MWDesign - Tauranga

14/05/2026

It's been a wild ride over the last 8 years at MWDesign, but it's time to say goodbye. 👋🥹💚

15/09/2024

Keeping our fingers crossed for the awards night!

15/09/2024

21/07/2024

House of Science create a variety of science kits to send to schools around New Zealand, enabling hands on learning of specific topics from outer space to electricity and everything in between.

They approached us with an issue they were having with a 3D puzzle they have of the earth and its tectonic plates. This clever little puzzle, originally designed by Rebecca Haisman from the University of Canterbury, enables the different tectonic plates to clip in and out of the earth, but still allows the plates to move and wiggle a little when clipped in, teaching students about how earthquakes are created.

Unfortunately, the puzzle pieces were getting broken easily. They were originally 3D printed from white resin and then painted. As the paint wore away, the tolerance loosened on the clips and the pieces would fall out too easily. The resin was too delicate for rough school kid hands, and the clips would often break off from the puzzle pieces.

So we thought, we can fix this! We redesigned the push-fit clips, beefing them up to be both wider and deeper, with a larger radius at the join of where clip meets puzzle piece. We added an o-ring to the clip with o-ring groove inside the holes in the globe. This little o-ring enabled a smooth push-fit clip in design yet also provided grip of the pieces in the puzzle. The o-rings would take the brunt of the wear of being clipped in and out away from the puzzle pieces themselves, yet were cheap and easily replaceable. We 3D printed the puzzle pieces from blue and red ABS. This is a tough and durable plastic, and much cheaper than the original delicate resin. 3D printing the pieces in the required colours eliminated tolerance wear from paint rubbing off, and ensured consistent push-fits from all the puzzle pieces into the globes.

The puzzles have been well received by both teachers and students, with the pieces being easy to clip in and out. The House of Science branch managers who check and maintain the puzzles have had no issues with the new o-ring design and only minimal damage to the puzzle pieces from students. It's been positive feedback all round!

It just shows how much design can make an impact for the smallest little components.

17/07/2024

These are some beautiful one of a kind gift boxes we helped to produce for the Māori Kiwifruit Growers to showcase at the 2024 Export Campaign into Hawaii. These boxes were diecut and printed, then assembled with a fine detailed lasercut insert which stretched and moulded underneath the Kiwifruit to support them inside the box.


The gift box was to provide something unique and special for their guests marking the occasion but also was a pilot for sustainable packaging and Māori design as they explore environmentally responsible ways of packaging and presenting their fruit.

The interior is a laser-cut auxetics insert with designs from artist Maihi Potaka with guidance from packaging expert Eli Gray-Stuart, both from Massey University. The design reflects the Amokura/Koa'e 'ula, the red-tailed tropicbird which is a symbol of safety, navigation, and chiefly qualities for both Māori and Hawaiian people.

Te Kōhanga Amokura/The nest of the Amokura uses the kōwhaiwhai designs of the Amokura bird in flight. The exterior has designs of the Taratara-ā-Kai pattern motif which is predominantly found on pātaka (traditional food store houses) to represent an abundance of food and generosity for others.

The gift boxes were given at their launch event, packed with tasty kiwifruit, to Makau Ariki Atawhai, Puhi Ariki Ngā Wai Hono i Te Pō and all the attendees that day.

14/07/2024

In June, Georgia & Mike were invited to Parliament to be part of Rauawaawa Kaumātua Charitable Trust's launch of their Social Enterprise Kit based on the Kuki Reka Kani cookie cutters that we designed for them. It's amazing to see how far these little cookie cutters have gone and the impact that they're having for groups like Rauawaawa. Sales from the cookie cutters have raised over $250,000 for the trust to go towards helping their elderly Kaumatua, which is why Minister Casey Costello (Minister for Seniors) is there with us in the photo supporting this amazing enterprise.

Stay Tuned for some more exciting collaborations we have up and coming with Rauawaawa Kaumatua Trust

06/05/2024

✨🌟Matariki is coming up in June and we'd love to share our beautiful, shimmering purple, star cookie cutter that we designed for the Rauawaawa Trust last year!⭐️✨

20/12/2023

And that's it for 2023! We're looking forward to all the upcoming projects we'll start to see in 2024. We hope everyone has a relaxing break and we will see you in the new year with new stuff to share.

Stay tuned! 🎊🎄

27/07/2023

We take our design process seriously to achieve the best possible outcomes for our clients. Our design process begins with in-depth technical and scientific research, providing a solid foundation to launch our ideas. We use this research to develop our concept designs, which serve as the basis for the Design stage. This involves a dedication to bringing the product to life.

Our in-house workshop, we utilize various machines such as 3D printers, laser cutters, waterjet cutters, and other facilities to bring the concepts to reality. This allows for critical feedback, testing, and refining the ideas, leading us to the next stage: methods of manufacture, also known as our create stage. During this phase, we turn those concepts into real-life products and finalize their forms. Through this process, we ensure a smooth transition of the product into the market

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13/07/2023

We are excited to share another unique and awesome project we had the opportunity to work on: PAR PAR BIRDIE™.

We were able to assist not only with the product but also with the graphic design, bringing to life a stylized golfing board game inspired by the Hawkes Bay region of New Zealand. Designed by Geoffrey Fuller, this game brings the joy of golf to your home or golf club. As a family-owned game, it emulates a real 9-hole golf experience, combining skill and luck as players navigate from tee to green.

PAR PAR BIRDIE™ closely mimics the game of Golf, without all the walking! The object of the game is to challenge your opponents around the 9 hole course, in the fewest number of strokes. It's a great introduction to golf for children yet still challenging for adults!