Student success

Change of career for Hazel lands her design in Derby’s historic Silk Mill

A University of Derby student who switched a 14-year career in accounting and finance for product design has been chosen to have a coffee table she designed brought to life as part of a regeneration project at Derby’s Silk Mill.

As part of her course, Hazel Murray was tasked with designing and creating a prototype coffee table to be displayed in the Silk Mill’s new Museum of Making, which will display items from Derby’s industrial history and is due to open in summer 2020.

The table, which she created using a mixture of materials and methods including old scaffolding boards, angle iron, and plate steel, was selected by course lecturers and staff at the Silk Mill and will now be reproduced and displayed in the historic building.

The 36-year-old said: “As Derby is such an industrial area I chose to use materials to reflect this and purposely chose scaffolding boards that showed the marks of their use.

“Winning the competition gave me a real confidence boost, particularly as there were excellent entries from my peers so I wasn't expecting to win. When I did it was a great feeling.

“Working with an organisation such as the Silk Mill gave me a great opportunity to gain real-world experience in the area of the industry I wish to work in once I graduate next year.”

After working in accounting and finance for more than a decade, Hazel wanted a change in career so signed up to study product design at the University, with a view to pursuing her ambition of becoming a furniture and lighting designer.

“My journey is different to what a ‘normal’ university student might encounter,” she said. “As a mature student, I have had previous experiences that I can use in my degree, giving me a different perspective.

“I wasted a lot of time deciding if I did the right thing, but I am so glad I started the degree. Coming to university has been an amazing experience for me so far.”

Fashion student spends time in Japan on Toyota internship

Product design graduate and current fashion student Joseph Taylor got a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity when he was selected to go to Japan alongside a handful of students from universities across the world to take part in a highly sought-after internship with Toyota.

Joseph was assigned a project looking into the investigation of safety protection systems, especially airbag fibres and how they are woven together. Based in the Toyota Boshoku Oguchi factory, where airbags are manufactured, Joseph was able to look at the performance of these through testing and evaluation of improvements that were needed.

Commenting on his internship, Joseph said: “Living in another country helped me look at circumstances differently. I learned how to deal with different situations in new ways; especially communicating as there was a language barrier so I had to think of new ways to approach conversations, for example using drawings to illustrate my ideas.

“The internship was a challenge at first as I needed to push myself from being a student into a working environment, but you learn to adapt and I gained so much valuable experience. I am glad I took the opportunity, if I had a chance I would do the internship all over again.”

Once Joseph graduates from his master’s degree, he hopes to work for global brand Nike looking at the performance of sportswear apparel.

John Angus, Lecturer in Design at the University of Derby, said: “Joseph faced the challenge of a complex application and staged recruitment process, so we were delighted to learn that he had succeeded and was chosen to spend his summer working in Japan. We were even more gratified to receive exceptional testimonials about Joseph from the General Manager of the Global HR Division at Toyota Boshoku, a real testament to his commitment and work ethic.”

Joseph added: “If I could give any advice to someone who is thinking about an internship it would be: take the plunge, you never know what amazing opportunities may come from it.”