RGU Gatehouse Case Studies

The Gatehou s e - D esign & Print Consultancy

Brief To r a i se awareness of the creat ive and pr int

capab i l i t ies of the Rober t Gordon Univer s i ty ’s

inhouse des ign and pr int consu l tancy -

The Gatehouse .

Solution A brochure h igh l ight ing The GateHouse ’s

exper t i se in communicat ion , pass ion for introduc ing

new ideas and imager y, wi th a r ange of wor k both

corporate and non-corporate .

I l lus t r at ing the i r exper t i se across a r ange of

gr aph ic media ; f rom brochures , annua l repor ts and

promot iona l l i ter ature to exh ib i t ion pro jects and

s ignage , and f rom new corporate and br and ident i ty

to packag ing .

A lso examples of new media inc lud ing enr iched pdf

f i les , pdf micros i tes and f lash f l ip-page documents .

Client The Examples here are f rom our cur rent

c l ients ; i f you l i ke what you see and have a

requ i rement for des ign , adver t i s ing , pr int or new

media get in touch and we’ l l see what we can do

for you .

Design is outstanding as a competitive weapon when it comes to visualising a business Strategy.

the business incubatorconceptualise | realise | capitalise

Brief To i l lustrate the essence of the services

offered by the Business Incubator in a l ively, fresh

and vibrant manner, using var ious medium to

capture the attent ion of the target student audience.

Solution We needed to f ind and use interest ing

and unor thodox imager y to at t r act the tar get

aud iences at tent ion and get buy in .

We then embar ked on a v i r a l mar ket ing campaign ;

created a pop up banner to adver t i se the

incubator ’s ser v ices to the new intake of s tudents

at Fresher ’s fa i r, wi th an accompany ing webpage .

We produced a ser ies of min i cards wi th images

i l lus t r at ing the key ser v ices of fered by the

incubator such as mentor ing , networ k ing , and

invest ing which doubled as unconvent iona l bus iness

cards and a game .

Client The Bus iness Incubator at

RobeRt GoRdon UniveRsity he lps s tudents

and recent gr aduates to s tar t and grow success fu l

bus inesses .

Ever y year sever a l hundred s tudents , f rom ar t

schoo l under gr aduates to MBAs , t ake c l a s ses in

ent repreneur sh ip . The incubator taps in to the

in teres t c rea ted by these cour ses and he lps

ind iv idua l s and teams tur n the i r ideas in to

rea l bus inesses .

SERIOUS ABOUT SPORT AND ACTIVITY

Brief To revis i t the branding and l i terature for

RGU: SpoRT; with a v iew to refreshing i t , making i t

more funct ional and more strategic.

Solution With compet i t ion in the hea l th and spor t

sector qu i te aggress ive we needed to f ind our

c l ients USP.

S ince they d idn ’ t indu lge in any cosmet ic or spa

t reatments and seemed to at t r act a no-nonsense

type of customer ; we thought we had found an

interest ing s t r ap l ine that conso l idated th i s .

Dynamic new imager y together wi th a c lean and

c lassy look and funct iona l i ty gave the c l ient ’s

ser v ices the new l i fe they were look ing for.

Client RGU:SPORT. An unsua l c l ient in that i t s

customer s are pr imar i ly s tudents and s ta f f , but a l so

the loca l communi ty and some corporates . A l l o f

whom needed to be addressed by the mar ket ing

co l la ter a l .

SERIOUS ABOUT SPORT AND ACTIVITYGroup Exercise Timetable12th September - 18th December

Family and Children Activities and Memberships


SERIOUS ABOUT SPORT AND ACTIVITYGeneral Activities


SERIOUS ABOUT SPORT AND ACTIVITYMemberships

Brief To develop the l i terature for TRANSITIoN

EXTREME with a v iew to refreshing i t , making i t

more strategic and attract ing more investment in i t .

Solution Using a dynamic new font and imagery,

that complemented the exist ing branding and

working closely with the companys market ing staff

we produced a number of publ icat ions to encourage

investment and interest.

Client TRANSITIoN EXTREME i s an award

winn ing soc ia l enterpr i se that ass i s t s the young

people of Aberdeen Ci ty and Sh i re in mak ing the

d i f f i cu l t t r ans i t ions f rom ch i ldhood to adu l thood;

by prov id ing a r ange of innovat ive spor t ing ,

hea l th , employab i l i ty, d iver s ionar y and educat iona l

oppor tun i t ies .

Brief To develop an ident i ty and a brand for

Aberdeens f i rst Art Fair.

Solution F luorescent ink and a s t r ik ing logo that

encapsu lated the c l ients ethos of ‘hav ing a f fordable

ar t in the hear t o f the c i ty ’ lead to an ident i ty that

was instant ly recogn isable at a d i s tance wherever i t

appeared .

Client Ger r y Muldoon at GM Events .

Brief To produce branding for an inv i te and panels

for an exhibit ion about Scot land’s Secret War.

Solution A restr a ined WW2 colour pa let te was

used together wi th found images suppl ied by the

exh ib i t ions cur ator, to evoke the per iod of the

sub ject matter.

Client Col lect ions Depar tment ,

RobeRt GoRdon UniveRsity .

Scotland’s War

GEORGE MACKIEAND THE STIRLING BOMBER

George Mackie joined the Royal Air Force in June 1940, having completed his third year at Dundee School of Art. He began his fourth year at Edinburgh College of Art 6 years later. In between he flew over two thousand hours as pilot, mostly on Stirlings, doing bombing and mining ops, instructing and finally at the end of the war, transport work to such places as Gibraltar, Calcutta and Ceylon. He also flew the Flying Fortress for some months in 1944 on radar work, accompanying the bomber stream to targets in Germany.

He recommends it as an alternative to a “gap” year.

In 1956 he was appointed Head of Design at Gray’s School of Art. He continued working as a freelance, mostly as book designer for Edinburgh University Press for which work he was made a Royal Designer for Industry in 1973. He also designed and illustrated many guidebooks for the National Trust for Scotland. A collection of his watercolours and (stone) lithographs of Aberdeen harbour showing the early days of the oil boom is in the Maritime Museum.

George Mackie DFC RDI retired as Head of Design when the Diploma was discarded in favour of Honours Degrees.

George Mackie and crew in 1944

LEFT: This photograph was taken on30 April 1942 by the famous aviation photographer, Charles E Brown, fromSgt George Mackie’s aircraft, whoseshadow can be seen on the starboard wing.

BELOW: Sgt George Mackie, the pilot(in the foreground), and his navigatorSgt Cook DFM are pictured inside one ofNo 1651 HCU’s Stirlings at Waterbeach in 1942.

WARTIME ACTIVITIES INROBERT GORDON’S TECHNICAL COLLEGEThe war had a considerable effect on the activities of the Technical College, both in terms of the threat of enemy bombs to the work of the College, and also on the teaching carried out. Student numbers dropped by about a third, especially in areas such as architecture which had a heavy male bias. In Gray’s School of Art this led to five members of staff being made part-time. Engineering, on the other hand, kept up its numbers as courses were run which related to the war effort.

Two cannon which came from the Sebastopol after the Crimean War, were taken and melted down for the war effort.

William Tawse Ltd., Public Works Contractors, were employed to erect shelters at a cost of £1,165.19s.11d. in various locations within College grounds, namely the quad at Schoolhill (above), Gray’s and the School of Domestic Science. Alexander Cruickshank, Principal Teacher of Building, was also involved in the erection and maintenance of the shelters for which he was paid an honorarium of 30 guineas. Other costs included darkening for the glass roof of the Electrical Engineering laboratory, a petrol engine to provide charging for stand-by batteries and the Governors also authorised the purchase, at a cost of 33s. 6d. of twelve steel helmets for the fire watchers and fire fighters at the Colleges. As part of the defence of the College, two fire watchers slept in the Governors’ Room and they continued during an “alert” to patrol the buildings until the “all clear” had been sounded. During a raid on 21st April 1942 a bomb was dropped in the quadrangle at Schoolhill, damaging the quad and breaking about 200 panes of glass.

