Brunswick Connected Boating
Creating confidence and encouraging control at every stage of the boat ownership journey.
The marine industry is complicated and it doesn’t get any simpler as you drill down. That complexity is what made partnering with Brunswick, a world-class leader in the Marine industry, a continuous but rewarding challenge. With the help of my team at ANML, I was able to lead the project alongside the client in creating a platform that helps boaters plan their trips, monitor their vessel, and control the onboard systems using a design system that allows for existing and future features to be made easily and efficiently.
ROLE
Product Design
Art Direction
Visual Design
User Experience
Strategy
Motion Graphics
CLIENT
Brunswick / Navico Group
Boaters’ lives, simplified.
In the past they’ve had to jump between multiple apps to do simple things. We sought to take their frustrations and use it as fuel and inspiration on what to create. This resulted in an app that is a full-service, reliable control center.
It was critical that the platform not just cater to the new snazzy boats. We had to make sure it was created with a variety of system types in mind. Is the boat “connected”? Is it “dumb”? Are there a lot of bells-and-whistles or is it a simpler base model? This led us to a flexible “glance” based system that had the potential to give detailed information and control to the user dependent on their individual vessel’s capabilities.
Not all boats are created equal.
One app. Many faces.
Knowing from the beginning that our core platform needed to be brand agnostic, we were able to specify what elements could be modified to work alongside any of Brunswick’s subsidiary brands and those of third parties.
Widening our reach
Following the successful launch and theming efforts of the consumer facing app, my team and I set our sights on two more crucial pieces of the boat ownership journey: on-board and in the factory.
ON-BOARD
Working within limitations
When adapting the design system and styling of the mobile app to an on-board display we ran into numerous hurdles from resolution issues to color rendering capacity to a myriad related to backend technical capabilities. With the help of the client we were able to iterate, test, and find solutions to those hurdles, leading to an experience that was optimized for a hassle-free day on the water.
FACTORY FLOOR
Consideration from the start
Leveraging our base styling of the theme-able mobile app as the foundation, the ANML team and I alongside our partners at Brunswick set out to reinvent the platform used on the factory floor. Through hands-on workshops with various stakeholder teams and iteratively refining both the UX and visual design, we created a scalable platform to enable a seamless, connected way for factory workers to manage the vessel through it’s assembly journey.
Capturing everything
With a project and partnership as large as our’s with Brunswick, it’s impossible to capture everything that went into it. I spent about two years dedicatedly leading a team in creating what is shown above and even more under the surface. Have questions about anything you’ve seen? Reach out and I’d be happy to talk with you.