When a German engineer founded the Braun company in 1921, it was clear to him that his components and products had to combine design, functionality, efficiency and beauty. Both Max Braun and his descendants, Artur and Erwin, were committed to innovation from the outset and entrusted the development of their appliances to specialists such as Fritz Eichler and, above all, to Dieter Rams, one of the gurus of industrial design. The work of those pioneers, which turned Braun into an industrial group with a turnover of more than 7.4 billion euros and employs 64,000 people, is now being carried out by core technology companies such as Walter Pack. The Basque company produces innovative, customized solutions with an exclusive design that place it in a preferential position as a reference partner of the major appliance manufacturers.
Keys to great industrial design
If Dieter Rams was for Braun one of the standards of innovation and design, in the case of Walter Pack it is the Color&Trim and R&D departments that are responsible for researching new materials, textures and designs to fulfill the dreams and needs of its customers and develop solutions with high added value. Now, as almost a century ago, the work of both is aimed at ensuring the 10 principles that, as Dieter Rams predicted, a great industrial design must fulfill: be innovative, useful, easy to understand, aesthetic, discreet, honest, of lasting value, precise down to the last detail, environmentally friendly and small in size.
User experience through design
Today, users attach specific weight to the design of the appliances that are part of their homes, but they also want them to be scalable, connected, able to integrate with other devices in the smart home environment, and of course, fully functional and intuitive. In addition, large manufacturers are demanding solutions that enhance the user experience through design and sensory stimulation. This is where the Color&Trim and R&D departments work together to anticipate market demands, inspire unique sensations and set trends.
Appliances with high added value
One of the sectors in line with these objectives is consumer electronics. Household appliances must be functional, but they must also be accompanied by differentiating elements that add value, in which Walter Pack is an international benchmark: elegant designs with differentiated haptic qualities, real materials such as stone integrated into the components, and dynamic lighting systems that help to personalize the solutions. These differential proposals, among others, constitute a pole of attraction for consumers, improve the user experience and increase brand loyalty.
IMF, the differential technology
To achieve these objectives, Walter Pack offers manufacturers a wide range of expertise forged in the demanding automotive industry. The Basque company bases a large part of its portfolio on In-Mold Forming (IMF) technology, which is its core business; the use of this technique has placed it at the forefront of Original Equipment Manufacturers when it comes to producing three-dimensional plastic parts with decorative finishes of the highest quality, robust and resistant to abrasion and wear. The IMF technology deployed by Walter Pack brings numerous advantages, including:
- It requires a lower investment even for large volumes of parts.
- It is the best option for series that include customization options, i.e., with many references and a low production volume.
- It offers optimum results in printing patterns and effects with textures and finishes capable of generating differentiated tactile sensations.
- It incorporates many more possibilities for design and generation of effects (night and day, haptic, etc.).
- Allows the inclusion of decorative elements beyond the partition line, especially in the side sections.
All these characteristics make Walter Pack a reliable partner that has made design, innovation, customer support and turnkey solutions its main hallmarks.