Amongst the war casualties of those associated with the Technical College was James J. Stewart, a Governor, who was killed on active service in the Middle East.

© Aberdeen Journals

© Robert Gordons College

PharmacyAs part of the war work by the Pharmacy Dept. a course in gas detection was undertaken by the Head of School and Eric Thorpe, assistant lecturer, was appointed as a gas identification officer in connection with Air Raid Precautions.

Gray’sConsiderable re-arrangements were made to the School accommodation to give over six classrooms to naval ratings. At the request of the Air Ministry the students of the School undertook the colouring of a number of large scale maps and courses were run in

building up models from contour maps for instructional purposes. In December 1942 a one week course was taught for Army Handicraft Instructors and students at the time remember having to report to the police station if they were drawing outdoors, especially somewhere like the harbour area. The involvement of members of staff included T. B. Huxley-Jones, Principal Lecturer in Sculpture, helping to man an anti-aircraft gun at the Torry Battery and Alexander Cruickshank, teacher of Building Science, resigning to undertake work of national importance.

Soldiers prepare a realistic contour map at Gray’s School of ArtBon Accord and Northern Pictorial publication 1943

Left to right: Joe Westwood, Under Secretary of State for Scotland, Councillor G.R. McIntosh and sculptor T.B. Huxley Jones view the artist’s work.

“Father Forgive Them” Bon Accord and Northern Pictorial publication. 1945

Scotland’s War

LEO CLEGGAND THE RAID ON ST NAZAIRE

Leo Clegg had barely started his art school training at Glasgow School of Art when at the age of 19 he joined the RNVR (Royal Naval Volunteer Reserves). The war would eventually take him to Algiers in North Africa, St Nazaire in France, Anzio in Italy, and Greece. Towards the end of the war he was stationed in Livorno in Italy, as captain of a motor torpedo boat.

A Young MidshipmanHis earliest experience of war began at Scapa Flow in 1939 when a German U-boat, U-47, crept into the anchorage and attacked the British fleet sinking the battleship ‘Royal Oak’. At this time Leo, a 19 year old midshipman, was delivering mail to the fleet in a small motor boat and

had to return to his own ship before assisting with the rescue.On 10th August 1940 midshipman Leo Clegg was on the HMS Transylvania which was carrying food and troops across the Atlantic from Canada and the USA as part of the north Atlantic convoy when it was torpedoed by the German submarine U-56, 35 miles west of Malin Head, Northern Ireland. An explosion around midnight caused the vessel to list and the call to abandon ship was given at about 3.00am. The Captain left the ship shortly before she sank at 4.25am and 48 lives were lost. Midshipman Leo Clegg was in charge of one of the lifeboats and was later rescued.

Scotland’s War

The Raid on St Nazaire On 28th March 1942 sub-lieutenant Clegg was one of the officers who played a role in the daring raid on St Nazaire. The British military believed that the only dry dock available on the Atlantic coast had to be destroyed as it was the ideal haven for the much feared German battleship ‘Tirpitz’.

Operation Chariot The original plan was to use two destroyers in the attack but in reality one old destroyer, ‘HMS Campbeltown’, laden with 4 tons of explosives and an escort of seventeen small boats were to sail up the five mile Loire estuary in darkness. Upon reaching their destination, the huge ‘Normandie’ dry dock, the British destroyer was to ram the 1500 ton dry dock gates. Once she struck the gates, commandos were to disembark to search for and destroy specific targets in the dock area.

The explosives aboard the ship were on a timer and would later explode. The allied attack force consisted of 256 commandos and 355 navy personnel, 611 in total.

Leo Clegg was on board motor launch ML307. Ahead of them lay the might of the Nazi military machine, including eighty guns along the banks of the five mile estuary, a well guarded, fortified U-boat pen and more than 5000 German troops.

The mission was described by one British naval officer as having

“A negligible chance of success”

Most of the task force were expected to be sacrificed as the commandos were outnumbered twenty to one.

2000 yards from the dock gates the enemy unleashed a barrage of heavy fire at the attacking force.

SECRET WAR • SECRET LIVESIn this, the Twenty First Century, in which we can obtain at the press of a computer key, instant digital media coverage of war, anywhere in the world, the reality and the true horror can never be experienced from the safety of our homes. We cannot visualise or imagine it as being authentic for we have not truly experienced it. War is like an illness which we may choose to ignore until we, or someone we know, has been affected by it.

As we move around in this building, we reach out for our mobile phones and with our wondrous pixelated technology we may view the sanitized broadcasts depicting what would appear to be another world. We become oblivious to our immediate surroundings and company. Technology has always been found in the battle field but this exhibition is not about the technology.

The purpose of this exhibition is to highlight the actions of young people on both sides, just a few of the very many who once were young students studying to further themselves, and, at the age of 19 years, suddenly, when threatened, became involved in a war because they felt they had to be.

SOME NEVER RETURNED HOME

SOME LIVES WERE DESTROYED AND SOME WERE REBUILT

THE EVENTS THAT OVERTOOK THEM SHAPED THE WORLD IN WHICH WE LIVE

Scotland’s War

Brief To cont inue and develop further the look

developed for the undergraduate degree show.

Solution The solut ion for the undergraduate

degree show was based around the degree show

being perceived as a TV show. This was further

developed in a s l ight ly dif ferent direct ion for the

Masters Degree Show; which took the old test cards

as inspirat ion.

Client Grays School of Ar t .

Brief To cont inue and develop further the look

developed for the undergraduate degree show.

Solution The solut ion for the undergraduate

degree show was based around a prest igious

marque highl ight ing the fact that Grays have been

‘purveyors of Fine Creat ives for 125 Years’ .

This was further developed for the Masters Degree

Show into a s l ight ly dif ferent marque and pr inted

onto recycled, ut i l i tar ian card stock for a dif ferent

feel.

Client Grays School of Ar t .

Brief To produce d i f ferent language ver s ions of an

internat iona l document for spec i f i c mar kets .

Solution The core document i s des igned and

proofed in Eng l i sh before be ing profess iona l ly

t r ans la ted and set to f i t , in to the requ i red

languages . The tr ans la ted text i s then subst i tuted

for the Eng l i sh text and the job pr inted .

E lectron ic ver s ions of the documents are then

p laced in an on l ine pdf l ibr ar y for easy access ,

enabled for download and pr int ing .

Client Internat iona l Of f ice , RobeRt

GoRdon UniveRsity .

就业前景

中国留学生指南 2011

专业大学 www.rgu.ac.uk/international

顶尖英国现代化大学2011 年泰晤士报和卫报排名

毕业生就业状况综合排名第二

ПерсПективы карьерного роста

сПравочник для российских студентов на 2011 г.

ПРОФЕССИОНАЛЬНЫЙ УНИВЕРСИТЕТ www.rgu.ac.uk/international

Лучший современный университет ВеликобританииРейтинги The Times и Guardian на 2011 г.

