Bilbao Ekintza, in conjunction with the Flemish organization Designregio Kortrijk, and in collaboration with EIDE, the Basque Design Association, has been developing the 5X5® BILBAO programme since November 2024.
Under this programme, four design professionals, two from Bilbao and two from Kortrijk, have been working for a year with four Basque companies on the development or redesign of one of their products or services using design methodologies. The results will be on display in October at the Wonder Festival in Kortrijk, in Bilbao during Bilbao Bizkaia Design Week (20-28 November) and later in the cloister of the University of Deusto and in the lobby of BEAZ.
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PROJECT – Packaging and branding for a new line of industrial detergents
Company:
Jabones El Abra is a company based in Bizkaia that has been producing industrial detergents since 1946. One of its goals achieved in 2025 was the launch of the new ECO-ABRA line of concentrated products in Bag in Box format, for textiles and tableware.
Designer:
Brand Creatiers is a branding and design studio located in Bilbao. It operates in different fields of design and brand communication, participating in projects that materialize in both physical and digital products and services, developing everything from consulting, analytics, and strategy processes to final execution, even, in certain cases, integrating in-house as a design partner.
Description and conclusions:
The Bag in Box format is a packaging system “imported” from the wine industry, consisting of a plastic bag with a dispensing valve, inserted into a cardboard box. The three main advantages of this format are cost-effectiveness, functionality, and sustainability.
Brand Creatiers proposed and carried out various processes, including a benchmarking analysis, in order to correctly understand their needs and generate interest in the launch of the new product range.
Overall, the design challenge was to create a new identity for both the brand and the packaging. On a creative level, these were the main solutions provided:
- A unique visual code that is recognizable and applicable to different elements of the brand. This idea has been applied to different assets of the new ECO Abra brand: the logo, the names of the different products, and other communication media.
- A manual marking system for packaging that allows the outer cardboard box to be customized in very small production runs.
- The way information is displayed on labels has been reorganized and simplified to make it easier for users to read.
This product line meets customer needs with attractive packaging and labeling, representing a qualitative leap forward from current products with more traditional formats and labels. The methodology and design learned will be applied to the launch of new products and to improving current products.
PROJECT – Redesign of web application to improve user experience.
Company:
ASIMOB is a Data as a Service (DaaS) company that develops and markets the Autonomous Road Inspector and the Autonomous Inspector. It detects the condition of streets and roads using Artificial Vision with the aim of improving maintenance efficiency, finding road safety risk points, and facilitating the arrival of autonomous vehicles on our streets.
Designer:
UXpertise is a design studio run by freelance product designer Lieven Degrauwe. He trained in UX in London and Amsterdam and has been working as a digital designer in various sectors for over 10 years.
Description and conclusions:
In the ASIMOB service, the web application that allows users to view the results is a crucial element. Through this application, users can see the results of the condition of assets (traffic signals, road markings, protective barriers, pavement condition, night visibility analysis), analyze defects, and view evidence in the form of data, video, or photographs. The first version of the web application provided access to basic functionalities but required improvements in terms of usability and a more advanced image.
The collaboration between UXpertise and ASIMOB in designing a new version of the web application has made it possible to develop a more intuitive environment that prioritizes the user experience and lays the foundations for future developments with new functionalities. All this thanks to a creative collaborative experience!
PROJECT – Functional and aesthetic redesign of “GarbiAir”
Company:
Bromalgae, founded in Bilbao in 2018, is an innovative technology company that develops high-precision chemical and biological solutions to reduce pollutants such as CO₂ and NOx produced during combustion processes, contributing to a more sustainable future.
Designer:
PARS PRO TOTO is an innovation consultancy based in Ghent, Belgium, with 30 years of experience helping businesses grow at all levels. By innovating across products, brand, services, and strategy, we create sustainable advantages, combining insight, creativity, and empathy for meaningful, lasting impact.
Description and conclusions:
The challenge consisted of redesigning Bromalgae’s GarbiAir product from an aesthetic and functional point of view. GarbiAir is an advanced solution based on the use of microalgae that reduces pollutants in cities and industries, helping to achieve cleaner and healthier air.
Through a workshop applying design thinking, opportunities for improvement were identified and different scenarios were developed for GarbiAir. The company was then visited to gain a detailed understanding of the existing product and its uses, identifying key needs and defining a design strategy.
Together, they established the main challenges: urban integration; a new formal design language; improved ergonomics; optimized service and maintenance; and functional compactness.
A formal language was created based on the concept of “skin,” which allows for customization and adaptation to different identities. The ergonomics were redesigned to facilitate access to the photobioreactor, and different architectures and urban integrations were explored using modular systems with integrated furniture.
The result is a more accessible, compact, and aesthetically adaptable GarbiAir, whose simplified architecture facilitates production, installation, and maintenance. This experience demonstrates how design brings tangible value by balancing functionality, aesthetics, and feasibility.
PROJECT – Improvement of the Breezy Premium wheelchair
Company:
Sunrise Medical is a multinational group with production centers in Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The facilities in the Bakiola Industrial Park have 100 employees and cover an area of 7,500 m².
Manufacturing focuses on three product families, with multiple variants, and production is carried out to order with a commitment to deliver within 24/48 hours: manual wheelchairs, electric wheelchairs, and hospital lifts.
Various manufacturing technologies are used at the plant: bending, punching, welding of steel and aluminum parts, and final assembly of the models described above. Other industrial processes such as laser cutting, painting, and sub-assembly are carried out externally.
Designer:
Héctor Lezaun is a freelance industrial designer operating under his brand conceptHACHE. With international training and a multidisciplinary background, he brings an open vision to design. Specializing in conceptualization, his approach is based on conscious, strategic, and timeless design, aimed at creating lasting and meaningful solutions.
Collaborating with the designer has allowed them to take a more creative approach, incorporating ideas that Sunrise Medical would not have considered. This combination of ideas has generated solutions that combine efficiency, aesthetics, and added value for the end user.
The project has served to confirm the importance of design throughout the entire process, from the concept of the chair, its uses, and users, through to manufacturing, to arrive at the final product.
Description and Conclusions:
The project focused on updating three key areas for improvement in the premium manual wheelchair model: the armrest, the hanger, and the fabric. The main objective was to simplify the design, enhance visual impact, trying to reduce the number of components, streamline assembly, and ultimately reduce production costs.
The 5×5 programme has enabled Sunrise Medical to approach product innovation from a broader perspective, exploring ways to reduce product costs while maintaining the company’s quality standards.
Collaboration with the designer brought a more creative approach, introducing ideas that Sunrise Medical might not have considered otherwise. This blend of perspectives led to solutions that combine efficiency, aesthetics, and added value for the end user.
The project has reaffirmed the importance of design throughout the entire process — from the initial concept of the chair, its intended uses and users, through to manufacturing — to arrive at the final product.