H&V came to us with a logo and some great products looking for a new website. They’re one of Europe’s true hidden champions, a leading producer of milling cutters and one of the finest employers we know. They were also lacking a brand to communicate all this.
The milling cutters produced by H&V are used to create some of the world’s most advanced products (airplanes, Apple Watches, and innovative medical equipment). They’re also aesthetically pleasing, so we chose to celebrate that. We used the latest tech to continuously make an emotional impression and turn a barely known champion into an industry leader (with a website).
H&V came to us with a logo and some great products looking for a new website. They’re one of Europe’s true hidden champions, a leading producer of milling cutters and one of the finest employers we know. They were also lacking a brand to communicate all this.
The milling cutters produced by H&V are used to create some of the world’s most advanced products (airplanes, Apple Watches, and innovative medical equipment). They’re also aesthetically pleasing, so we chose to celebrate that. We used the latest tech to continuously make an emotional impression and turn a barely known champion into an industry leader (with a website).
What’s the key to the success of H&V? An ever-evolving team that wants to define the change for others to follow. A culture of trust among employees and clients. And the willingness to responsibly shape the future.
"The brand experience today perfectly mirrors the spirit we feel throughout the company. A deep obsession with technology, innovation and quality."
H&V’s products are industrial products. They’re also a luxury, an innovation and a joy for those using them. And that’s precisely how we tried to portray them: as beautiful industrial artefacts.
Again, who says industrial cannot be appealing? By zooming into the very details, we proofed it can.
We approached the cutters as beautiful pieces of design and laid out a system around them. The design tells everyone looking for the highest quality they’ve come to the right place. How? Through straight lines, extensive whitespace, bold typography and interactive components.
And these industrial products we got so excited about don't come out of the blue. There's an amazing team of experts behind them, and it was at the core of our vision to celebrate them as well. That's why Hofmann & Vratny's most important asset, its people, is highly featured across their new brand.
Over the last two years, we’ve created a whole brand ecosystem. By mixing creativity, technology and our understanding of H&V’s business we’ve become just like an internal unit to them. We love working this way because it supports how truly good ideas strive.
"For the first time, we based the design principles developed during the branding on a digital-first experience. We then defined VR, print, and trade fair scenarios - always including motion."
To give people that special feeling you experience at H&V we developed an interactive Virtual Reality tour. Users can decide themselves which parts of the factory to explore and a number of languages are available on trade fairs around the world. We equipped a bunch of the newest Oculus Quest headsets with the software and everyone has been loving it so far.