Universal Pest Solutions asked tool. for creative and inventive assistance to extend their line of insect protection systems.  tool. was tasked with the design, engineering and  prototyping of a new mister product.   We immersed ourselves in the consumer/end user experience to effectively deliver on our client’s requirements at every stage of the process.   The result of our efforts is a technical product made extremely simple for the end user, right out of the box — the new ALLCLEAR Mosquito Mister.

In addition to meeting with and touring known factories, John and Bill met with new factories, made new contacts and toured facilities with a wide range of capabilities.  tool. continues to build its ever-expanding network of manufacturing sources in East Asia and around the world. We help clients of all sizes and experience levels with the sourcing and support of their manufacturing process.

Hong Kong at night

Large stamping press

Stamping machines

John checks out some bike lock components

Aluminum die casting machinery

Injection molding machines

CNC Punch

After the main portion of the trip they also had a chance to visit a helmet manufacturer that they work with regularly.

Helmets in EPS molding machine

Helmet impact testing machine (note headform hanging on left)

tool. recently named Greg Meyer to the position of Vice President of Business Development. Greg brings to the team more than ten years of business development leadership and a history of passionate engagement with leading global brands. Prior to joining tool., Greg led the business development efforts for two product design groups and worked nationally with the Fortune 5000 in the information technology industry.

Greg hails from Cincinnati, OH and attended the University of Cincinnati for BS and MBA degrees. When he’s not engaging clients or building new relationships, Greg likes to travel to far away lands, ride motorcycles, paddle kayaks, eat great BBQ, drink hoppy beer, write personal narratives in the third person and listen to live music…with a noticeable proclivity towards blues, metal and folk music.

Thank you and best wishes to a member of the tool. team who is moving on – Chris Lohring. Chris has been with us for five-plus years and has been instrumental with many of our clients. He is starting a new consumer product company and launching a new brand. We wish him huge success and all of our best. Cheers, Chris!

Master Lock asked tool. to help them reposition their automotive category by introducing products that leverage their brand strength in security products.  A market opportunity was identified within truck bed security products, and tool. provided market exploration, consumer insight research, product opportunity mapping and concept development.  The project resulted in a product that provide a universal point of attachment for a base system architecture, to which cargo storage security products could be attached.

Check out the Two Guys Garage review:

See more in our portfolio…

tool. worked with the partnership of Reebok and Cirque du Soleil on an innovative training experience that makes staying in shape a lot more fun. tool. was tasked with designing and engineering a piece of fitness equipment that was the key to the entire fitness training program. Based on a Cirque du Soleil trapeze, tool. designed and engineered the equipment under heavy user and safety constraints.

Under a highly compressed project time frame and hard delivery dates that coincided with a massive global press launch, tool. went from sketches to a global product launch in less than five months. tool.’s ability to scale our resources to any size program allows us to work with global category leaders like Reebok, but also with small start-ups.

The following clip shows the Jukari Fit to Fly equipment in use, it maybe not be in the typical gym environment, but you’ll get the idea.

A final note, the tool. staff is a little bit more in shape after this project. Trust us, the Jukari work out is not easy, check it out.

tool.’s design for the Thule Raceway debuted at Interbike 2009 this past month. The Raceway is the first strap-on trunk mount tray-style bike rack, and uses high strength coated steel cables instead of nylon straps to secure to the car’s trunk or hatchback. It also looks pretty hot. The Raceway line will include a hanging bike rack style as well.

The full product release is set for March 2010, but here is a sneak peak at what to expect.

As we move in to the 2009 / 2010 winter sports season, the tool. designed & engineered Red Prime will be released to the market for the first time. The Red Prime was the winner of the 2009 ISPO Safety Award. The yearly global competition takes place each January in Munich, Germany at the Winter Sports. The new tool. designed Red Prime has the most comfortable helmet fit imaginable. Due to the new Air Band Fit System it is easy to adjust to every head size and shape. The low-profile, air-fueled headband is intelligently sandwiched between the helmet shell and eight anatomical pads, complete with living hinges that softly contour to your head for a perfect fit. Subtle molding control for desired comfort is achieved using the pump-button on the right ear pad. As every Red helmet the Prime is ASTM 2040 and CE 1077B certified.

Its in-molded polycarbonate shell and the ABS cover make it ultra lightweight and extra durable. Hidden ventilation allows for variable airflow to the inner helmet microclimate and limits the invasion of outside elements. Further unique features like the GlovesOn Buckle for easy adjusting and FineTuning, a modular padding system, make the new Prime the epitome of Red’s meticulous development process.

UNIQUE FEATURES
- Ultra Lightweight In-Molded Polycarbonate Shell and Extra Durable ABS cover
- Air Band for customizable fit
- Airvanced Ventilation
- Quick Clip IITM Ear Pads
- GlovesOn Buckle

See more in our portfolio…

adidas Lacrosse approached tool. to redesign their top tier line of lacrosse heads, shafts and body protection. For user insight, we worked closely with John Grant Jr., Major League Lacrosse’s Most Valuable Player for two years in a row. This user centric approach allowed us to uncover the requirements of the most extreme users in the physically demanding and highly technical game of lacrosse.

Considerable thought was given to a modular protective system, allowing for varying preferences and requirements based on the skill level and position of each player. Additionally, the lacrosse head needed to balance performance and low weight with a robust design to withstand the physical nature of the sport.

See more in our portfolio…