“Less but Better.” It’s quite possible that you’ve never heard of Dieter Rams. However, in the 1970s Rams defined what constitutes “good design.” He was an industrial product designer who became focused on the objects around him.
Rams started questioning the “impenetrable confusion of forms, colours, and noises” that were making up the things around us; and so, posed one of the most important questions that laid the foundations for modern industrial design: “is my design, good design?”
“Form Follows Function” – you might however, have heard this saying. This early philosophy was coined in 1896 by the Chicago-based, famous architect, Frank Llyod Wright and suggested that the way something is designed should be based upon its purpose of need. Form-follows-function laid the foundations for the good design movement.
Dieter Rams, born in Germany in 1932, was strongly influenced by his grandfather, a carpenter. Carpentry in those days, required detailed planning, meticulous execution, and delivered a fit-for-purpose outcome to a very high standard.
In 1955 Dieter joined the renowned German firm Braun, where, as Chief of Design where for over 40 years he oversaw the development of more than 500 innovative, new products.
It is also true that good design is subjective and therefore can’t necessarily be measured.
In an effort to define what is “good design,” Rams in 1976, established the “Ten Principles of Good Design.” These principles have been adopted world-wide as the international cornerstones of defining what constitutes “good design.”
These principles have become iconic and are the international foundations that have inspired designers across the world.
In terms of product design, these Ten Principles have been summarised into “Five Fundamental Qualities of Good Design:”
Simplicity: good design means ‘less’ is ‘more.’
Innovation
Intuitiveness
Visual beauty
Honesty
“Good design therefore is not just what looks good, it also needs to perform, convert, astonish, and fulfil its purpose. It can be innovative, or it might just get the job done,” according to Rams.
The benchmark of modern, good design is epitomised by Apple.
Apple’s passion and commitment to sleek and minimalist designs for each of their products embodies everything that Dieter set as a criterion for good design. Their execution of function and innovation has been and remains, industry leading (though some might suggest that Samsung is vying for this accolade).
In fact, Dieter praised Apple (partly for emulating Braun) and said, “Apple is one of the few international companies genuinely producing good designs.”
Another often overlooked example of perfect design execution is the humble Post It Note.
Its perceived simplicity belies the functionality that it delivers. Did you know that it’s trademark slightly sticky backing was invented by accident? Apart from minor embellishments such as adding colours, corporate logos, or different sizes, its fundamental fit-for-purpose has not changed.
How do Hideaway Covers stack-up against Rams’ Ten Principles of Good Design?
Good design is innovative: Yes, Hideaway Covers is innovative… to a degree. We have researched the market and identified the flaws and shortcomings (in our opinion) of other similar products such as pool pump covers and have designed a superior product in order to be the best on the market. In addition, we have created new products like our aluminium outdoor toy boxes and shower enclosures that were not previously available on the market. But, no, we haven’t invented a new mass consumer product that everyone wants, or needs, or solves one of society’s big issues.
Good design makes a product useful: Yes, Hideaway excels at this. Our whole philosophy is to hide the unsightly, offer privacy, and provide outdoor solutions and storage which enhance the user experience and their amenity. All of Hideaway’s products are useful – that’s what they are designed to be.
Good design is aesthetic: Yes, Hideaway’s Covers and enclosures look stunning. Nothing on the market beats the precision and impact of powder coated aluminium. Further, where others use butt-joints with exposed edges and mechanical or screw fixing on doors and frames, Hideaway Covers uses welded mitred joints and concealed hinges with stainless steel screws for a superior finish. We’ve designed our products, especially our pool pump covers, to have the correct amount of fall on the lids with weight-matched, Australian made gas struts. In short, you can stand back and admire the aesthetic simplicity, sensory evoking colours, and excellent finish in every Hideaway Covers product.
Good design makes a product understandable: Yes. Hideaway covers and enclosures are self-evident. What you see – is what they do. In this regard we feel that Hideaway Covers fully meets this criterion. There is no mystique to a Hideaway product – each one just does what it was designed to do: hide, enhance, or store.
Good design Is unobtrusive: Yes. Hideaway Covers can be whatever their owners want them to be. They can be a feature stand-out piece by using strong colours such as satin black Night Sky, gloss Pearl White, or deep Ocean Blue; or they can blend-in to the surrounding environment using light-green Pale Eucalypt or the new light-grey colour of Bluegum. The main objective of any Hideaway Covers product is to conceal the obtrusive pipes, pumps, filters, and clutter, to hide the mess, or to give privacy.
