WATERPIK

_The Misting Massage Showerhead project  was a study in co-operation among WaterPik’s marketing and engineering groups and its creative consultants, Machineart Industrial Design and Innovation Focus. Water Pik’s strategic intent was to increase global distribution, attain a profitable annual growth of 15%, regain lost market position in the U.S., and increase brand recognition.

Water Pik set out to define design requirements based upon customers’ wants and needs heard at focus groups all around the country. The competitive advantage would come from realizing those requirements to provide the best shower experience with an innovative, luxurious product, superior in execution and value through quality design, convenience, and unique shower feel.

Innovation Focus of Lancaster, PA conducted a 3 day concept ideation session among key personel from WaterPik, its advertising agency, customers, and Machineart. The outcome was a set of idea “nuggets” from which one general direction was selected according to its short term engineering feasibility and potential for meeting the goals.  Machineart then went to work with these criteria in the development of concepts.

The above images show a partial sequence of steps in the design process from the definition of requirements, to rough concepts, to specfic concept visualizations based upon one selected direction. Three of the Machineart generated concepts (image #4) were then evaluated by focus groups in various parts of the country.

In the final design the tri-lobe shape of the Showerhead is the result of accomodating the orifice shapes of seven SPA-like shower experiences, from a wide shoulder-to-shoulder spray at the top, to bubbly champagne from large round openings around the bottom edge, and warm mist. The control knob location outside of the water stream is a key design feature.

The end result is an original, brand differentiating design that gives users an enhanced shower experience while enabling Water Pik to position it at a higher price point and increasing its profit margin.