Design Policy to Enhance Brand Value of Hitachi Consumer Electronics

OVERVIEW: Today’s consumers assess the design of digital consumer electronics with a much more selective and discerning eye that goes far beyond mere shape and color to consider the functionality, user-friendliness, and even the very concept of the product. The role of design is not only to satisfy the requirements of consumers but to awaken a latent need in the mind of the consumer, and the ability to create products satisfying these broader needs will be the fundamental challenge of design in the years ahead. Hitachi has defined an indicator of good design based on Hitachi’s corporate philosophy. Based on this indicator, we formulated the design concept of “Cool Impact × Real Quality” for the consumer electronics sector that will enable us to accurately identify product value that reflects ever evolving needs of consumers and can further enhance Hitachi’s brand image. By developing advanced designs based on this concept while incorporating new approaches of glocal (global + local) design, universal design, and integrated interface design, we will be able to bring product concepts to market more quickly than in the past. Masahiro Yaezawa Minoru Ikeda Maki Furui Takashi Yamamoto Tatsuo Murai