Good design is honest: Yes, Hideaway Covers are defined by what they are. Aluminium slat construction offering a lifetime of maintenance-free solutions. We use hidden stainless-steel screws on all our hinges (except the toy box) as part of our attention to detail. Our locks and gas struts are all Australian made as is every one of our Hideaway products. Hideaway Covers Pty Ltd is 100% Australian owned, providing jobs for Australian workers. Hideaway has been recognised by winning the Australian Enterprise Award 2024 for Best Concealment Solution Provider.
Good design Is long-lasting: Yes. You can expect 50-80 year’s life from your Hideaway. All aluminium products are powder-coated using Interpon powder coating to match Colorbond’s 26 colours. There is a six year manufacturer’s warranty on all fabrication and the aluminium slats need little more than routine cleaning. Given that the lifecycle of most homes is around 50 years before they are either demolished or undergo major renovations, we are confident that your Hideaway product will deliver what it was designed to do for you, for decades to come.
Good design is thorough down to the last detail: Yes. This is why Hideaway Covers are different from their competitors. We specify welded mitred joints for all our doors and frames – this is good design and attention to detail. We scoured the market to find the exact profile of stainless steel screw head that nestled into our hinges without causing them to protrude. This is good design detail. We make sure that our hinges and Tek screws all match the same colour as the slats – this is good design detail. And, our major advantage is that all of our slats are welded on the rear face, leaving the front looking clean and sharp. Now, that’s thorough attention to detail. There are many other design details that make Hideaways different, and better, than anything else on the market. These however are all part of our intellectual property – but you’ll appreciate all the design nice touches as you’re assembling your Hideaway. We know because we get this feedback all the time.
Good design is environmentally friendly: Qualified Yes. Ok, we have to weigh this criterion up and be honest and transparent. Let’s review the life-cycle cost of your Hideaway Cover. In the production stage, aluminium takes a great deal of electrical energy to produce it in the first instance. Then there is the rolling of the various profiles that require energy and specialist machines. There is transporting between processes and once it arrives at the fabrication plant it is subjected to cutting, welding, and then powder-coating. The finished product is then placed on a timber pallet and wrapped in plastic, both of which can be recycled. It is then transported to your property where you assemble it and install it in its location. In truth, all this can add to a sizable environmental input cost.
Now, let’s weigh this input costs against the lifecycle cost of the product. As we’ve established, your Hideaway Cover can easily last up to 80 years and longer without much more than a regular washing down. This means that all the input environmental cost of manufacturing must be spread over the (let’s say) conservatively 50 years life of the product.
Suddenly, the environmental life-cycle costs drop dramatically. So, we think that it’s fair to claim that over its lifetime, Hideaway Coves’ products are at least comparable and most likely better than other materials thereby meeting this environmentally friendly criteria.
Good design is as little design as possible: Yes. Remember, “Less but Better.” In its designing, Hideaway strived to meet this criterion, Less but Better – how do we achieve that? By clever deign that keeps things simple. Don’t overcomplicate it. If it can be done simpler without compromising good design or purpose, then do it.
This is where we found most competitors failed. When they hit a design problem, they invariably just added more screws or stuck another bit of angle in to fix the problem. Look closely at their photos and you’ll see twists, warps, and bends in lots of their photos. Then there are the multitude of Tek screws they use to hold it all together. This is not the Hideaway way.
Less but Better … that’s Hideaway
Good design and premium quality are ultimately assessed and valued individually.
Rams’ Ten Principles have provided the criteria to test against, but in the end –
Good design excels at delivering fitness-for-purpose,
Good design is creative and inspires, and
Good design makes people feel good.
Put us to the test: compare any of Hideaway Covers’ products yourself against Rams’ Ten Principles of Good Design.
You’re only going to purchase your pool pump cover, outdoor shower, toy box and any of our products once. Unlike smartphones which change-over every few years, you’ll be living with your outdoor Hideaway Cover or enclosure for a long time.
For these reasons, we believe that Hideaway Covers offers you the best value proposition. There’s an old adage that says: “Quality endures when price is long forgotten.” It’s true…
