Necker Island Microgrid Immersion Room Table
Responsibilities
- experience design
- interface design
- content strategy
- prototyping & testing
Necker Island, Sir Richard Branson’s private Caribbean paradise, is notable not only for its incomparable beauty but also for its unparalleled commitment to sustainability. In partnership with NRG, a renewable energy company, Necker Island was installing wind turbines and a solar array to reduce reliance on imported, expensive fossil fuels that negatively impact the environment.
The resort’s high-profile guest roster includes world leaders, influential celebrities and corporate executives whose decisions make big impacts on their industries, audiences and nations. To educate and drive desire for clean energy solutions of their own emulating the one powering the island resorts, NRG asked us to design a experience that conveys the elegance, benefits and feasibility of clean energy in broad range of applications that aligned with these guests’ interests.
Overview
Guests on this remote island enjoy modern luxury powered by a state-of-the-art microgrid. To educate visitors about the clean energy technology that powers the island, we designed a unique interactive table that uses physical objects to unlock activities and information. Through The possibilities of renewable energy become clear, accessible, and relatable for guests, inspiring them to adopt sustainable practices in their own lives.
I worked on this project at Second Story in my role as UX designer, and was responsible for designing and prototyping the visual interface, digital interactions and physical objects interactions for the tabletop experience. Other members of the team included visual designers, motion designers, a creative lead and technical engineers.
Challenges
Limited time with audiences means every moment counts
Marking just one stop on an island tour, the experience had a small window of time to make a big impression. Messaging around the benefits and applicability of clean energy had to be relevant and immediate for guests.
Simplify complexity without sacrificing accuracy
An interactive simulation of the island's microgrid had to accurately reflect engineered responses to changing conditions. However, processes that required specialized knowledge to understand should not muddle the overarching message.
We wanted to design an interactive table that turns visitors to a private island into stewards for the environment.
How might we...
- explain how Necker Island's energy grid works in simpleterms anyone could understand
- model the resiliency of clean energy microgrids
- pique interest and investment in similar clean energy solutions
- position NRG as a trusted partner leading the way for sustainable business practices that generate reliable energy and good feelings
Discovery
Workshop to generate stories and group industries
We kicked off with a hands-on workshop with NRG stakeholders to capture and prioritize clean energy selling points from their collection of industry-specific case studies. Through affinity diagramming, we grouped these under energy-consuming industries that intersected with the interests of Necker Island’s high-net-worth guests.
Interview to understand Necker’s microgrid
We also interviewed NRG engineers involved with the Necker Island project to understand how components worked together and responded to environmental conditions. We organized our high-level findings as guideposts for creative concepts around an interactive simulation.
Design, prototype and test
From wireframe to high-fidelity prototype
An interactive tabletop island simulation lets guests explore how microgrids supply continuous power in dynamic environments, inspiring influential leaders visiting Branson’s private resort to make similar investments in sustainable alternatives to fossil fuel.
Applied behavioral science
People are motivated when they feel competence, or experience a sense of mastery and achievement. To nudge towards engagement, physical interactions with Necker Island’s grid empower guests to direct its outcome, predict how pieces work together, anticipate results and own their education about microgrids.
Testing and evaluation
We evaluated the usability and accessibility of onscreen controls through informal tests with co-workers outside our lab. Through observation and talk aloud task-based testing, we uncovered gaps in design related to navigation, readability and depth of experience.
A handcrafted approach to handheld objects
Inspired by board games like Catan, we emulated pieces designed to be held, invite exploration and pique the imagination.
Learning through design
We iterated on the physical design of tangible objects used unlock content by progressing in fidelity from clay to renders to 3D printed objects. Our fabrication partners printed and finished the final objects to withstand frequent handling and humid climates.
Testing and evaluation
Through design, we evaluated how objects felt in hand and whether users accurately predicted objects’ intended visual representations.
Unlocking the value of clean energy starts with curiosity.
How it works
The interactive table housed in an artisan raw-edge enclosure presents a calm island in perpetual motion, powered by renewable energy. A remote paradise that responds nimbly to changing conditions in the Virgin Islands.
When visitors touch the tabletop, rich animations and visual content bring to life how Virgin and NRG are working together to change the world. By placing various objects on the table, each representing a particular clean energy technology, guests can learn more about the innovations, read case studies detailing their impact, and experiment with different solutions to contextual challenges.
Explore Necker Island
Guests interact directly with the touchscreen to learn about individual energy components and how they respond to under different environmental conditions or energy-consumption events to maintain a steady supply of energy to Necker Island.
Explore energy sources
Tap the islands’ battery, wind turbine, solar panels or diesel backup generator for a simple overlay explaining their value to the microgrid.
Change environmental conditions
Use sliders to adjust the environment and see how the grid responds. Watch how the simulation works to supply energy from other sources when energy from any one of them dips when day turns to night, wind drops, or clouds cover solar panels.
Simulate scenarios
Users tap hotspots to trigger responses to pre-set scenarios to simulate load balancing during an energy-consuming party on the island, a windy storm, or a calm sunny day.
Explore other worlds
Nine physical objects represent worlds where clean energy solutions offer measurable benefits. Through these objects, guests discover how to turn worlds of possibility previewed on Necker into realities back home.
Pick up objects on display
Guests select from a set of objects representing different “worlds” transformed by clear energy alternatives to fossil fuel (hospitals, factories, island nations, etc).
Explore interactive stories
Guests rotate the object to navigate through 3 short motion animated chaprters that demonstrate the value of clean energy for that sector in a playful way. Each chapter presents a pain points, which users tap to resolve with a NRG energy solution.
Learn the science
Each story concludes with a list of engineered solutions that powered a world’s transformation. The table enchants guests and educates them with technical terms to take these solutions into their future.
