Building Brand Systems for Secure Hardware

Design SHIFT

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Summary

Industry: Consumer Electronics, Secure Computing
Timeline: 2016-2017 · Contractor (18 months)

Role: Lead Product Designer · Brand & Visual Identity Designer · Product Launch Design
Scope: Product communication · Brand system foundations · Hardware documentation · Packaging & printed manuals · Marketing & investor materials

Design Software: Adobe Photoshop · Adobe Illustrator · Adobe InDesign · OmniGraffle
Platforms: Mailchimp
Production: Product photography (studio setup & lighting) · Print production workflow

I served as the sole designer supporting secure hardware products in a highly regulated environment, translating complex security requirements into coherent visual systems across physical devices, digital touchpoints, and field marketing environments.

Due to confidentiality constraints, certain product-level visuals cannot be displayed. This case study highlights publicly released marketing and event materials.

Key Achievements

Established design governance and built the company’s first operational brand system
Directed ORWL’s full visual rebrand, aligning the brand system with its shift toward enterprise and government security markets
Partnered directly with executive leadership on investor-facing materials supporting fundraising efforts
Oversaw the art direction of the ORWL e-commerce platform to ensure alignment with the updated brand positioning
Consolidated cross-team asset workflows to improve execution consistency across product, marketing, and trade environments

Overview

Design SHIFT was a hardware engineering firm operating in high-trust, regulated markets. The company developed hardware products for industry leaders, collaborating across distributed teams with engineering based in the United States and Taiwan, and marketing support in France.

ORWL was a physically secure computer designed to protect sensitive data through hardware-based authentication and encrypted storage. The project was successfully funded on Crowd Supply, raising over four times its goal.

I joined Design SHIFT during the product launch phase to help establish the brand, design the first user documentation, and support the product’s go-to-market strategy.

ORWL is a physically secure computer that requires a keyfob to activate and runs on both Windows and Ubuntu.
Photo Credit: Stephanie Lesperance for Design SHIFT

Challenges

When I joined, design responsibilities were shared between internal teams and external contributors, without clearly defined governance.

No clear design ownership across teams
No centralized brand system
Inconsistent logo usage and typography
Working within a fragmented asset environment without shared source governance.

Additional Challenge: domain fluency

I entered the project without prior experience in secure hardware. To design accurate and credible materials, I had to quickly understand core security concepts, product architecture, and positioning constraints.

Design Objectives

The design work addressed three main goals:

Communicating a hardware-based security model to both non-technical users and enterprise buyers
Establishing a credible brand during the product launch phase
Creating a consistent experience across hardware, packaging, documentation, and digital channels

Brand System Rationalization

Building a foundational brand system

Rather than producing an extensive brand manual, I created a practical guideline tailored to engineering teams.

When I joined, the ORWL logo did not exist as a vector file. Multiple versions were circulating internally, leading to inconsistencies across product materials. I rebuilt the logo and produced validated vector files with clear usage rules within the brand guidelines.

Internal Design System & Asset Library

To improve consistency, I also structured a centralized asset library across Adobe Creative Cloud and Google Drive, enabling teams to work from a single source.

Scope of Work

Reconstructed the brand color system from legacy and physical materials
Developed the first internal brand guideline
Standardized logo usage, typography, and color definitions
Centralized brand assets in a structured repository
Created reusable templates for marketing and sales materials

First structured brand guideline consolidating logo usage and core visual standards.

Defined typography hierarchy and standardized color system to ensure cross-platform consistency.

Established naming conventions and brand usage rules to reduce inconsistencies across teams.

Brand ORWL – Launch Materials

Launch & Field Marketing System for ORWL

I inherited an existing but undocumented visual direction and turned it into a consistent set of materials used for product launch, sales conversations, and trade shows. These materials established the visual and narrative foundation for ORWL’s public launch and trade presence.

Scope of work:

Shaped the first cohesive launch narrative across print and digital
Designed and optimized the main sales brochure for both print and email distribution
Created a modular datasheet template to support product updates
Ensured visual consistency aligned with high-trust, security-focused markets
Developed a 4’×6’ double-sided trade show banner for field presence
Maintained a minimal, high-contrast visual language to reinforce credibility

4’x6’ double-sided trade show banner

Bridging Engineering & Brand

The exploded AutoCAD view used in several customer-facing artifacts.

Team collaboration

As part of the product launch, I transformed an internal exploded AutoCAD view shared by the Taiwanese engineering team into a printed postcard and user guide included in early ORWL boxes.

What began as a technical internal document became a customer-facing artifact celebrating the product’s precision and the people behind it.

This gesture helped bridge engineering and brand, and reinforced a shared sense of ownership across teams.

Product Documentation & Compliance Integration

I designed the official user manual to be integrated directly into ORWL product packaging. The challenge was to balance strict regulatory requirements (CE, FCC, Industry Canada) with a clear layout.

I structured activation instructions, legal disclosures, and technical compliance information into a concise four-page manual designed for international distribution.

Designed a compact manual integrating CE, FCC, and Industry Canada requirements while maintaining visual clarity and brand consistency.
(Interior pages)

First production units of ORWL, shipped to early backers in an aluminum carrying case with the user manual I designed.
Photo credit: Design SHIFT, Taiwan Team

Brand Repositioning

As ORWL entered security-driven enterprise markets, the brand required stronger alignment with Design SHIFT’s positioning and credibility.

I redesigned the ORWL logo and consolidated the visual system to create a clearer, more structured identity aligned with high-trust technical audiences.

What Changed

Designed new ORWL logo aligned with parent brand (Design SHIFT)
Simplified visual language to reduce marketing noise
Shifted focus from conceptual security metaphors to technical credibility
Structured a modular layout system for cross-sector adaptation

Extract of the new brochure - repositionning ORWL for high-trust technical audiences.

Thales Security Partnership

Designed a scalable template for long-form technical thought leadership, supporting ORWL’s positioning in high-trust security markets.

Hardware Security Thought Leadership – Thales Partnership

As ORWL expanded into government and defense-adjacent markets, the company initiated external partnerships to strengthen its credibility. I supported this phase by developing co-branded communication systems and structured editorial materials:

Designed white paper template intended for quarterly publication
Structured long-form technical content for both print and digital distribution
Directed visual language for security-focused positioning

Co-Branded Webinar Campaign

For this event, I developed and executed a co-branded communication system across email and social channels to support ORWL’s security positioning in partnership with Thales.

Invitation emails and Twitter assets aligned with Thales partnership communications.

Conclusion

This experience deepened my ability to operate in highly technical environments and collaborate closely with engineering teams. By establishing structured brand systems, documentation standards, and packaging consistency, I helped transform ORWL from a technically ambitious product into a cohesive, production-ready offering.

Entering the secure hardware industry without prior background was initially challenging, but it confirmed something important: I am comfortable translating complex technical systems into structured visual frameworks alongside industry veterans.

This chapter shaped how I approach technical industries today: with curiosity, structural rigor, and respect for the people behind the systems. It also reinforced the importance of clear governance, transparent leadership, and defined design ownership in high-stakes environments.

The collaboration concluded following the company’s financial restructuring.

ORWL production units prepared for distribution.
Photo credit: Design SHIFT, Taiwan Team

⁂
Currently open to the right opportunity.

I'm always happy to discuss design, hear about your next big idea, or talk storytelling over tea.

Email me at hello@stephanielesperance.com
or reach out on LinkedIn.