Michael Englisch, Head of wiege, on a lecture tour of China and Australia [08-05-2008] Whenever a new Wilkhahn range is launched on the international market, such a roadshow may now well span virtually the entire globe. The new Travis conference table range was launched in Europe and the Middle East early this year and in the USA in June. Michael Englisch, Head Designer and Managing Director of the wiege design studio set off to communicate the design process of this range in China and Australia, starting with the initial briefing, via the development of the concept up to the final product design. This involved guest lectures at universities, as well as interviews with trade journals, visits to important architectural offices and customers, and presentations at Wilkhahn subsidiary companies. From 30 June to 11 July, the round trip took him from Frankfurt via Hong Kong and Shanghai, Sydney and Melbourne to Singapore and back. The first stop in his itinerary was a detailed interview with the Hinge magazine before the Hong Kong premiere of the conference table system was celebrated in a wine cellar. In Shanghai, in addition to the launch event, the programme included a guest lecture at Tongji University on the subject of "Innovation, taking the case study of Travis as an example". In Australia, there was an interview with "Indesign", the leading magazine in the field of design and interior design. Michael Englisch made use of the few hours between flights and market launch events in the Sydney showroom, Wilkhahn Asia-Pacific headquarters, to take a look at exemplary projects and to gain an authentic feeling for different cultures. The roadshow was concluded by a product introduction in the Wilkhahn showroom in Singapore. "In Hong Kong and Shanghai I was most impressed by the incredible dynamics of the development of these metropolises. The downsides are also noticeable wherever one goes - a lot of buildings that were erected only ten years ago are already being pulled down. In Australia, however, I was convinced by the high quality of interior design. One can really sense the economic prosperity, which has a solid base due to the wealth of raw materials. Concepts for the working environment, from which we could only learn, are being put into practice. This applies both to the quality of the concept as well as to the quality of execution and to consideration of ecological aspects. Finally, in Singapore one can see new Asia, whereby I had the feeling that the people's search for their own cultural identity is far from complete", Michael Englisch says by way of summing up his most important, personal impressions. And one clearly notices a degree of pride in the fact that the design achievements of wiege international are so well recognized: "Many Wilkhahn ranges bear the wiege signature. I find it tremendously satisfying that out design language, which is marked by understatement paired with high aesthetic and functional quality, merges so excellently with different cultural and design contexts." > Overview