Diana Alejandra House

I established this company to provide me with a vehicle with which I could contract out my professional services to Servex Ltd, a large and successful integrated furnishing service company for offices. During the two years I worked with Servex, I acted as a consultant on various projects and provided designs for high-end clients in need of office furnishings. The services I provided included:

• Client liaison – Understanding their needs, presenting designs and overseeing the delivery and installation of the final product.
• Product design – Using AutoCAD to create designs bespoke to the client needs, later to be used in the technical drawing phase and the final build by our chosen supplier.

As I was responsible for all aspects of this company I was able to build upon both my organizational and administrative skills. I also learnt how to interpret client requirements, liaise with suppliers and overcome problems and challenges.

Working for Solinoff, a well-established and respected name in high-end furniture supply, I was involved with, or lead on various different projects, through out their life cycle from concepts development to post-launch management. My key achievements included:

• Product design - I lead the design strategy and execution of a new innovative line of office furniture called Orion (which was nominated for a design award by a national design magazine).
• Internal management of the line post design phase - This included the supervision of prototype production, industrial production, management of suppliers, and packaging development.
• Post launch management – Once the line had gone live, I was responsible for providing training to rest of the company on its key features and aspects whilst also maintaining responsibility for any other projects the line was to be involved in.

During my time at Solinoff I developed and honed many of my skill sets including the ability to work effectively across departments, improve my conceptual and strategic thinking on a design process and build strong networks across the company, inspiring trust from those around me.

Working as a Designer within the Studio I was able to provide support and input throughout the full design process of the products the studio offered. This included:

• Conceptual Development – Taking an initial client requirement and building the foundation of a multifunctional and integrated furniture system.
• Project evolution - from the design of every part of the system, to development of prototypes, modelling, rendering and technical drawings.
• Other main duties - Supplier discovery/ research, quotation analysis, prototype supervision, and documentation such as technical sheets and instructive manuals for the product.

My key achievement in this role was the development of the high-end office furniture line Orion that was provided for the company Solinoff Corp (for whom I subsequently worked).

This experience helped me to understand the reality of product development. I was also entrusted to take responsibility for ongoing processes in the absence of the Design Director.

I was primarily responsible for the redesign and actualisation of the existing office furniture product lines: Kin and Kubik. This included the entire design process (modelling, rendering and technical drawings). I managed the supervision and recruitment of new suppliers, which involved negotiating better prices and securing better materials. In this role I accomplished my remit of providing various adaptations of the lines for the American and European market.

I managed both private clients and business clients through the provision of advice in furniture distribution, such as the modulation of kitchen furniture (and other spaces), by providing technical drawings and renders of the proposal for the distribution in their homes. I was also responsible for managing the showroom and exhibition.

I worked with a team of more senior designers providing assistance through the various stages of their design process.
•I developed technical drawings and generated portfolios for presentations to different clients.
•The job also required searching and quoting different furniture and additional accessories for interior design.