Второй университет по уровню занятости выпускников

罗伯特.戈顿大学的优势在于可提供实践性强、以职业为导向的课程，同时我们和各行各业也有着紧密的联系。这一点可以保证我们的课程能满足雇主之需，并能保证我们的毕业生在专业市场上占有一席之地。

我们的许多课程都包括课程实践安排 – 例如，理学硕士人力资源管理课程提供为期五周的课程实践安排，在真实的公司做实实在在的工作；理学硕士计算机技术：信息工程专业的学生可以申请为期一年的课程实践安排机会。

另外，罗伯特·戈顿大学的许多课程都得到专业机构认可，包括：机械工程师协会、英国计算机协会 (BCS)、特许市场营销协会、英国特许采购与供应协会、英国人事发展特许协会、英国工商管理硕士协会 (AMBA)，等等。

学士学位（荣誉学位）课程通常需四年完成。研究生学位（硕士学位）课程通常需一年完成。

Garthdee 校园的最新建筑是投资 1,100 万英镑兴建的体育中心，该中心已成为学生的社交活动中心。体育中心配备 25 米的游泳池、陡峭的攀岩壁和其他许多一流的设备。

罗伯特·戈顿大学分两个校园 - 您可能就读于阿伯丁核心区的市中心校园，也可能就读于近郊超现代化的 Garthdee 校园。如需往返于两个校园之间，可以搭乘定时 Unilink 班车，只需 20 分钟车程。

每个校园都有图书馆，馆内藏书丰富，有图书、期刊、在线资料、电子资料以及影印和传真设备。两个图书馆都是每周七天开放。两处校园共有 2,500 多台联网计算机，可以上网、发送电子邮件、使用各类应用软件。您还可以随时光顾位

于市中心的学生会，它是专门供学生进行交流的地方。学生会于 2009 年重新翻修，是喝茶、品尝咖啡或其他饮品、听音乐、打台球或参加社团的理想之选，共设有 30 多个不同的俱乐部和社团协会。

НАУЧНО-ИССЛЕДОВАТЕЛЬСКИЕ РАБОТЫ

Стратегические приоритетыНаучно-исследовательская работа является стратегическим приоритетом Университета Роберта Гордона. В последние годы Университет удвоил финансирование научных исследований, которое он получает от спонсоров, в результате чего значительно увеличилось число студентов, проходящих курс послевузовского обучения для получения ученой степени.

Мы продолжаем наращивать усилия и развивать свои возможности в следующих ключевых областях:

Научно-исследовательская работа в Университете Роберта Гордона поддерживается предпринимательством. Возможности для проведения научных исследований существуют в каждой школе каждого из трех факультетов, при этом научная работа организована таким образом, чтобы внести вклад в каждую из ключевых областей.

У нас великолепная репутация в плане прикладных исследований, которая подкрепляется высоким уровнем деятельности по обмену знаниями в Университете. Университет Роберта Гордона занимает высшую строчку в приложении Times в обзоре, посвященном высшему образованию, среди университетов Великобритании по объему дохода, который Университет получает от бизнеса за консультации и коммерческую деятельность.

Кроме того, мы завоевали международную репутацию благодаря высокому уровню исследований, проведенных по многим темам, имеющих для нас приоритетное значение. В Университете Роберта Гордона мы создали динамичную среду без традиционных междисциплинарных академических барьеров. Это способствует развитию научно-исследовательских групп, работающих в нескольких дисциплинах. К тому же, это предоставляет огромные возможности для работы в современной интернациональной научной среде, в которой проведение исследований в рамках одной дисциплины становится редкостью.

Ученые степени Во всех трех школах университета существуют возможности для проведения исследований на получение степени магистра естественных наук (MSc), магистра исследовательской деятельности (MRes), магистра философии (MPhil) и доктора философии (PhD) как на условиях очной, так и заочной формы обучения. Помимо этого существует курс для получения степени доктора по определенной дисциплине. В настоящее время стоимость обучения иностранных студентов дневной формы обучения составляет от 10 050 до 12 200 фунтов стерлингов за 2010-11 учебный год, в зависимости от области исследований.

Brief To produce a bus iness card for an up and

coming por tr a i t ar t i s t s launch exh ib i t ion .

Solution We in i t ia l ly thought that us ing on ly one

image would not g ive potent ia l c l ients an idea of

the ar t i s t s r ange ; so we produced a concer t ina

bus iness card incorporat ing a r ange of por tr a i t

s ty les on i t together wi th the ar t i s t s s tatement

for a launch exh ib i t ion .

Client MaRk Moynihan, the ar t i s t c l ient was so

p leased wi th the resu l t s he dec ided to cont inue the

theme on future ver s ions of h i s bus iness cards .

Brief To produce a document which would he lp

in a fundr a i s ing in i t ia t ive for the Univer s i ty ’s One

Campus Masterp lan .

Solution A modern ut i l i tar ian des ign wi th cover s

pr inted onto an opaque p las t ic and wirobound

in two ver s ions (a ‘ tas ter ’ document and a more

deta i led f inanc ia l document) were produced for a

number of h igh profi le events .

Client Estates and Phys ica l Resources

Depar tment , Deve lopment and Alumni

Depar tment and F inance Depar tment ,

RobeRt GoRdon UniveRsity.

Brief To produce a v ib r ant , magaz ine- s ty le

jour na l annua l ly to h i gh l i gh t va r ious research ,

bus iness and management in i t i a t i ves be ing

under taken by Aberdeen Bus iness Schoo l and a

w ide r ange o f s t r a teg i c par tner s loca l l y, na t iona l ly

and in ter na t iona l ly.

Solution A g lossy h i - impact approach was

taken to i l l u s t r a te the publ i ca t ion . Spec ia l l y

commiss ioned photogr aphs compl imented imager y

supp l ied by cont r ibutor s .

Client Aberdeen Bus iness School ,


The Human Resource [ HR ] Profession

What is the difference between an occupation and a profession? Debate on this topic often centres around the need for the latter to adhere to the concept of altruism which involves ‘self sacrifice’ and a ‘duty to follow a code of ethical behaviour’ (Gold & Bratton 2003). This emphasis on ethics is further reflected in Cheetham and Chivers’ (1998) Model of Professional Competence. In this model, four areas of competence are defined, namely, knowledge, function, behavioural and ethical; no one area is given prominence and they are all necessary skills for the able practitioner. Professional bodies recognise this by designing codes of conduct for their members.

One such body is the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development [ CIPD ]. Its code ‘covers professional standards of behaviour’ which requires members

to: provide specialist professional knowledge, advice and support in the management and development of people; enhance the reputation of the profession; continually update and refresh their skills and knowledge; exercise integrity, honesty, discipline and appropriate behavior; and to act within the law’ (CIPD, 2005). The HR practitioner, to be considered ‘professional’, must therefore adhere to all the above and this is by no means an easy task.

Responsibility of the HR Profession

Traditionally, professionals have had a duty to place the needs of their clients at the forefront of their considerations and this relationship has historically been unique. If human resource management is accepted as a profession, then it too should put the needs of their clients at the forefront. Nowadays many professionals - including HR practitioners - work for an organisation and depend on it for their salary. This could lead to contradictory and conflicting accountability issues for HR professionals, as the definition of client in today’s organization is not clear-cut. Are clients the employees, the Board of Directors, the shareholders or all of the above and more?

In recent years, the role of the HR professional has become more strategic in focus. In some cases, this is a sharp shift away from the traditional role of the Personnel Officer, looking after the welfare and interests of the workforce. This has involved a closer alignment with the management of an organisation, thus implying a different relationship with their traditional clients

MANAGEMENT, THEORY AND PRACTICE

ETHICS, PEOPLE AND THE HUMAN RESOURCE PROFESSIONMoira Bailey, Lecturer and Anne Stevenson, Senior Lecturer In Human Resource Management, Aberdeen Business School

of the workforce. In some ways, this may be considered to represent the first major ethical dilemma to affect the HR professional, as the needs of the workforce and the needs of the organisation are not always in harmony. Whilst this is a dilemma which faces all managers, for the HR professional, the problem is two-fold.

There is a wider role for HR professionals because they are often considered to be the guardians of ethical behaviour in the workplace. This means that they are responsible for not only their own ethical standards but also for the ethical standards of those working for the organisation. The latter includes the need to identify the types of ethical attitudes that are essential for the operation of the firm. However, these ethical standards need to be constantly reinforced through appropriate training and development and measured regularly to ensure that they are being maintained.

Thus, if HR managers are responsible for ensuring ethical behaviour in the organisation, who trains the HR professional in this area? Evidence gathered over the years suggests that this is an area which needs far more attention than it receives, as ethics may be only a minor part of the required education or training in human resource management. This two-fold role of the HR professional makes it a very important part of their work.

