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Cool Repurposed Material: Graffitied Steel Railcar Panels
"Train cars typically have a lifespan of approximately 30-50 years," explains Repurposed Materials, a company dedicated to salvaging still-useful castoff materials. "After this period, they cease to comply with federal regulations and are subsequently taken out of service, undergoing decommissioning, parting out, and ultimately scrapping."
The company collects the galvanized steel panels—often graffitied—that these decommissioned railcars are clad in.
The 12-gauge material is still super-sturdy, and customers have used them to create fencing, planters, protective enclosures and cladding for platforms.
The panels are 8' x 3' and weigh 71 pounds each. They're located in Iowa and run $99 a pop. They're willing to ship them if you can't pick up, but you've got to contact them for a quote.
Highly Successful Public Transportation: Mexico City's Mexicable System
From 1960 to the 2010s, the population of Mexico City's Ecatepec de Morelos neighborhood grew from a mere 4,600 residents to a staggering 1.6 million. Formerly farmland, this outlying area was remote, hilly and undesirable; its residents lived there because it was all they could afford. Public transportation was terrible, consisting of spotty bus service that took up to 85 minutes—each way—for residents to reach the city center. It was also dangerous, with bus passengers regularly robbed at gunpoint.
The Mexican government decided to do something about it in the mid-2010s. A subway line was out of the question; the hillside terrain would make the cost unfathomable. Instead they struck upon the brilliant and economic solution of installing cable cars. The support poles minimize the footprint of the system and can be erected far faster than excavating for subway lines. Cable car stations are also much more compact than subway stations—there are no long platforms required—and building the cable car system cost 80-90% less than a metro line.
Image: Tbhotch - CC BY-SA 2.5 mx
The Mexicable system opened in 2016. Nearly 30,000 riders per day began using the system, which cost just 7 pesos (USD $0.36) to ride; in contrast, the buses cost 12-15 pesos. The commuting time was cut to as little as 17 minutes. Unlike buses, the electric-powered Mexicable emits no fumes. And perhaps most importantly, the system and its well-lit stations are CCTV-monitored and thus far safer than riding the bus.
Image: Tbhotch - CC BY-SA 2.5 mx
Image: Presidencia de la República Mexicana - CC BY 2.0
Both the government and the private sector subsequently began improving public spaces along the cable car's route, paving roads to provide better access to the stations and improving streetlighting. Local artists were commissioned to beautify the spaces with murals.
Image: Presidencia de la República Mexicana - CC BY 2.0
Image: Tbhotch - CC BY-SA 2.5 mx
Image: Presidencia de la República Mexicana - CC BY 2.0
The system was a rousing success, and a second line was added in 2023, connecting the northwest Tlalnepantla neighborhood. (Ecatepec is northeast.) A third line is currently under construction and will eventually link the further-flung neighborhood of Naucalpan.
The video below provides a good look at the system and discusses the impact it's had on the community:
A Look at Cat Bridges
Here's a feline-based subcategory of objects on Etsy: Cat bridges.
These seem like they'd be a fun DIY project for parents with engineering-minded kids.
For cats who get bored easily, an alternative is to build them an entire climbing facility, as DIY'er Vivianne did:
Lest you think these were all constructed by outlying weirdos, it's worth noting that the feline toy market is valued at $3.3 billion and is expected to grow to $4.5 billion in the next ten years. Those Etsy sellers are probably doing brisk business.
Industrial Designers Shawna and Matt Heide: The Eameses of Concrete
What plywood was to the Eameses, concrete is to industrial designers Shawna and Matt Heide. The Quebec-based duo, who operate under the name Concrete Cat, harness the material in unexpected ways to create household objects like trays, vessels, bookends, and even mirror frames. Riotous colors, expressive organic forms and the pair's signature "Oracle pattern"—a sort of cross between tie-dye and marbling—all feature.
