FloatAn EDI thesis project by Brandon Williams has developed into Float, an under cabinet utensil holder now for sale by Umbra.
Brandon Williams created Float as his EDI thesis project. He began by asking "What if kitchen utensils could be easily elevated above the work surface within arms reach freeing up precious counter space?"
Counter space, especially in apartments and other small dwellings, is critical to being able to successfully operate in the kitchen. Float allows for all of your favorite utensils to be stored above the work surface freeing up valuable counter space and helping you find what you need quickly and easily.
Brandon began by exploring desk space and observed something seemingly obvious; most horizontal work surfaces collect clutter. People also tend to keep tools that they use frequently close at hand.
After working on desk space, he eventually transitioned the project to the kitchen. Kitchens are spaces that oftentimes have small work surfaces, but require space to cook effectively. Brandon noticed that there is frequently underutilized space beneath the upper cabinets and began generating concepts that might make more effective use of that space.
"There was something so pleasant and delightful about the experience of being able to seemingly suspend objects in midair. Although it was great to be able to hang things in this space, the method of doing so did not work particularly well. I did
One of the main challenges was being able to accommodate a wide range of handle shapes and sizes. Much like desk spaces, people tend to keep the utensils they most frequently use out of the drawers and within arms reach. These tools also often happen to be mismatched sets gathered over the years.
Brandon eventually found an elegant way to grip utensils of all shapes and sizes. Drawing on experiences in the vacuum-formed plastics industry, he heated a laser cut sheet of acrylic and bent it into the shape of an ‘M’. He added strips of craft foam for additional gripping power.
Once the folded acrylic prototype proved successful, Brandon needed a way to construct something that looked like a real product. He developed a three-part molding tool, a more complex laser-cut part, and a brand to bring the concept to life.
Finally, Brandon and his thesis mentor, Walter Herbst, imagined a wrap-around image packaging concept and displayed all of his work in a foam-core kitchen.