The Designer-in-Residence programme enables designers to engage in real-world projects, ground-breaking research and interdisciplinary collaborations between the thriving ecosystem of enterprise, research, innovation and creative organisations at The Digital Hub and its surrounding network.
Benefits of the programme include access to The Digital Hub facilities, an office/studio space on campus, networking opportunities with current member companies at The Digital Hub and access to a cutting-edge community in the field of innovation and technology.
2024 Residency
The first call focused on health and wellbeing, and those in areas such as product design, UX and UI design were encouraged to apply. Total funding for the successful applicant was in the region of €15,000 which included fees and project costs.
Dr. Glenn Curtin was The Digital Hub’s first Designer-in-Residence, and he commenced his six-month residency at The Digital Hub campus in July 2024. As a medical doctor and UX/Service designer with interests in global health equity, youth leadership, and innovative design in health and wellbeing, Dr. Curtin was well placed to bring a unique perspective, inventive ideas, and a pioneering approach to challenges in health and wellbeing.
He spearheaded a project that focused on how to get automated external defibrillators (AEDs) rapidly to people in cardiac arrest. He brought together stakeholders including Manna Drone Delivery, The Digital Hub and Emergency Services to prototype Ireland’s first Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) drone delivery service. A simulation flight was conducted on Friday 6th December when a defibrillator was carried from Manna’s hub in Blanchardstown to an address in a housing estate nearby, about 10 minutes’ drive away. The drone, which has a range of about 20km, brought the defibrillator to the house, dropping it safely into the back garden, in around two minutes. That allowed the Community First Responder to use the defibrillator on the fictitious patient – a 74-year-old man – who recovered and was subsequently brought to hospital.