love that chicken so much.”
