news & blueViews
Son of a Booze Bus
17 October 2007
Recently the entire fleet of Victorian Booze Buses has been upgraded to test for both drugs and alcohol..... [more...]
Farming goes high-tech
17 October 2007
Rinex, an innovative Perth-based company has applied cutting-edge GPS technology to agricultural applications helping Australian farmers increase their yield and reduce chemical use..... [more...]
Prototyping 101
17 October 2007
As product development is not an exact science, every contingency cannot be foreseen and therefore prototyping is a crucial part of developing any new product..... [more...]
Ace! New Look On-Court Environment
17 October 2007
Earlier this month, Rod Laver arena was transformed into the centre court of the 2008 Australian Open..... [more...]
Money for Nothing and Design for Free
31 July 2007
The free pitch – a way of showcasing your creativity or the degradation of an industry?..... [more...]
Lynx: Our own new information management system
31 July 2007
CobaltNiche has moved to a new version of an enterprise-wide information management system..... [more...]
Flexibility: The future of mass transport
31 July 2007
Melbourne is on the eve of committing to a new generation of public transport...... [more...]
Future Workstation: The eRUG
31 July 2007
Have you ever looked outside the office window on a nice sunny day and wished you were out there?..... [more...]
Design Tools: Digital Sketching
15 May 2007
With almost equal numbers of product designers and product engineers, CobaltNiche can approach product development from all angles..... [more...]
Recently Released: Packaging
15 May 2007
Developed by CobaltNiche, the PowerCoil product case for Bordo International is an innovative, modular packaging system for thread repair kits..... [more...]
Recently Released: Vital Medical Device
15 May 2007
V-Patch is a sophisticated technology platform that monitors a range of vital signs from patients over wireless networks in real time..... [more...]
Colourful Language
15 May 2007
Excuse the obviousness of this statement, but colour is not black and white..... [more...]
Left Off the Podium
02 April 2007
There were no surprises in the line-up of this year’s Cobalt Niche corporate
triathlon team..... [more...]
F1 Helmet Design
14 February 2007
CobaltNiche has designed an F1 Helmet for this year's Australian Grand Prix
as part of a DIA initiative. ..... [more...]
Australian Design Awards
13 December 2006
CobaltNiche has entered three recently completed products in this year’s
Australian Design Awards. ..... [more...]
Tour de Force
18 October 2006
The CobaltNiche team recently participated in Australia’s largest cycling
event; the Melbourne "Around the Bay" ride which attracted over 14,000
participants..... [more...]
DIA RMIT Industrial Design Reunion
31 Aug 2006
In what was probably the biggest get together of industrial designers ever assembled
in Australia.... [more...]
blueViews: UK Diary #1
31Aug 2006
It feels a long time since Fiona and I left Melbourne for our new life in England,....
[more...]
CobaltNiche Europe
23 Aug 2006
CobaltNiche has established a representative office in Europe, based in Coventry,
England. Effective from 1 September 2006.... [more...]
Premier’s Award
1 August 2006
Two CobaltNiche designs have been shortlisted for this year’s Premier's
Design Award.. .... [more...]
Sustainable Development
14 July 2006
CobaltNiche has been awarded a 2006 grant from Sustainability Victoria to extend
an existing design brief to include environmental considerations. .... [more...]
Swim, Ride & Run
11 July 2006
It was an early morning start for the CobaltNiche Corporate Triathlon team when
they arrived at Elwood Park for their first time entry into the corporate event....
[more...]
Making a Moving Design Statement
04 July 2006
Melbourne-based design group CobaltNiche recently launched its take on the design
of Melbourne’s next generation tram, the ‘Melba 2011’; a modern
interpretation of the classic W-Class tram..... [more...]
Anthology 2011 Exhibition
04 July 2006
A major exhibition was held by Melbourne-based design group CobaltNiche recently
to mark the design company’s tenth birthday celebrations.... [more...]
JD Macdonald Win a Designer
04 July 2006
Mr Steve Salmon, JD Macdonald’s Engineering Manager was recently presented
with his certificate to 3-days of design services from CobaltNiche... [more...]
Building Launch
14 June 2006
CobaltNiche hosted a spectacular event on 2 June 06 to celebrate a great milestone
for the company.... [more...]
New Vision, New Identity, New Address
13 September 2005
To continue our vision of being Australia’s most creative and accountable
product design and engineering group, CobaltNiche is pleased to announce a move
to our own new design centre... [more...]
Innovation Insights – Learn From
The Best
17 August 2005
In March 2003, as part of the Victorian Government’s Agenda for New Manufacturing
– the Innovation Insights Program was launched... [more...]
Myth Busting Mythconceptions Pronto!
04 July 2005
Avid fans of the Good Weekend magazine found each Saturday inside The Age and
Sydney Morning Herald newspapers will no doubt read and love Dr Karl S. Kruszelnicki’s
weekly column – “Mythconceptions”.... [more...]
You Sexy Things
18 June 2005
In this weekend’s special Design & Technology Issue of The Age and
Sydney Morning Herald magazines... [more...]
“Design is Good for Business”
RMIT Business Lecture
16 June 2005
RMIT Business, in partnership with the Department of Innovation, Industry and
Regional Development, Ernst & Young and VESKI, host and deliver the RMIT
Business Lecture Series... [more...]
Lorrin Windahl: Out of Africa
14 June 2005
As a new member of the CobaltNiche team I recently returned from an eight month
placement in Uganda... [more...]
JD Macdonald Touchdry and Autobeam hand
dryers win at Australia’s largest building and design expo
08 June 2005
CobaltNiche congratulates the General Manager of JD Macdonald, Val Collins,
and her team for winning ‘Best Stand 36m2 and Under’... [more...]