It is likely that HR staff receive their ethical education in the same way as everyone else; it is learned from parents, schools, the media and society. It can be considered to be the difference between actions which are perceived as acceptable and those perceived as unacceptable. The well – known problem is that often there is no definitive ‘right’ or ‘wrong’. For the HR professional, the right course of action for an employee may be wrong for the organisation and vice-versa. The existence of so many stakeholders and so many conflicting needs and requirements in an organisation cause regular ethical dilemmas.

The Role of Ethics in the HR Profession

Ethics are often overlooked as an area for personal development as the concept is difficult to define and even more difficult to measure. As Billington (2003) explains, everyone makes ethical decisions every day which will affect other people. In the workplace, the decisions of managers have an impact upon their employees and therefore every decision is important. Billington further considers that morals can be defined as the way a person sets out to achieve ethical standards and these will naturally vary due to the variety of life experiences of individuals. Yet an organisation has to ensure that its employees are all behaving in an ‘ethical’ way.

A useful way of determining the ethical stance of organisations was devised by Carroll (1990), who described organisations as moral, where decisions are made only after ethical considerations have been discussed; immoral, where organisations deliberately decide to adopt unethical behaviour; and amoral, where organisations do not consider the ethical implications of their actions. Amoral management can cause as much damage as immoral management. A well-known case is that of the powdered baby milk manufacturer which marketed and sold their products in a part of the world that had no safe water supplies and caused untold suffering to families. This was an amoral act with tragic consequences.

ABERDEEN BUSINESS JOURNAL6 7ABERDEEN BUSINESS JOURNAL

ABERDEEN BUSINESS JOURNAL

ISSUE 5

> THE DEAN’S VIEW

> DONALD TRUMP - Business Personality Interview

> ETHICS, PEOPLE AND THE HUMAN RESOURCE PROFESSION

> THE FUTURE OF FINANCIAL REPORTING

> RIDING THE RAPIDS THROUGH RECESSION

> PROFILE - STEWART SPENCE

> THE TALE OF AVC

> ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN A MULTINATIONAL COMPANY

- THE BP EXPERIENCE

> INTERNET RETAIL: THE DEVELOPMENT, GROWTH AND

FUTURE OF ONLINE SHOPPING

> LOCAL BUSINESS AND RECESSION SURVIVAL

> Alumni PROFILE - PHILIPPE WEHMEYER

> THE NEXT 10 YEARS FOR THE BUSINESS SCHOOL

Brief To produce a look and theme for the annua l

boat r ace event .

Solution We have an annua l br a instorming

sess ion wi th s tudent rower s , and the PR f i rm

en l i s ted to get press cover age for the event .

We have cons i s tent ly produced eye-catch ing and

innovat ive concepts and imager y for th i s event over

the las t 10 year s .

Client abeRdeen asset ManaGeMent but

a l so the two un iver s i t ies boat teams , and the PR

f i rm act ing for event .

Brief To produce a look and theme for the annua l

boat r ace event .

Solution We have an annua l br a instorming

sess ion wi th s tudent rower s , and the PR f i rm

en l i s ted to get press cover age for the event .

We have cons i s tent ly produced eye-catch ing and

innovat ive concepts and imager y for th i s event over

the las t 10 year s .

Client abeRdeen asset ManaGeMenT but

a l so the two un iver s i t ies boat teams , and the PR

f i rm act ing for event .

Brief To create a commemorat ive graduat ion

document which would ref lect the impor tance of the

ceremony and act as a keepsake for the graduate .

Solution A fo i l blocked fo lder, wi th ceremony

brochure and gr aduand l i s t brochure . We used

black to represent the gr aduat ion gowns and the

corporate purp le .

Client Communicat ions Of f ice , RobeRt

GoRdon UniveRsity ,

Brief To create a br and ident i ty and mar ket ing

mater ia l for The Inst i tute of Hea l th and Wel fare

Research re launch into the Univer s i ty and loca l

bus iness communi t ies .

Solution We des igned a marque to embody the

three key themes which make up the Inst i tute -

Card iovascu lar & Metabol ic Disease , Env i ronmenta l

& Occupat iona l Hea l th , and Neurolog ica l & Menta l

Hea l th . These cou ld be used as a whole to

represent the Inst i tute or broken apar t into three

d is t inct sect ions to s ign i fy each key theme .

For the promot iona l pack we created a fo lder

which holds the introduct ion book let and a su i te

of inser ts . A fo lder was deemed as the most

su i table so lut ion as the f lex ib i l i ty would enable new

in format ion to be added and updated at low cost

to the customer.

Client RobeRt GoRdon UniveRsity , Ins t i tute

for Hea l th and Wel fare Research .

Neurological & Mental Health

Environmental & Occupational Health

Cardiovascular & Metabolic Disease

Brief To create a look for the annua l degree show

appl icable across a r ange of formats and media .

Solution Our research for the pro ject revea led

that i t was in fact the 125th ann iver sar y of the

school ; and i t was fe l t that th i s fact cou ld he lp

in form th i s year s des ign .

The concept that the school ( l i ke a shop of

ant iqu i ty) had been a pur veyor of f ine creat ives

( r ather than food) for 125 year s was deve loped

v i sua l ly and wi t t i ly app l ied across var ious media .

I t was fo i led black g loss onto matt black s tock for

the VIP inv i tes and show cata logue .

Client RobeRt GoRdon UniveRsity ,

Gr ay ’s School of Ar t

Brief To produce a document that both un i f ies

and d i f ferent ia tes between d i f ferent exper t

communicator s and the i r re levant sub jects .

Solution A tr ansparent polypropy lene enve lope

with re ference cards on each exper t ; co lour coded

for sub ject matter was fe l t to be a good pr act ica l

so lut ion to the br ie f .

Client Communicatons Depar tment ,


Brief To crea te a v i sua l ident i t y for recyc l ing

on the RGU campus . The campa ign w i l l t a r get

s tudents and be l auched a t F resher s ’ Fa i r w i th a

s tand and webpage .

Solution We focused on creat ing a s t rong v i sua l

e lement which would be immediate ly assoc iated

wi th recyc l ing and the env i ronment . We used the

‘Keep Br i ta in T idy ’ campaign as a s tar t ing point

and deve loped the icon ic char acter to re f lect the

var ious facu l tys wi th in the Univer s i ty.

Client Estates Depar tment ,

RobeRt GoRdon UniveRsity.

keeprgugreen

The university uses approximately 20 millionsheets of paper per year – equivalent to 3000 trees!

We have increased university recycling from 17% in early 2008 to

40% in 2010

17%40%

In an average month the University has approximately 55 tonnes of waste of which

is recycled

40%22 tonnes

(40%)

The Scottish Government wants to have

of all waste recycled by

www.zerowastescotland.org.uk

70%

2025

2

the faculty of health and social care

scott sutherland school of architecture gray’s school of artaberdeen business school RGU: SPORT

Brief To create a s t rong contemporar y logo ; one

which was c lean and unc lut tered wi th which to

represent the company and i t s products .

A des ign that would not l imi t gender nor age group;

that cou ld be appl ied across a l l our products whi l s t

hav ing the capac i ty to d i f ferent ia te between r anges .

Solution We researched ce l t i c mytho logy and

symbo l i sm favoured by the c l i en t and came to the

mutua l conc lus ion tha t ‘ the Tr ip le Sp i r a l ’ wh ich has

sever a l i n ter preta t ions cou ld ser ve the bas i s o f

our des i gn .

Th is Cel t ic symbol i s be l ieved to represent the

be l ie f that a l l l i fe moved in cont inuous cyc les and

the be l ie f in the mind , the body and the sou l or

sp i r i t as inextr icably l inked e lements .

Together wi th the combin ing and l ink ing of essent ia l

ingred ients we thought the t r ip le sp i r a l cou ld be

seem to represent these va lues .

