Building resilient communities
Disaster Tech is a SaaS startup providing disaster management software that helps save lives, protect the environment, and build resilient communities. Their platform Pratus is leveraged by decision-makers to predict, prepare, and decide for any crisis.
Dealing with disaster situations is always a challenge; communicating them as well. Disaster Tech reached out to us to find a name and develop the visual identity and UI design system for their platform, which is used by decision-makers to manage incidents and exercises in one place. Before, during, and after natural and humanitarian disasters, the platform is the core of effective crisis management.
Concept
With the goal of communicating the benefits of the platform, the approach was to convey 360° security and reliability with every element of the product, representing the OODA loop, a four-step approach to decision-making used in crisis management: observe, orient, decide, and act. Since the company Disaster Tech is still the focus of communication, the visual identity of the platform needed to fit seamlessly into the existing branding. Therefore, the heritage of the mother brand is made visible in the product.
Naming
Pratus is derived from the Latin word "paratus," which means "readiness" or "preparedness". It encapsulates the core essence of the platform, emphasizing its focus on equipping businesses and governments with the necessary tools and strategies to be ready for any crisis. Pratus is concise and memorable, easy to recall and recognize. Its simplicity adds to its versatility, enabling it to resonate across different markets and industries. With its modern and distinctive sound—strong consonants (p, r, t ) and a back vowel (u)—Pratus conveys a reliable, established, and trustworthy platform.
Logo
The Pratus logo consists of an isotype and a logotype, with the possibility of using the combination as an imagotype or just the isotype on its own. Drawing on the OODA loop, in the isotype of Pratus, the concept of a cycle is represented and reflects Pratus' execution: prepare, predict, and decide; a constantly reiterating process. In addition, the isotype evolved from the current logo of the parent brand, making the relation with the parent company clearly visible. In the logotype, the inclination of the P and R, suggests the sensation of forward movement, the strong and upright T, on the other hand, conveys resilience.
Colors
The color palette encapsulates technology, progress, tranquility, and trust with its blue and gray tones. Tech Blue and Serenity Blue embody innovation, while their calmness fosters confidence. Shades of gray complement it, being neutral and versatile in their use. Together, they communicate the brand values concisely, following the color scheme of the main Disaster Tech brand. In the isotype, we use a calm gradient from Tech Blue to Serenity Blue, representing the flow of the loop concept and the evolution to a greater degree of resilience.
Typography
Pratus' typography is Montserrat, an open-source font, versatile for most applications, with excellent screen legibility. It is used for overlines, titles, CTAs, and body text. Its clear lines, also in uppercase, and straightforward shapes allow the user to focus easily on the content and make it the perfect way to communicate such a dense topic.
Imagery
The imagery of Pratus consists of the brand shapes and icons, paired with meticulously chosen photography. With the photographs, one important factor is highlighted in Pratus' communication: humans. On the one hand, portraits of people looking confidently into the future are used, representing a positive outlook. On the other, photographs representing individuals in close collaboration embrace the teamwork inherent in resolving disaster situations.
Illustration
The abstract and simple brand shapes can be used across different brand touchpoints and help build the brand, with their distinctive forms enhancing recognizability. Starting from two basic geometric shapes inherent in the logo, diverse patterns can be generated, adding strength and recognition to the brand. For the platform, we also created branded icons that match the logo perfectly because of their tilt.
As the Pratus platform is the core of Disaster Tech, its new visual identity needed to be applied to the UI as well. During a brief audit of their existing user interface, several issues occurred that needed to be resolved in line with the new design. Therefore, we made improvements to the usability of the platform, making it more intuitive and practical for its users. Above all, we worked on the dashboard, the map view, and the organizational view. We also adapted the general layout, reorganizing the navbar and sidebar to provide an optimal user experience. By redefining and designing elements like bars, buttons, and tables, we reached a cohesive, improved user experience across the whole Pratus platform. The next step was to incorporate the new brand aesthetic into the platform. For the sidebar, we designed icons that represent different applications within the digital product, such as alerts or the map view. Colors play an important role in risk management; the color palette used was carefully chosen to be distinct enough to summarize visually important elements but calm enough to offer a smooth user experience. These colors are represented in elements such as risk and alert status, projects, and in the map view, where they immediately give an overview of incidents. Not only colors are used to organize and categorize different types of incidents on the platform, but we also created shapes that differentiate forms of disasters such as earthquakes or fires.
"Great teamwork and great listeners."
They are great listeners and take feedback well and constructively to improve the end products which align with our company mission. They were on time and flexible.
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