Hello, Pia here!
I am a studying industrial designer with a particular interest in toy design. Toy design is a niche field, so I want to get hands-on experience as soon as possible. As of now while writing this, I am participating in my first Industrial Design Internship with Nafees Creations. Here I expect to be a part of the full lifecycle of a product, from concept to production.
I am an Industrial Design sophomore at the University of Houston, soon to be a junior. Here one of our credit requirements is to take part in an internship. This credit is usually scheduled in the summer from junior year to senior year, so I’m early for it. This way I will be able to have more than the required single internship by the time I graduate. Getting myself a step ahead with a fuller toolbelt once I finish my degree.
Over the fall semester, I began to send emails to toy companies and manufacturers looking for industrial designers asking if they were interested in taking on an intern. I did this out of curiosity over how far I could get so early on, and to get ahead since I wasn’t looking for just any internship.
Getting an industrial design internship is all I am required to get for my internship credit, with no other specifications. But I had my handful of specifications for it
Ideally, my internship would be;
- In the toy design field
- A smaller team of people
- Local to Houston
- Allow me to experience things outside just ‘design’
I got a few responses, but from all of them, the one that most interested me was Nafees Creations. Wouldnt you know it, Nafees Creations is a family-owned Montessori toy manufacturer based here in Houston. Only about an hour from The University of Houston and about fifteen minutes from my family on top of that. Most of their products are wooden, which is nice since it is definitely a more sustainable material in a field where plastics are usually dominant. I thought it sounded just perfect.
Tldr, Nafees Creations took me on as an intern.
I have been here at Nafees Creations for a few weeks now, and I can say it’s already been an eventful experience. Here I have access to equipment I had never been able to get hands-on with before. At the Keeland (the workshop at the University of Houston) we have a good amount of equipment, but students are not allowed to use some machines firsthand. So far I have noticed it is mainly the CNC (computerized numerical controlled) machines that the college won’t let us use firsthand. Although this is ironic since these machines are some of the most used from what I have learned working with Nafees.
I am learning to do things I hadn’t gotten the chance to at school. Additionally, I will be involved in several new things here soon too.
Things like
- Silk screen printing
- UV printing
- CO2 Lasser cutting
- Manufacturing
- Prototyping
- Field testing
- Concept development
- CNC milling
- Material Sourcing
- Material Costing
- Sales
You name it.
Above all, I am looking forward to working here with them. They align with my interest in my professional life in industrial design and are quickly allowing me new experiences.
I will be writing this blog to document my journey here. From the new machines, I learn to use, to the experiments we make. If there is a mistake I make along the way then I would also like to share this with you all. However, I have never blogged before, so I am happy to take suggestions on anything you all would like me to address or talk about.
Until next time,
Pia signing out.
