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Who doesn’t have sleepless nights?

Who doesn’t have sleepless nights?

Published on 14. January 2020 By City of Sound The fact that you are reading this story right now is a testament to how newsworthy it is when a company decides to move production from Asia to Struer. STEENSSEN is one of those companies, and today founder Frederick Rickmann is having a meeting with his future suppliers. Walking into the building wearing his beige trenchcoat bringing his notebook, Frederick Rickmann is a man on a mission, and today the mission is to help his su

“Danish design doesn’t have to be expensive, it just has to be good”

“Danish design doesn’t have to be expensive, it just has to be good”

Published on 2. January 2020 By City of Sound Frederick Rickmann is a man with a plan. He set out on a mission to show the world what Danish design can be, now he wants to give people good sound quality at an affordable price, and he wants to do it all in Struer. He looks busy as he extends his right arm in order to shake hands while still partly glancing at the phone in his left hand. It might not be so strange if you take his background into account, though. A quick glance

STEENSSEN is the new NOMA

Frederick Rickmann

STEENSSEN is the new NOMA

I hope that the world famous NOMA restaurant in Copenhagen won't take offence at this blog. For several years NOMA was declared the Best Restaurant in the World by the magazine "Restaurant" and quite fittingly it has two Michelin stars. It rose to prominence through a concept that re-invented and redefined Nordic cuisine, perhaps forever. The founders, René Redzepi and Claus Meyer pioneered the ideas of purity, freshness, simplicity and ethically sourcing ingredients from its

Nordic Kitchen and Nordic Sound

Frederick Rickmann

Nordic Kitchen and Nordic Sound

Nordic cuisine and restaurants have become world renowned over the past many years and have been recognized through a spreading number of Michelin awards. Indeed for many years, the Copenhagen restaurant NOMA was seen as being the best restaurant in the world. Central to the concept of the new cuisine is the New Nordic Food Manifesto. The movement was pioneered in the 2000s by a stream of Scandinavian chefs including Danish chef Claus Meyer. The manifesto is built around the

Trust your own creativity

Frederick Rickmann

Trust your own creativity

It’s true, isn't it, that much of the automation and AI in our smart devices makes it easier for us to use them. On the other hand, it is also true that all those algorithms make us, the users, a good bit dumber. The assumption of many smart interface engineers is that ease of use is the same as making things idiot proof. But what that really does is to take the skills and human judgement away from the pleasure of using the product. The way we designed STEENSSEN products like

ARCHITECTURAL PARADOX

Frederick Rickmann

ARCHITECTURAL PARADOX

Throughout Europe, the 60's and the 70's saw a rapid expansion of residential building. In Scandinavia as in most other countries, some of the best planning skills and architectural talent were geared to creating large areas of housing. The modern movement was in full cry and dwellings for all sections of society were erected. Now, only 40 years later, the towering ambitions of the architectural profession are being demolished. It is a striking paradox that some of the worst

THE FAILURE OF CITY PLANNING

Frederick Rickmann

THE FAILURE OF CITY PLANNING

This desert of rubble was photographed in 2014. It’s the place where I grew up, lived with my family, played with the kids in the neighbourhood, went to school, did shopping with my parents. It is totally destroyed. That might not be so unusual in this age of urban renewal. Old disfunctional buildings must gave way to new. The tragedy of the photo is not that the rubble comes from the building I lived in. The rubble is from the buildings which were planned and built to replac

Champagne Flowing

Frederick Rickmann

Champagne Flowing

It's an old tradition we have that goes way back. Everytime we get a significant design award, we crack open a bottle of bubbly. This week especially it was a relevant that I walk back and forth to the office rather than drive. iF Design Award The first one arrived on Wednesday (14th April 2021). The prestigious German iF Design Award, came thundering in. It was awarded to my client Blue Ocean Robotics in Denmark for whom I was external design consultant working with their de

Corona Killer

Frederick Rickmann

Corona Killer

It has been described as a quantum leap in robots that can disinfect against viruses and bacteria in the air and on surfaces using UV-C light. The new ultra intelligent 3G generation of autonomous mobile robot from the Danish company UVD ROBOTS arrives at the right time to deal with Covid 19 pandemic. This, the world's most advanced UV robot, was developed by Blue Ocean Robotics in Odense, Denmark. Frederick Rickmann from DNgroup was an integral part of the international desi

A timeless design classic, 25 years on

A timeless design classic, 25 years on

No less than 25 years ago, the loudspeaker called Facette was designed for Dynaudio by Frederick Rickmann - the founder of STEENSSEN. It was immediately a design icon in the world of hifi because the triangular shape was great for sound quality. The exquisite edge details also seemed to predate the coming of flat screen tv's. Somehow the geometry of the speakers, defined a line in space. So although the speaker had depth, it appeared to be elegantly thin. These photos are of

Support the Circular Economy - buy a square loudspeaker.

Frederick Rickmann

Support the Circular Economy - buy a square loudspeaker.

If we are to achieve or even come close to the climate targets our governments have set, then the Circular Economy in some form is going to take a part. At its heart, the Circular Economy consists of the sensible idea of eliminating waste in materials, energy and resources. The concept encourages developing new kinds of products that last for much longer than they do today. In addition there is emphasis on the by-products of one process being the raw materials for another man

If you are in lock-down you aren't going to like this blog

Frederick Rickmann

If you are in lock-down you aren't going to like this blog

A few years ago, my CO2 footprint was an environmental catastrophe. Not on the earth mind you, but in the air. Where it matters. I enjoyed flying. And by that I mean, not even in small regional jets, but in the really big ones. Boeing Mega-tops and the like and on long distances. And to make matters a whole lot worse, I was not crammed into Economy. Or even Economy Plus. Sorry, but my seat was high up and let's say, well in front of the engines. (I warned you, that you wouldn

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