Client P U R E B A L M L t d i s a ser ie s o f product s

tha t w i l l pur i f y, c leanse and re f resh your body

and keep your consc ience c lear a s we l l . I t was

bor n out o f a ph i losophy o f sourc ing or gan ic

and na tur a l i ng red ient s for use in the i r product s ,

and a commitment to soc ia l respons ib i l i t y in the

product ion and supp ly o f both our ingred ient s

and conta iner s .

I t i s extremely proud of i t s ‘Bott led in Torph ins ,

Scot land ’ tag l ine . And i t s profi le and reputat ion

which are go ing f rom strength to s t rength .

AWAKEN ORIGINAL SOOTHEREVIVE SENSUAL

www.pureba lm.com

|

|

|

BAPURE LM

Brief To deve lop the PURE BALM brand ; putt ing

the symbol ic logo at the hear t o f the mar ket ing

co l la ter a l

Solution We produced a r ange o f pos ter s and

mar ket ing l i te r a ture for s tock i s t s and fa i r use .Client P U R E B A L M L t d i s a ser ie s o f product s

tha t w i l l pur i f y, c leanse and re f resh your body

and keep your consc ience c lear a s we l l . I t was

bor n out o f a ph i losophy o f sourc ing or gan ic

and na tur a l i ng red ient s for use in the i r product s ,

and a commitment to soc ia l respons ib i l i t y in the

product ion and supp ly o f both our ingred ient s

and conta iner s .

PURE BALM

PURE BALMwww.purebalm.com

we don’t test

our organic

and natural

products on

animals - but

don’t let that

stop you…

PURE BALM

organic and natural

products for

the pure

of heart

and

mind

PURE BALMwww.purebalm.com

PURE BALM

PURE BALM

PURE BALM

Brief To update the su i te of Sa lamis ser v ices . Solution We could have g iven the c l ient l i ter ature

reus ing the i r l ibr ar y of hard-hat , o i l r ig type images ;

but we fe l t there was an oppor tun i ty to make the i r

l i ter ature s tand-out in the i r mar ketp lace by tak ing a

la ter a l route .

The image o f a dande l ion c lock be ing b lown in

the w ind seemed to imp ly decommiss ion ing in

an a t t r ac t i ve memor able image and th i s l ed to

us us ing s im i l a r l a te r a l imager y to i l l u s t r a te the i r

o ther ser v i ces .

Client saLaMis a company owned by the

Maer sk Group.

The c l ient loved the so lut ion we came up with

and adopted the suggested imager y in a ver y

enthus ias t ic manner. The rebr and was adopted

across the company by both on and of f shore s ta f f ;

mak ing into such formats as screensaver s and lar ge

pr ints in the i r recept ions .

Brief To Produce a campaign of Hea l th & Sa fety

Poster s for Sa lamis ser v ices on and of f shore .

Solution The mar ket at the t ime of th i s campaign

was satur ated wi th sa fety poster s of car toon men

in hard hats and jumpsu i ts . We went for a more

rea l i s t i c hard-h i t t ing approach based on deta i led

d i scuss ions wi th the c l ient about the reasons hea l th

and sa fety gu ide l ines aren ’ t fo l lowed.

We wrote the copy, took the photogr aphs and

des igned the poster s .

Client saLaMis a company owned by the

Maer sk Group.

Unbeknown to us the c l ient l i ked the campaign so

much i t entered i t in to a industr y hea l th and sa fety

compet i t ion…and won .

health and safety is a state of mind

Des

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Des

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Turning Your Back on good lifting practices at work could lead to reduced pleasure at home! Is this when the message of good lifting and posture finally clicks in?

LoveLoveBrief To deve lop a logo which cou ld be appl ied

to a l l manner of company l i ter ature and a sub

br anding and brochure for the i r h igh ly lucr at ive

wedding ser v ice .

The des ign should re f lect the h i s tor ic s ty le of the

bu i ld ing and the hote l ’s four s tar r at ing .

Solution We v is i ted the hote l tak ing photogr aphs

of the hote l arch i tecture and interest ing inter ior s

aspects . We then began to deve lop a co lour

pa let te in f luenced by the fabr ics and furn i ture

in the hote l a long wi th f lour i shes and p ictor ia l

e lements insp i red by our photogr aphy.

An e legant wedding brochure us ing the ‘Love

Norwood’ tag l ine was created on a du l l go ld

meta l l i c s tock wi th emboss ing and screenpr int ing .

We also proposed solutions to rat ional ise the random

var iety of logos being used by the organisat ion.

Client noRWood haLL hoteL i s s i tuated

at the gateway to Roya l Dees ide in an area of

outstand ing beauty. Eas i ly access ible f rom a l l areas

of the Ci ty, th i s 19th Centur y four-s tar Mans ion

House i s set wi th in 7 acres of pr ivate woodland

and gardens yet i s on ly three mi les f rom the Ci ty

Centre . Norwood Hal l combines luxur y wi th

modern fac i l i t ies whi l s t reta in ing the h i s tor y and

ambiance of days gone by. The s tunn ing P i t fode ls

Su i te can cater for wedding ceremonies and

recept ions f rom 20 to 200 guests .

Your wedding day should be a day of...

love, laughter and happy ever afters

...the stunning dress, the sumptous

wedding breakfast and of course the

perfect venue

hotel

Contact usNorwood Hall HotelGarthdee RoadCultsAberdeen AB15 9FX

telephone (01224) 868951

fax (01224) 269868

email [email protected]

www.norwood-hall.co.uk

Romance With roaring log fires, sweeping staircases and magnificent interior design, Norwoog Hall Hotel is the perfect venue for your special day. With perfect photograph settings to choose from such as the Georgian Bar with its graded wallpeper and many of the original features from the Victorian era if the stately Library with traditional rich wood panelling., you can be sure to have stunning lasting memories of your wedding day.

Ceremonies can be held in either the stunning Pitfodels suite or on the lawn and for the more intimate wedding, the elegant library can accommodate up to 20 guests.

Norwood hall has 36 en-suite bedrooms including deluxe junior suites, four poster rooms and superb original house rooms, which include all th eluxury and modern facilities of a four star hotel, whilst retaining the history and ambiance of days gone by.

Unique ambiance

The stunning Pitfodels Suite with floor to ceiling windows and patio doors leading onto the gardens is an ideal venue for your reception. Chandeliers illuminate the room whilst the tables superbly decorated; seat your guests for a wonderful banquet and outstanding service.

Accommodating up to 200 guests, the Pitfodels Suite has a private bar, stage for your band and a large dance floor to dance the night away!

Let our experienced staff create a romantic amiance where you and your friends and family will have a night to remember.

Fairytale reception

Situated at the gateway to Royal Deeside in an area of outstanding beauty, the cosmopolitan City of Aberdeen is steeped in history with a vast array of museums and art galleries as well as offering fantastic shopping and a vibrant nightlife scene.

Easily accessible from all areas of the City, this 19th Century four-star Mansion House is set within 7 acres of private woodland and gardens yet is only three miles from the City Centre.

Romantic Loction

Brief The br ie f was to update the company ’s

l i ter ature and des ign a logo which re f lected

i t ’s bus iness .

Solution We immediate ly sought to ut i l i se the

fasc inat ing u l t r ason ic , in f r a-red and other inspect ion

technology imager y that was par t o f the company ’s

por t fo l io ; they had not prev ious ly been at the

forefront of the i r l i ter ature .

The deve lopment of the logo and brochures

now made the company ’s products and ser v ices

h igh ly v i s ible .

The new look seemed obv ious to the c l ient in

h inds ight and was adopted across the i r l i ter ature

and on l ine r ange .

Client soMoMatiC innovative insPeCtion

teChnoLoGies. As the i r name suggests they use

new technology to inspect hardware , equ ipment

and locat ions .

Brief To create a company brochure and an

eyecatch ing mai l shot for Oleochem Pro ject

Management . The c l ient asked for a complete ly

f resh new look for the brochure us ing dynamic

techn ica l imager y.

