Innovation, design and technology take centre stage at the Thailand Design and Innovation Expo 2015.

Designers, inventors and entrepreneurs showcased their latest products and designs at the Thailand Design and Innovation Expo (TIDE) 2015 held this September at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre in Bangkok.

Innovations on display ranged from medical equipment and agricultural products to high-tech designs with multiple zones for visitors and exhibitors, including the Innovation Highlight Zone, International Zone, Innovation Showcase Zone and the Design Zone.

One of the highlights of the event was the Asia Design and Innovation Conference featuring speakers from Thailand, Japan, Singapore and the Netherlands which attracted a large number of visitors keen to keep up with the latest trends in the design industry.

“Today, businesses need designers who can mix design with technology to solve problems,” said Sutirapan Sakkawatra, founder of Six Degrees of Communication, as well as a speaker at the conference. “Thai designers and innovators should aim to involve consumers in designing and developing their products as much as possible.”

A prime example of how technology can offer new solutions is the Life Saving Dot project in India, which has placed iodine patches on Hindi women’s bindis to combat iodine deficiency since early 2015.

“I was thinking how creativity can affect social change,” said Ali Shabaz, chief creative officer of Grey Group from Singapore, the initiator of the project. “I wanted to go beyond just helping brands or creating products. What’s inspiring for me is designs that not only solve problems but are also affordable, if you can achieve that, it can be appealing and accessible to people.”

At the TIDE, innovation comes hand in hand with design. 3D printing is one of the latest and most popular innovations on display following the global trend in which experts in different industries focus are using the technology in their designs due to its low costs and functionality.

Rem D. Koolhas, creative director of United Nude, who once designed high heels for Lady Gaga, says that the company is incorporating 3D-printed parts in their shoe designs.

“We can do sculptural pieces with [3D printing] like the Re-Inventing Shoes project when we worked with architects and product designers,” said Koolhas. “The project had a big impact, big success.”

In September he also collaborated with New York designer Francis Bitonti to create leather shoes with 3D heels using a selective laser sinter (SLS) machine, then plated the heels with gold.

Still, the new technology has some limitations, and the brand’s elaborate designs mean that the shoes are not suitable for everyday use.

“You can walk in [the brand’s 3D-printed shoes], you can take pictures or do stage performances in them, but that’s about it,” says Koolhas. “The [3D-printed shoes] are still produced as limited editions and sold as pieces of art.”

Words by Pimsirinuch Borsub