It’s a bit of a Catch-22 for emerging industrial designers. Without a portfolio of products under their belt it’s almost impossible to put original designs into production because Canada’s secondary industry is so miniscule. Still many designers don’t sit around waiting for the phone to ring. Instead they develop new concepts from scratch, source the materials, sub-contract the manufacturing and thus nurture a new design from cradle to working prototype. It’s a risky business since time and money is involved and there is no guarantee of success. Every once in a while a clever designer hits a home run. Two years ago, Matthew Kroeker launched Splinter bench at IDS Prototype: New Ideas for the Home. The wood seating system fits together like a jigsaw puzzle and was picked up by Jane Hamley Wells, a furniture manufacturer in Chicago. Last month Interior Design awarded Splinter a merit award for best residential seating in 2007. Industrial designer Derek McLeod is another regular at IDS Prototype. Because of his talent and entrepreneurial spirit his clients include Speke/Klein and Seating Systems International. He’s currently in negotiation with an Italian manufacturer to produce Sum, his elegant walnut chair, which he showed at Prototype 07.