Solution The i r cur rent brochure was qu i te

outdated so we looked to g ive i t a complete

redes ign us ing c lean , contemporar y imager y. Our

so lut ion took insp i r at ion f rom the per iod ic table

and i t ’s c lean , factua l in format ion based inter face .

The idea for the mai l shot was to rea l i se the

above idea in three d imens ions and a l so produce

someth ing that embodied the company ’s products

and ser v ices . Each rec ip ient was f ree to use the

s lot ted squares of the mai l shot to constr uct an

interest ing desktop model of the i r own creat ion

(each square i l lus t r at ing a key ser v ice of ferd by

Oleochem) .

Client oLeoCheM PRojeCt ManaGeMent

spec ia l i ses in prov id ing a comprehens ive r ange

of laborator y ser v ices to the upstream and

downstream process industr ies that inc ludes

cr ude o i l , condensate , natur a l gas , LNG, LPG and

petrochemica l s .

Brief To deve lop an annua l rev iew product ion

which re f lects the or gan isat ions act iv i t ies and

in i t ia t ives for the academic year.

Solution A c lean , no-nonsense corporate des ign

was adopted for the publ icat ion .

Client Communicat ions Of f ice ,


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University invites public to view plans for Garthdee campus

The University’s detailed planning application for a

34,000m2 development, which will cost £170 million, was

submitted to Aberdeen City Council in November 2009,

with a decision expected early in 2010.

The development will be connected to the existing Faculty

of Health and Social Care, which neighbours RGU: SPORT

and Aberdeen Business School.

The new development will see all of the University’s

academic activities located at the Garthdee Campus within

state-of-the-art teaching and learning facilities, including

a new library, as well as formal and informal learning and

social spaces for students. It will also allow staff and

students from different disciplines to benefit from co-

located inter-disciplinary working in a manner that has

previously not been possible with two separate locations.Ma

ster

The new development will see all of the University’s academic activities

located at the Garthdee Campus within state-of-the-art teaching and

learning facilities.

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Beating the drum for small businesses in the

North-east

The Centre for International Labour Market Studies at

Aberdeen Business School has been successful in obtaining

European Social Fund backing of £411,000 for its ‘Business

Skills for Growth’ project which will provide free business

training, especially for small, medium and social enterprises

in Aberdeen City and Shire.

The central objective of the project is to provide short

courses to improve SME business skills in specific areas. It

also presents an opportunity for Aberdeen Business School

to further its links with local businesses and develop a

training option for these enterprises which compliments

existing courses on offer, as well as being designed

specifically for those taking part.

Engineering students to benefit from scholarships

Students from the School of Engineering have been

awarded generous scholarships by several high-profile

organisations which include financial support, the

opportunity to undertake paid placements, and eligibility

to apply for a permanent position on successful

completion of the course.

Organisations involved include leading industry services

company Bureau Veritas, FMC Technologies, subsea

engineering and construction contractor Technip, and world-

leading offshore crane management, engineering and lifting

services contractor, Sparrows Offshore Services.

Market ForcesStudents to receive achievement awards from

local jeweller

Mr Sandy Menzies, an alumnus of the University who

recently launched the University’s graduation jewellery

collection, has introduced the Sandy Menzies Achievement

Awards.

The Awards recognise one student from each of the

University’s ten schools who has excelled academically or

overcome adversity to graduate. Every recipient receives

a piece of Sandy Menzies graduation jewellery and a

certificate for their efforts.

One recipient was nutrition student Elisabeth Deschamp

who demonstrated academic excellence at every stage in

her course.

David Imevbore, a graduate of the University who now owns his own African drumming business, ‘Afriquetone’ and David Gibbons-Wood, Director of the Centre for International Labour Market Studies.

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Appointment marks significant milestone for

new Energy Futures Research Centre

Professor Hicham Idriss has been appointed as Chair of

the new Energy Futures Research Centre, which will

conduct research into renewables and clean energy

resources with a view to developing future alternative

fuel supplies and sources.

Professor Idriss’ appointment marks a significant milestone

in the establishment of the facility that is jointly funded by

the University along with the University of Aberdeen and

Aberdeen City Council.

Formerly an Associate Professor at the Department of

Chemistry, University of Auckland, New Zealand, where

he was also a member of the Presidential Energy Panel

of the Royal Society of New Zealand, Professor Idriss

held previous positions in SABIC Industrial Complex

for Research and Development and at the universities

of Delaware and Illinois (Urbana) in the USA. He has

also worked with the 2007 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry,

Professor Gerhard Ertl, at the Fritz Haber Institute in Berlin.

Professor Idriss brings his internationally renowned

research expertise in catalysis and surface science, to his

role as Chair of the Centre. This will significantly

strengthen and complement the research capacities of

the two universities within the area of renewable energy

technologies.

Quantum leap for blood analysis research

A lecturer from the School of Pharmacy and Life Sciences

has developed an innovative sensor which could lead to

more effective identification of disease and development

of treatments.

Dr John Callan has developed an optical sensor which

could reduce the time and costs associated with identifying

abnormal events occurring within blood plasma.

Dr Callan’s work investigated quantum dots, a relatively

new class of fluorescent compounds which have superior

optical properties compared with organic dyes currently

used in optical sensors. By attaching a simple organic

receptor to the surface of a quantum dot, Dr Callan has

developed a sensor which can simultaneously detect

copper and iron thus potentially speeding

up diagnosis.

The research has been funded by a grant worth £210,500

from the Engineering and Physical Research Council, UK.

ChannelhanneRobert Gordon University was placed as 'The Top Modern University

for Research in Scotland' by the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE)

results in December 2008.

Brief To create an ident i ty more re f lect ive of

the profess iona l ser v ices and coach ing of fered by

Mar tha S impson Coach ing .

Solution A le f t - f ie ld approach was encouraged

by the c l ient and Zen l i ke imager y was adopted

as be ing re f lect ive of the wor k/ l i fe ba lance and

ba lanc ing act , pr ior i t i sa t ion themes f rom the

br ie f ing d i scuss ion .

Client MaRtha siMPson CoaChinG.

C O A C H I N G

Brief To create a look and d is t inct ive br and for

the packag ing and promot ion of the Thomas Fr aser

Record ings ; the acc la imed Shet land troubadour.

Solution A number of ‘ found ’ images of Thomas

Fr aser, h i s fami ly and aspects of Bur r a and Shet land

were combined with newly shot ‘ texture ’ images to

g ive the fee l ing of authent ic i ty heard in the mus ic .

Client kaRL siMPson, Thomas Fr aser ’s

gr andson chose Mar t in Par ker, Sen ior Des igner

and Photogr apher at The Gatehouse to produce

the ongoing des igns and ar twor k for four of h i s

gr andfather s a lbums of mus ic ; based on hav ing

wor ked with h im on un iver s i ty prospectuses .

The des igns are spun out onto CD and DVD

packag ing , l iner notes , promot iona l poster s ,

bus iness cards and concer t t i ckets and banner s .

Brief To create a ser ies of hea l th and sa fety

poster s for var ious in i t ia t ives .

Solution The pro jects invo lved copywr i t ing and

des ign to put across the var ious themes . Student

p lacements wor ked on the pro jects as wel l .

Client Occupat ional Health & Safety depar tment ,

Human Resources , RobeRt GoRdon UniveRsity .