“Skilled designers head many of the
world’s leading organizations..."
17 May 2005
In the May 2005 edition of the AFR Boss magazine, Roger Martin, dean and professor
of strategic management at the Rotman School of Management at the... [more...]
Microfluidics Design Competition
09 May 2005
Industry Based Learning (IBL) student Stuart Boyle recently joined the CobaltNiche
team in January 2005. Last month he was recognised by MycroLab in a design competition
to develop a concept portable device to house MycroLab’s latest cutting
edge microfluidics technology. [more...]
“Manufacture + Design = Dollars”
Victorian Government Seminar
05 May 2005
To coincide with National Manufacturing Week and build on their commitment to
advance Victoria as the State of Design, the Victorian Government will host
a free seminar for manufacturers offering insights into how design can provide
a competitive edge in the manufacturing sector. [more...]
International collaboration wins Australian
Design Award for life saving product
01 May 2005
A 2005 Australian Design Award has been won by the Samaritan® PAD (Public
Access Defibrillator), a life saving product brought to the market by international
collaboration. [more...]
“The Samaritan PAD [is] a ‘standout
product’ for the future of specialist design and manufacturing in Australia”
22 Apr 2005
Georgina Safe reported in The Australian newspaper on 22 April 2005:
Small Players Show Grand Designs [more...]
'Lockclip' stars on ABC TV - The New Inventors
04 Apr 2005
According to ‘The New Inventors’ official ABC TV website (www.abc.net.au/newinventors)
the TV show searches for “Australia’s most amazing inventions and
trend-setting designs.” Last week, the ‘Lockclip’ made a starring
appearance on the popular TV show. [more...]
CobaltNiche Leads Lifesaving Equipment
Boom
01 Apr 2005
Portable defibrillators used to treat cardiac arrests will become a standard
fixture in Australian public spaces, according to Jack Magree, director of CobaltNiche,
who have recently designed the Samaritan PAD™ (Portable Automatic Defibrillator).
[more...]
blueView: Car of the Month - Steve's Alfa
Romeo
30 Mar 2005
blueView is an occasional series profiling the CobaltNiche team or topical issues
affecting design and manufacturing in Australia and globally. [more...]
AusBiotech nominate CobaltNiche for Induction
into the Victorian Manufacturing Hall of Fame
04 Jan 2005
Responding to the Minister for Manufacturing & Export’s invitation
to nominate organisations for induction into the 2005 Victorian Manufacturing
Hall of Fame [more...]
Blown Away
20 Aug 2004
Recently JD MacDonald launched their latest range of hand-dryers. This is the
third dryer CobaltNiche has developed for JD MacDonald. [more...]
CobaltNiche Exhibits at MDN Showcase
13 Aug 2004
The first annual Medical Device Network Showcase was recently held at the Melbourne
Convention Centre. [more...]
blueView: Car of the Month - Shannon’s
Datsun
09 Aug 2004
blueView is an occasional series profiling the CobaltNiche team or topical issues
affecting design or manufacturing in Australia and globally. [more...]
'Booze Bus' Wins Australian Design Award
11 May 2004
CobaltNiche, along with the Victoria Police and Brimarco, were recently presented
with a prestigious Australian Design Award for their work on the Victorian Police
'Booze Bus'. [more...]
blueView: Car of the Month - Warwick’s
Subaru
20 Jan 2004
blueView is an occasional series profiling the CobaltNiche team or topical issues
affecting design or manufacturing in Australia and globally. [more...]
Police ‘Booze Bus’
12 Nov 2003
The new generation Victorian Police ‘Booze Bus’ developed by CobaltNiche
and first released in 2003 is a significant advance in amenities, passenger
comfort, composite materials and safety compared to the pioneering, first generation
model.
[more...]
Drug-free pain relief
7 Oct 2003
The EziStim® TENS (‘Transcutaeous Electrical Nerve Stimulation’)
device represents a watershed approach to personal pain relief therapy. [more...]
Double Award Winner
8 Sep 2003
Care Essentials, a Victorian-based medical products manufacturer has won two
recent business awards based on a new product developed by CobaltNiche. [more...]
Lynx: Our own new information management system
31 July 2007CobaltNiche has moved to a new version of an enterprise-wide information management system. Named ‘Lynx’, the relational database system has been developed by director, Steve Martinuzzo to provide CobaltNiche with a complete project management and business operations package.
Although the benefits of Lynx are mainly internal, for clients the system allows us to provide better project management, progress tracking and budget information. It also allows us to improve efficiencies.
As an overview, Lynx integrates a diverse range of information including:
- Comprehensive company database of clients and suppliers
- Task-based Proposal estimation files, including professional hours, expenses and defining project risks
- Project management information listing all critical information such as hours booked. At any point our project leaders can see an overview of progress of tasks completed, hours booked, and invoicing summary.
- Streamlined invoicing using scripting to automate routine tasks
- Integration of project planning and performance targets relevant to each staff member to facilitate workflows and focus on utilisation.
- Back-office records of assets, financial services, staff appraisals, archiving, dispatch and company performance measures
- VisualLibrary: database of over 2000 products images cross-referenced by keywords. These images are often used early in new design projects to short-track to a preferred visual direction for a given product.
- Catalogue of items from our creative and technical libraries
As Lynx can be published to the web, staff working in remote client sites or in other overseas offices can use the system remotely. Eventually, clients will also be able to access their own project file information to check on progress and invoicing through any web-browser software.
CobaltNiche will be selectively marketing the solution to similar fees-for-time businesses, especially those where expenses can be a major factor in their operation.
By providing better information to staff and clients, Lynx will help CobaltNiche deliver better product development now and as needs expand into the future.