Their process is an unusual blend of controlled and uncontrolled elements, starting with the molds that they make. "We design and fabricate our own molds. Molds change over time, they get better as they age. As a mold ages it allows us to produce more complicated colour and pattern work on an object. For this reason we cherish our molds and treat them with respect, we repair them, every mold is precious. We refine our molds with subtle changes over time. This is the first reason every object is a little bit different from its family."
During casting, they vibrate the molds (by hand) in order to minimize air bubbles. That said, some will inevitably survive, and the duo deal with them on a case-by-case basis, deciding whether to remedy or accentuate.
"Concrete has air entrained withins its matrix, this is part of its nature. Sometimes this air manifests as surface voids. Most voids add character, a fingerprint unique to each piece. We fill surface voids that we deem might limit a piece's intended functionality. We fill voids if we don't agree with their character. Sometimes we fill voids in accenting colours to accentuate their beauty. We embrace voids."
The pair have had a number of clients over the years, ranging from boutique hotels to architecture firms to retail chains. One particularly notable project was their collaboration with Seth Rogen's Houseplant brand, which yielded the following weed accessories:
"Concrete Cat's process to call forth the Oracle pattern is a violent ceremony of chaos. We work blindly in trust. The destructive nature of trying to put a harness on chaos leaves a unique mark on every single thing we make."
In the following studio visit by CBC, the duo reveal a surprising amount of their proprietary process:
A Future-Proof Wall Outlet with Easily Swappable Ports
This Polaris power outlet, by Japanese brand CIO, has its future-proofing built in. Users can, without needing to rewire, add sockets for USB-A, USB-C, or whatever's coming down the pike next.
"The detachable socket structure solves the problem of ports evolving with the times after installation. USB ports, Qi2, and other suction structures can be installed and removed in your preferred combination with no maintenance required. The port arrangement is also carefully considered, with a user-friendly design that uses an L-shape to prevent incorrect insertion into AC outlets."
No word on whether it will be distributed in the U.S.
Hugo Suíssas, a Photographer Who Sees Everyday Objects in Architecture
The fields of architecture and industrial design have some overlap. But in the eyes of photographer Hugo Suíssas, they're just about the same thing. The Lisbon-based Suíssas spies everyday objects in the built environment:
There's plenty more to see on Suíssas' Instagram.
The FRAMA Shelf Library System
This FRAMA Shelf Library System is storage furniture designed to be visually light and airy.
While the wall-mounted system wouldn't make sense for say, renters in NYC—where drilling into walls gives your landlord an excuse to withhold your security deposit—it may make more sense in Copenhagen, where the FRAMA brand is from.
The wall-mounted members also don't jive with U.S. 16"-on-center stud construction standards; instead the spacing is determined by the shelf widths, which are multiples of 20cm. (In Europe, studs are typically spaced at 60cm-on-center.)
That said, for U.S. customers who are comfortable dealing with wall anchors and landlord wrath, the system provides a more modern alternative to enclosed cabinets or freestanding shelf units. The shelves are available in natural wood, stainless steel and a powder-coated warm white. The company reckons they have applications in every room in the house, from kitchens to home offices to living rooms and bedrooms.
You can check out their different collections here.
The Axion is Closer to the Flying Car We All Imagined
The flying car everyone imagined in the 20th century was, well, car-like.
As the 21st century rolled in, that image morphed into something insectoid, powered by a multitude of rotors or turbines that vastly affect the vehicle's form factor.
However, Dallas-based aerospace company FusionFlight is developing something closer to the 20th-century vision of a flying car: A passenger compartment, and little else. They've done this by eschewing rotors and working with jets.
Company founder Alexander Taits is a mechanical engineer, in case the vehicle's design didn't tip you off. His Axion is a personal VTOL powered by pairs of micro-jets at each corner, and the bulk of the craft is occupied by two 15-gallon fuel tanks. These can be filled with regular "gas-station diesel," the company says, and can then haul a 176-lb. pilot at 225 mph for 15 minutes.