Debris from machinary, chemicals, blades and glass can cause damage to your eye sight. If you are working with machinary or fragmentary substances and Saftey glasses are not available then please see your course leader, Line manager or contact www.rgu.ac.uk/hr/healthsafety

You never know they might

be able to Stitch You Up

When working with Sharp blades, glass and heavy machinery please be aware of your fingers. If you feel that you need some training in any of these fields then please see your course leader, Line manager or contact www.rgu.ac.uk/hr/healthsafety

Sometimes

‘Killer heels’

only cripple

Wet floors, slippery surfaces or icy conditions

and high heels don’t mix. The seasonal weather

change will make it increasingly dangerous to

wear high heels. Play safe and wear sensible

shoes or boots on campus. For further information

go to www.rgu.ac.uk/hr/healthsafety

Sometimes ‘Killer heels’

only cripple

Wet floors, slippery surfaces or icy conditions and high heels don’t mix. The seasonal

weather change will make it increasingly dangerous to wear high heels. Play safe and

wear sensible shoes or boots on campus. For further information go to

www.rgu.ac.uk/hr/healthsafety

S o m e t i m e s ‘Killer heels’only cripple

Wet floors, slippery surfaces or icy conditions and high heels don’t mix. The seasonal

weather change will make it increasingly dangerous to wear high heels. Play safe and

wear sensible shoes or boots on campus. For further information go to

www.rgu.ac.uk/hr/healthsafety

Brief To create a l i ve ly, in terest ing ser ies of

un iver s i ty news let ter s on an ongoing bas i s .

Solution The pro ject invo lved des ign and

photogr aphy for most i s sues ; he lp ing the

Communicat ions Depar tment put across the var ious

newswor thy i s sues occur r ing across the campuses

and beyond.

Client Communicat ions Depar tment ,


Nexus Head of School of Nursing and Midwifery Retires

Teaching and Learning Feature

Celebrating Student Success

October Issue

C o n n e c t i n g t h e U n i v e r s i t y c o m m u n i t y

University Ventures Investment Fund finances first companyRobert Gordon University’s Ventures Investment Fund LP (the RGU Fund) has part-funded its first project. The Fund is the first dedicated private equity fund for investment in intellectual property in any modern university in the UK. Thanks to funding from organisations including the RGU Fund, B1 Medical Limited has completed a second round financing of £1.1m.

BI Medical Limited is the University’s orthopaedics development and commercialisation spin-out company. It is developing a range of innovative new orthopaedic devices based on intellectual property licensed from the founding institutions and has an ongoing pipeline agreement giving it access to future inventions.

The RGU Fund was established by Frontier IP, a subsidiary of asset management group,

Sigma Capital Group plc. Specialising in the commercialisation of university intellectual property, Frontier IP has committed £300,000 to the RGU Fund, with the University committing up to £800,000.

The RGU Fund aims to help accelerate the development of commercial opportunities emerging from the University’s research programmes, and the Fund has the first right to fianace any spin-out company across any of its faculties.

Petrochallenge ‘Riding the Rapids’Two very different high-profile events took place at Robert Gordon University in September.

Pupils from across the North-east of Scotland pitted their wits against each other at Petrochallenge 2009 on 1 and 2 September, as they fought to become successful oil and gas operators in the UK heat of the major international competition.

Pupils from 37 secondary schools in the area took part in The Oil & Gas Academy PetroChallenge, an online event which saw pupils around the world battle it out as oil barons.

Around 350 S5 and S6 students participated in the third annual two-day event. Formerly known as OilSim, the 2009 challenge has been re-launched by OPITO – The Oil & Gas Academy, in partnership with educational specialist Simprentis. The event was also delivered in partnership with Opito and Simprentis, with prizes including a Robert Gordon University knowledge prize, which was awarded at Offshore Europe.

The winning team was Aboyne Academy, who will go on to represent the UK in the international final in London. They will face

fierce competition from other finalists from schools around the globe including the Faroe Islands, Norway, Greenland, Denmark, the US and Canada, in the finals in London in January 2010.

Riding the RapidsThe second event took place as a result of a global research project commissioned by PSN and McGrigors LLP, by Aberdeen Business School, to examine how some companies continue to prosper despite these times of volatility and uncertainty.

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Continued on page 3

Nexus Furthering global connections

Student experience is top of the agenda

RGU excels in national league tables

JUNE Issue


Staff and students got the chance to comment on the University’s revised Masterplan when it was unveiled at two events held at Garthdee and Schoolhill during May. Feedback was very positive, with a general consensus that the time spent in revisiting the original Masterplan had been worthwhile and the proposed plans for Garthdee were worthy of one of the best modern universities in the UK.

Masterplan 2009 gets thumbs up

Masterplan 2009, which will be submitted for planning permission this month, will see 34,000m2 of new buildings at Garthdee over a period of 10 years, with existing areas within Aberdeen Business School and the Faculty of Health and Social Care being modified for new use.

The decision to revisit the Masterplan was taken following feedback from staff and students in 2008 and the acquisition of an additional 50 acres of land on the south side of the River Dee. As a result, it was agreed that the University’s architects, Building Design Partnership, should review the project. This identified a number of benefits, including:

• A major entrance to the campus with all academic activity and student services consolidated within a short walking distance from what will be the heart of the University;

• Reduced disruption from construction to existing facilities;

• A shortened construction programme and economies in the construction costs;

• Reduced costs and disruption from moving staff out of existing buildings;

• A stunning view of the river from many of the new buildings.

Once planning permission has been approved, enabling work is expected to

start on site in early 2010, with phase 1 of the Masterplan construction programme scheduled to commence in September 2010.

Faculty of Health and Social Care Building

Artist’s impression of the proposed new site at Garthdee.

The proposed main entrance to the new build.

Nexus University confers Honorary Degree on Donald Trump

CORE wins prestigious national award

New Head of Gray’s School of Art appointed

Winter 2010/11


Former Dublin City University President appointed as PrincipalThe University has appointed Professor Ferdinand von Prondzynski as its new Principal and Vice-Chancellor. Professor von Prondzynski succeeds Professor Mike Pittilo MBE, who passed away in February.

In June 2010 Professor von Prondzynski completed a 10-year term as President of Dublin City University (DCU).

Professor von Prondzynski graduated from Trinity College, Dublin, with a BA and an LLB in 1978, and attained a PhD in Law at the University of Cambridge in 1983.

He began his academic career in 1980 as a Lecturer in the School of Business Studies at Trinity College, Dublin, becoming a Fellow in 1987. A move to the University of Hull in 1991 saw Professor von Prondzynski take up posts as Professor of Law, Dean of the Law School, the Jean Monnet Professor of European Social Law and Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences. He left Hull in 2000 to take up the Presidency of DCU.

During his time at DCU, Professor von Prondzynski led a number of strategic developments including a significant growth in research income (from about £3 million in 2000 to nearly £40 million in 2009), major campus investment and development, and positioning DCU as a major contributor to Ireland’s global knowledge economy and society. He initiated a number of major partnership projects with industry, and also the establishment of the DCU Ryan Academy for Entrepreneurship (funded by the late Ryanair founder, Dr Tony Ryan). As a result, DCU rose 21 places in the Times Higher Education World Rankings in two years (from 300 in 2007, to 279 in 2009).

He is an international authority on employment and commercial law, and is an active commentator on academic and social issues through the media, and his blog (universitydiary.wordpress.com) is now Ireland’s most widely read blog.

Commenting on his appointment, Professor von Prondzynski said, “I am delighted to be taking up this exciting appointment. Robert Gordon University has been one of higher education’s major success stories and is widely recognised for the excellence of its programmes and for its capacity to respond to the needs of students and of the wider society.”

Professor von Prondzynski will take up his post in March 2011.

Professor Ferdinand von Prondzynski

Sunday Times names University ‘Scottish University of the Year’The University has been awarded the accolade of Scottish University of the Year by The Sunday Times.

Published in September, the supplement commends the University’s excellent academic provision, consistently strong graduate employability levels and bold, strategic masterplan.

Continued on page 11

Nexus University continues success in league tables

Researcher commended by European Wound Management Association

New Head of Management appointed at Aberdeen Business School

Autumn 2010


Art and design success at two prestigious showsThousands of people attended the University’s two high profile shows in June, beginning with the BP Fine Art and Design Awards which launched Gray’s Degree Show 2010.

The winners of this year’s BP Design Award and BP Fine Art Award were presented with specially commissioned trophies and a cheque for £500 each on 18 June at the opening night of the Show, sponsored by BP.

