Florham Park, NJ, September 10, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ –Logical Design Solutions (LDS) and Aerial Applications (Aerial) were recognized with Honorable Mention by Fast Company in its annual Innovation by Design Awards for 2018 in the Social Good category.
Innovation by Design is the only competition to honor creative work at the intersections of design, business, and innovation.
The winning LDS-Aerial project defined new work practices and experiences for first responders and their project managers in providing an emergency response solution in the wake of Hurricane Irma. In the aftermath of a major disaster such as a hurricane or flood, speed is imperative in assessing damage to infrastructure and risk to human life. LDS partnered with Aerial Applications, a drone technology solutions company that pairs data collected by drones with artificial intelligence, to design a digital solution that enables people on the ground to complete disaster recovery work more effectively.
With this new experience, first responders are no longer the only eyes on the disaster site. Drones can capture fly-over imagery and feed it to an AI engine that organizes and prioritizes work. The experience facilitates a successful collaboration between people and machines to support good decision making and knowledge sharing. This experience was designed with a view of the AI as a new kind of user with a unique stake in the outcome, not just as an enabling technology.
“It’s such a great honor to be recognized by Fast Company for designing new digital work experiences for first responders working in emergency situations,” said Mimi Brooks, CEO of Logical Design Solutions. Brooks continues, “this is a perfect example of using technology to do tremendous good. Aerial’s drones and AI expertise provide the capabilities for a new work platform with LDS experience design optimizing the platform for people. Work is safer and more efficient, and people are augmented, not replaced – freed to do the high-value work that humans should do.”
Joe Sullivan, CEO of Aerial Applications, stated, “from humanitarian relief to supply chain to construction and energy, front-line workers and their organizations are benefiting from the human-machine relationship and these emerging digital solutions. We are delighted that Fast Company has bestowed this award on the joint Aerial and LDS team.” He continued, “This is one of our first collaborations and to receive this recognition and to experience this success is phenomenal for both our companies.”
“The future of design is about more than coddling users,” says Stephanie Mehta, editor-in-chief of Fast Company. “It’s about giving them power over their technology.”
Winners, finalists, and honorable mentions are featured online and in the October issue of Fast Company magazine, on newsstands September 18th. Winners will also be recognized at Fast Company’s Innovation Festival at a special celebration on October 23, 2018.
Fast Company editors and writers spend a year researching and reviewing applicants for the awards. This year, winners and honorees were selected in the following categories: Apps and Games; Experimental; Fashion and Beauty; General Excellence; Graphic Design and Data Visualization; Health; Products; Retail Environments; Social Good; Spaces, Places, and Cities; Students; Timeless Design; User Experience; Web Design; and Workplace. Fast Company is also recognizing Google as the title’s first-ever Design Company of the Year.
To read the complete list of winners go to www.fastcompany.com.
