"user-centered Design of Digital Products - 3 Belgian companies share their experiences"

On Tuesday, 8 June, Agfa-Gevaert, ICOS Vision Systems and Banksys, presented how they have applied user-centered design to develop better user interfaces for their flagship products. Forty participants endured the sweltering heat to listen to the actual experiences of these past and present Namahn clients.

Joannes Vandermeulen, Business Manager of Namahn, opened the evening with a wide-ranging presentation on the state-of-the art in the user-centered design of digital products. He pondered why user-centered design is difficult, noting that organisational "silos" and fear of irrational users are two major impediments. He also gave a detailed overview of a typical design process, and showed examples from each step. Vandermeulen has also developed a model of design patterned after the hierarchy of needs developed by psychologist Abraham Maslow.

Although models and methodologies are important, careful observation and insight are still the cornerstones of good design. In one of his very first jobs Vandermeulen made simple yet startling observations (it took users 10 seconds to fill in a paper form, the same time it took for the computer screen to refresh) that ultimately resulted in the cancellation of a project.

The other presentations, while not as provocative, were no less illuminating. John Gibbs, Application Manager at Agfa-Gevaert gave a thorough overview of Agfa's design process, showing some of the document types that they use. Koen De Wel, R&D Manager at ICOS Vision Systems described how a re-design of their "Man-Machine Interface" (MMI) improved their competitive position and became an important sales argument. The evening ended with a sneak preview of Banksys' vastly improved user-friendly payment terminal given by product manager Inge De Cock. The terminal will be officially released on 22 June.