Tim Smith, Vice President Communications and External Affairs, BP Scotland, said, “BP was delighted to continue sponsorship of the Gray’s School of Art Degree Show for the seventh year. Once again we have been impressed by the creativity and quality of the students’ work. This made the judging for the BP Design Award and BP Fine Art Award both very difficult and very enjoyable.”

The BP Design Award was won by graphic design student Daniel Gear for his work on the debate about wind farm developments on Shetland. David produced a book and video programme illustrating the views of Shetlanders who are passionately involved in both sides of the debate. His aim was to engage people and keep the information objective and unbiased so Shetlanders could come to their own conclusions. Shetland Museum has requested his work for their archives.

The BP Fine Art Award was won by photographic and electronic media student Catherine Weir for her thought- provoking work on the construct of time

(L to R): BP’s Tim Smith with winning students Margaret Gray, Alexander Gordon, Jill Patterson, Daniel Gear and Catherine Weir.

and our technological society. The basis of her work was a quote from the Japanese writer and photographer Shuji Terayama that “People cannot see time, they can only see clocks”. Catherine’s work combines modern and obsolete technology such as a box brownie camera and candles, together with digital technology. Her exhibit included a candle clock, digital sun dial and a series of images of the universe captured on a box brownie.

In addition to the main prizes, Alexander Gordon was highly commended in the BP Fine Art category, and Jill Patterson and Margaret Gray were both commended in the BP Design Award. They each received a cheque for £250.

Continued on page 9

RGU claims victory in Universities Boat Race

The University’s Boat Club rowed their way to victory in the 14th Aberdeen Asset Management Universities Boat Race on Saturday 28 February with a personal best of 8:03.6 minutes.

The winning RGU team powered through 3.5km of chilling water with more than 5,440 agonising strokes, from Bridge of Dee to Aberdeen Boat Club, to reach the finishing line in Torry one length ahead of their Aberdeen University rivals. This marks the second time that RGU has successfully challenged its rivals in Scotland’s longest-running rowing race. The build up to the main race started at 1.30pm with the Second Universities’ Crew and Alumni boat races but both

of these races were won by teams from Aberdeen University. Those who rowed as part of the first crew and claimed victory for RGU on the day were: Feargal O’Shea, Rory O’Brien, Duncan Brown, Craig Majoribanks, Lucy Bonnamy, Ruth Donald, Kirsten Tolstyko, Judith Herbert and Rachel Brodie. Captain of RGU’s crew, Judith Herbert said: “I am so glad that we won the race! It took six months of organising and two months of

hard training and I am glad that it paid off for us in the end. After our disappointment last year, this has proved that our last win was not down to ‘luck’ and that we have a talented, high- performing club. I hope that this is the start of a long run of RGU victories in the Universities Boat Race!” Filippo Antoniazzi, Director of Sport at RGU added: “Winning the event for the second time in four years is a tremendous result and is testament to all the hard work that the crew and coaches have put in over a very difficult winter.”

Nexus Corporate visual identity update

University life enhanced by industry links

Reinforcing your data protection responsibilites

APRIL Issue


Brief To update a media company ’s

corporate ident i ty.

Solution Using modern v ibr ant co lour s and

deve lop ing the new br and on f rom the prev ious

ident i ty ; e lements were deve loped to be appl ied

across a wide r ange of media inc lud ing veh ic le

l i ver y, e lectron ic media and pr int .

Client visCoM video and MULtiMedia

V I S COM [ABERDEEN] LIMITED 430 CLIFTON ROAD ABERDEEN AB24 4EJ TEL +44 (0) 1224 663500 FAX +44 (0) 1224 663520

R i t d O f f i S h l h i l l A b d A B 1 0 1 F R S t l d R i t d i S t l d N S C 1 3 6 9 5 5 V t N 6 0 5 0 0 9 9 7 1

Bruce MilneGeneral Manager/Head of Production

[email protected] tel: 0845 345 1987 mobile: 07974 572506

V I D E O & M U L T I M E D I A

Lesley DavidsonMarketing and Business Development


Elliot HornellCamera Operator / Editor


Ian McLachlanMultimedia Technician

[email protected] tel: 0845 345 1987

Jacqui BrownProject Co-ordinator/Graphic Designer


Treena GilesSenior Administrator


Julie VickersCompany Secretary/Financial Controller


Elaine WalkerClerical Assistant


Jane HallAssistant Producer


V I D E O & M U L T I M E D I A V I D E O & M U L T I M E D I A

V I D E O & M U L T I M E D I A V I D E O & M U L T I M E D I AV I D E O & M U L T I M E D I A

V I D E O & M U L T I M E D I A V I D E O & M U L T I M E D I A V I D E O & M U L T I M E D I A

VISCOM [ABERDEEN] LIMITED 430 CLIFTON ROAD ABERDEEN AB24 4EJ TEL +44 (0) 1224 663500 FAX +44 (0) 1224 663520

RitdOffiShlhillAbdAB101FRStldRitdiStldNSC136955VtN605009971



VISCOM [ABERDEEN] LIMITED 430 CLIFTON ROAD ABERDEEN AB24 4EJ TEL +44 (0) 1224 663500 FAX +44 (0) 1224 663520

RitdOffiShlhillAbdAB101FRStldRitdiStldNSC136955VtN605009971



V I D E O & M U L T I M E D I A

V ISCOM

Brief To deve lop a d i s t inct ive look for one of the

Univer s i ty ’s bus iness deve lopment un i t s

Solution I t was fe l t that the mar ket i s satur ated

wi th l i ter ature conta in ing amer ican s ty le s tock

images . A more i l lus t r at ive approach was proposed ;

g iv ing a h igh ly d i s t inct ive look that was appl ied

across a r ange of media .

Client CREDO, RobeRt GoRdon UniveRsity

Brief To produce a document that h igh l ights the

companies commitment to t r a inees and mentor ing .

Solution An i l lus t r at ive and photogr aph ic

approach was used , together wi th rea l - l i fe quotes

and photos of t r a inees and sta f f .

Client RaebURn ChRistie CLaRk & WaLLaCe

Brief To deve lop a look for the Univer s i ty ’s

a lumni and f r iends of the un iver s i ty magaz ine

Solution Bold , d i s t inct ive ed i tor ia l photogr aphy

was used on the cover s and prominent ly

throughout the magaz ines .

Client Deve lopment and Alumni depar tment

Brief To deve lop logos for a r ange of c l ients ,

both interna l and externa l .

Solution A di f ferent approach was taken in each

example i l lus t r ated .

Client VARIOUS

CORE • CENTRE FO

R O

BESITY RESEARCH A

ND E

PID

EMIO

LO

GY •

CORE • CENTR

E FOR

OBESITY RESEARCH A

ND E

PID

EMIO

LO

GY •

bollocksto cancer

UNITECHSCOTLAND

C O A C H I N G

METe n t e r p r i s e s

Business SupportServices & it training

sonomatici n n o v a t i v e i n s p e c t i o n t e c h n o l o g i e s

Our order forms are available online at www.rgu.ac.uk/gandp or hardcopies from The Gatehouse reception.

If you would like any more information about our services or facilities,would like a tour of our premises or would like a meeting to discuss your requirements please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

administration contacts:Bill Walker, Print Manager x2944Neil Harrison, Business Administrator x2945Janice Wright, PT Business Administrator x2947design contacts:Martin Parker, Design Manager x2942Alison Allan, Studio Supervisor x2941Sheena Bowman, Designer x2941Jenny Ellis, Designer x2941Sarah Begg, Designer x2941Annmarie Riddell, PT Designer x2941print contacts:Raymond Irvine, Print Supervisor x2943Jon McMillan, Lithographer x2943Dave Russell, Lithographer x2943photocopying contacts:Lorne Kerr, Printing Assistant x2940Brenda Sutherland, Printing Assistant x2940binding contact:Mary Murray, Finisher x2940

The Gatehouse, Design & Print Consultancy,Garthdee Road, Aberdeen AB10 7AQT: 01224 262945 F: 01224 262949

www.rgu.ac.uk/gandp

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