The company says the hot gas emitted by the micro-jets doesn't reach the ground during take-off or landing, and so doesn't damage the landing pad surface. (Indeed, in the demo video below, you can see the Axion's predecessor taking off and landing on grass.) They also say that should one of the eight jet engines fail, the vehicle can automatically execute an emergency safe landing sequence with the remaining seven. Furthermore, they point out that being jet-powered, the Axion "is not as susceptible to inclement weather as other propeller and winged-based vehicles."
If this all sounds too good to be true, it's worth noting that FusionFlight has chops. The company was founded in 2016 to develop the JetQuad, Axion's predecessor; that vehicle is essentially an autonomous Axion designed to carry emergency medical supplies.
The JetQuad can also be remote-controlled, as you can see in the demo video below:
FusionFlight has drawn the attention of the U.S. Navy, the Air Force, the Army and DARPA. That said, if the company is producing a version of either the JetQuad or the Axion for the military, they aren't saying. But they are pitching the Axion to the consumer market, and are soliciting purchase requests. The asking price is $290,000, and there's a 12-month lead time.
Below is the pitch (though there's no flying demo):
One Last Shot for a Big Win
Think award season is over? Not quite.
The Design Intelligence Award (DIA) is still accepting entries — and here's your chance to jump in with zero entry fee. The final deadline is September 20th, so there's still time to throw your hat in the ring and win serious cash prizes.
Why should you enter DIA?
DIA is more than just another design competition. It's a global platform that brings together entrepreneurs, creatives, and innovators who are using design to tackle society's biggest challenges. If you're pushing boundaries and shaping the future, this is your stage.
And here's the best part:
As a Core77 reader, you can enter completely free using this code: US2025-PMPC1KK.
Already submitted your projects to other competitions this year? Perfect. Just dust off those files and submit to DIA — it's one final chance to ride the awards wave and maybe take home a cash prize.
Ready to enter? Check out the full competition details here and submit before September 20.
Don't miss this opportunity. DIA is calling — answer with your best work. Submit today.
An Aluminum and Steel Tariff Update 7/8/25
If you're an industrial designer working on aluminum or steel products manufactured in the U.S., we know the recent Section 232 tariffs on those metals have been a nightmare for you. And while we don't have great news, we do have some decent news.
Fictiv, the California-based global manufacturing platform, has reached out with the following development (boldface ours):
"Recent updates to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) website and FAQ's state that the prototype provisions of aluminum and steel are not subject to tariffs or duties from all countries of origin."Fictiv has confirmed this with our customs and broker partners and have successfully imported aluminum and steel prototype parts duty free once again.""As always, Fictiv will continue to monitor this situation closely and communicate any developments as they arise. If you have additional questions about these updated prototype provisions for aluminum and steel, please contact your dedicated Fictiv account executive or hello@fictiv.com."Design Criticism: The Nothing Headphone (1), a Bold Effort
Kudos to upstart tech brand Nothing for trying something different with their Nothing Headphone (1). That said, the aesthetic may appeal to some, but I see it as a big miss.
To me, the design is trying to do too much. While that is probably the point—in today's oversaturated world, you need bold visuals in order to cut through the signal noise—I think the designers are too on-the-nose, referentially speaking, simply evoking other objects rather than finding an original form.
The outside of the earcups consists of two clunky elements. The outermost is meant to evoke an analog audio cassette, as if you're wearing a Walkman with a racetrack-shaped visibility window on each ear. The innermost body of the cup, an aluminum squircle—or rectangircle—evokes, presumably accidentally, an older MacBook Pro squashed into cutesy dimensions.
In my opinion, the displeasing effect of these two forms is less hi-tech/cyberpunk and more low-budget sci-fi show props department, desperately trying to create something futuristic-looking by mashing two things together. And attaching two geometric shapes to each other robs designers of the opportunity (or, uncharitably, allows them to sidestep) the artful business of dealing with transitions between elements, where I think great design can happen.
That said, I'm not the (young) target market, and the brand has collaborated with venerated British audio brand KEF on the guts, so we can assume the sound is high-quality.
On the features side, the headphones offer active noise canceling and a respectable 80 hours of playback time.
The Nothing Headphones (1) run $299, which is considerably less than similar offerings from Apple, Bose or Sony.