KLM – the Royal Dutch Airlines- and Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) signed a cooperation agreement entitled Design Doing at Royal Dutch Airlines. The aim of the partnership is to develop new products and optimise existing KLM processes in a real-life operational KLM environment; with real passengers at a real airport and with real aircraft. By doing so, KLM is heavily investing in the application of what is known as Design Thinking.
TU Delft offers and develops knowledge in strategic design. In its day-to-day operations, KLM can offer the optimum test environment. The partnerships applies the ‘KLM X’ strategy of testing and optimising new products or processes in a real-life situation, with genuine passengers at a real airport and in real aircraft, rather than a laboratory setting. As part of this unique working method, Design Thinking is applied in the implementation of an organisation’s strategy. Two TU Delft doctoral candidates will work with students in applying design principles in KLM’s day-to-day operations.
The Design Doing partnership has been established in order to formalise collaboration between TU Delft and KLM for a longer period. It is a first for the aviation industry, where it can often take years for new products to reach the customer. As it is unique for an aviation company to invest so much in design, the partnership between KLM and TU Delft is receiving active support from the Dutch government’s Creative Industry Top Sector in the form of a Public-Private Partnership Research and Innovation premium from CLICKNL, an organization focused on bringing creative industries and research together in order to facilitate innovation.
Find out more: http://news.klm.com/klm-and-tu-delft-sign-unique-collaboration/