Alumni Stories - Lucy Halpin
"I wouldn’t change my path, even the moves that would appear to have been in the wrong direction. Every step has been so valuable"
Name: Lucy Halpin
Current Career: Medical Device Development
Graduation Year: 2002
Discipline: Industrial Design (now Product Design)
Location: Dublin, Ireland
What career path did you want to follow as a child?
Toy designer – Tom Hanks just made it look like so much fun!
Why did you decide to study at National College of Art & Design?
At the time, it was THE place to study design. Initially, I wanted to attend the foundation year but a career psychologist told me to choose Industrial Design, now rebranded Product Design. When I asked what that was, she simply said “Trust me”. She explained that I needed art to be happy, but maths and physics to feel satisfied. I applied without really knowing that much about it. On the day of the interview, I got suited and booted and headed in. The moment I was in the Industrial Design studios, I instantly fell in love with it. The next day I made the course my number one choice on the CAO.
How did you develop your career towards your current job or practice?
My first design job in London was for a consultancy where I worked for a wide range of clients, Dualit kitchen appliances being one, but it was the medical device projects that really sparked my interest. After that I worked in a range of places from architectural lighting to wayfinding systems to Dyson. Each project gave me valuable knowledge that I leverage daily. At the core of all my design work was the user, and that included the person who had to build or install my designs. I once got my boss to send me 12 meters up in a cherry picker to understand the challenges of installing lights at such a height. But none of those products sparked a true love or interest for me. When I returned to Ireland I focused my efforts on medical device companies, and I’ve been very fortunate in my career to have worked on some life changing innovations. My job satisfaction went through the roof.
I wouldn’t change my path, even the moves that would appear to have been in the wrong direction. Every step has been so valuable.
What is the one experience during your time at NCAD that has informed you most in your career and work to date?
Hand building prototypes. In my career I’ve met so many engineers who’ve never tried or had the opportunity to build what they design. NCAD instilled strong workshop foundations in me that I use in all my projects. It’s not until you start to build it that you can see so much potential for design improvement and its assembly process. And sometimes you can make happy mistakes. Whenever I have student placements or recent graduates, I’m constantly telling them to just get into the workshop, build it, test it, play with the materials, and see what comes out of it.
If you were chatting with current NCAD students today what is the one piece of advice you would offer?
Design principles are so versatile and can be applied universally that they shouldn’t be afraid to try a variety of careers, that they don’t need to pigeonhole themselves from the starting blocks. Every opportunity presents a learning experience, even if the learning is just that you don’t like it.
What new opportunities have developed for you as a result of changes in work practice during the Covid pandemic?
Prior to the pandemic, I’d have to travel to clinicians or if that wasn’t an option, have conference calls that feel like you are talking into the abyss. But now with video conferencing, I have the opportunity to engage with more clinicians from around the world in a way that’s more convenient to them and me.
