Industrial design student wins international design award

Benjamin Tew of Baltimore, Md., a graduate student in the Industrial Design Program in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies at Virginia Tech, won the grand prize at the 2007 Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association International Show, held in Orlando, Fla.

Tew received $2,500 for his product, “NIPA,” or Nested Interactive Play Area. NIPA provides a versatile and mobile play area that is convenient and not physically demanding for the adult, all while promoting educational and artistic activities for the child.

The competition was open to all industrial design students enrolled in a degree program at any of the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) affiliated schools. The judges, comprised of industrial designers, critiqued each submission for design, design research and ergonomics. The Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association is a national trade organization of more than 325 companies in the United States, Canada and Mexico. These companies manufacture and/or import infant products such as cribs, car seats, strollers, bedding, and a wide range of accessories and decorative items.

Tew received his bachelor’s degree from Virginia Tech in mechanical engineering in 2004.

The College of Architecture and Urban Studies is one of the largest of its type in the nation. The college is composed of three schools and the Department of Art and Art History, part of the multi-college School of the Arts. The School of Architecture + Design includes programs in architecture, industrial design, interior design, and landscape architecture. The School of Public and International Affairs includes programs in urban affairs and planning, public administration and policy, and government and international affairs. The Myers-Lawson School of Construction, a joint school of the College of Architecture and Urban Studies and the College of Engineering, includes programs in building construction and construction management. The college enrolls nearly 2,000 students offering 24 degrees taught by 153 faculty members.